Cops Didn't Wait on Palin Run to Bust Levi's Mom: Probe

The drug case against Bristol Palin’s future mother-in-law wasn’t slowed for political reasons, an investigation found yesterday. A state trooper had suggested as much in an email, prompting a flurry of national concern, the Anchorage Daily News reports. But a probe by the union representing troopers found that the claim was prompted by misunderstandings between case investigators and state safety officials.

“Events nationally, and their affects (sic) locally, certainly may have influenced” Levi Johnston’s mother Sherry’s “behaviors and ultimately the timeline of the case," said the public safety chief. But “accusations that political motives were behind the decision on how to manage this case are baseless." With no lawyer or supporters backing her in court, Johnston pleaded not guilty yesterday to six counts of possession and sale of OxyContin. She subsequently received a public defender.