Post Falls drug dealer sent to prison

Vern Clifford Hinds, 71, was recently sentenced to prison after being convicted of three counts of delivery of methamphetamine and one count of trafficking in methamphetamine in May.

According to a Monday press release from the Kootenai County Prosecuting Attorney's Office, officers used a confidential informant to purchase methamphetamine from Hinds in June and July 2025.

On Aug. 28, 2025, officers conducted a traffic stop of a vehicle Hinds was driving and arrested him without incident, a press release said.

Hinds’ criminal history includes convictions for DUI, hit and run, driving while suspended, possession of a controlled substance and resisting/obstructing officers. 

At sentencing, Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Art Verharen recommended a unified 20-year prison sentence with parole eligibility after five years for the charges. District Judge Regina McCrea sentenced Hinds on Aug. 3 to a unified 20-year prison sentence with parole eligibility after five years for the charges.

Delivery of methamphetamine is a felony, punishable by up to life in prison. Trafficking in methamphetamine is a felony, punishable by up to life in prison with a three-year mandatory minimum fixed term of imprisonment.