Misdemeanor drug charges against Olympic gold medalist skier Bode Miller are set to be dismissed by an eastern Idaho prosecutor, despite initial probable cause for his arrest.
Miller, 48, was arrested on June 6 in Fremont County, facing charges of possessing psilocybin mushrooms. He entered a not guilty plea last week, asserting he was unaware his friend, who was with him, had a small quantity of drugs.
County Prosecutor Lindsey Blake confirmed the dismissal of drug possession and paraphernalia charges in a statement to The Associated Press on Friday.
Blake explained: “Although the deputy had sufficient probable cause to arrest Mr. Miller at the beginning of June, we recently received information which resulted in our office determining it is in the interest of justice to dismiss Mr. Miller’s misdemeanor charges.”
She declined to elaborate on the specifics, citing their connection to “another active case”, which online court records suggest involves a different individual charged with similar offenses.
Miller’s attorney, Jeromy Stafford, did not immediately respond to requests for comment, though he had previously told media outlets that Miller possessed no drugs at the time of his arrest.
In an Instagram post earlier this week, Miller recounted being pulled over for accelerating to pass a vehicle. He stated his friend had a small amount of cannabis and a pipe, which he claimed he was unaware of.
“We fully cooperated with the officer,” Miller wrote, adding, “I am hopeful the misdemeanor charges will be dropped once the facts are reviewed.”
Conversely, Fremont County Sheriff’s Deputy Jacob Hurt’s probable cause statement indicated Miller was found with a white dispensary bag containing 4.1 grams of psychedelic mushrooms.
The 48-year-old Miller is renowned for his audacious, high-stakes approach to ski racing, which earned him six Olympic medals, including a gold in the super-combined at the 2010 Vancouver Games, alongside numerous dramatic crashes.
He officially retired in late 2017, concluding a career that included 33 World Cup victories and four world championship gold medals.
He is the most successful American alpine skier in history, and is widely regarded as one of the greatest skiers ever.
