LOCK HAVEN - A 73-year-old, retired local university professor accused of growing marijuana plants may have been involved in a drug enterprise with state, national and even international connections, Clinton County's chief prosecutor said.
Lawrence "Larry" Lebin, of 169 Gwynned Wynd Road, was slated for a preliminary hearing in Central District Court on Tuesday. However, the hearing was delayed to allow District Attorney Michael Salisbury to be sworn in as a special deputy attorney to help head a state-county legal team to prosecute the case.
Lebin, who taught at Lock Haven University for nearly 40 years before retiring in 2002, was arrested in September after law enforcement officials searched his property off Route 120 north of here and allegedly seized more than 130 marijuana plants, guns, cash and more.
The case has been delayed for at least two weeks.
In the meantime, Salisbury and Deputy Attorney General David Gorman, of the Bureau of Narcotics Investigation in State College, told Lebin's attorney of the developments and gave Richard Galloway the extra time to prepare for the situation.
The move opens up a number of opportunities for the prosecution, including the convening of a statewide grand jury to uncover additional suspects or defendants in connection with the case.
"We presented the situation to defense counsel and offered to extend the hearing," Salisbury said. "From what we could glean of the evidence we uncovered, the enterprise's scope went beyond the county and state ... and perhaps beyond national borders."
