Olympic skiing star Bode Miller has pleaded not guilty to two misdemeanor drug charges in Idaho following his arrest earlier this month. According to court records cited by the Associated Press, Miller entered his plea after being charged with possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. The former Olympic champion has denied wrongdoing and said he hopes the charges will be dropped once authorities review all the facts surrounding the incident.
Bode Miller pleads not guilty to Idaho drug charges
The 48-year-old former skier was arrested on June 6 in eastern Idaho. Court records show he later pleaded not guilty to both charges. In a post shared on Instagram, Miller explained that he was stopped by police after accelerating to pass another vehicle on a highway. He said a friend who was traveling with him had a small amount of cannabis and a cannabis pipe, adding that he was unaware those items were in the vehicle.
“We fully cooperated with the officer,” Miller wrote. “I am hopeful the misdemeanor charges will be dropped once the facts are reviewed.”
The court documents do not provide many details about what happened during the stop. However, a probable cause statement filed by Fremont County Sheriff’s Deputy Jacob Hurt stated that officers found Miller carrying a white dispensary bag that contained 4.1 grams of psilocybin mushrooms.
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The case comes as conversations around psychedelic substances continue to evolve across the United States. Idaho still has some of the country’s strictest drug laws. At the same time, states such as Colorado and Oregon have legalized the supervised use of psilocybin for certain therapeutic treatments.
According to the Associated Press, interest in psychedelic treatments has grown in recent years, with some advocates arguing that controlled use may help people dealing with anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder. Earlier this year, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing federal agencies to speed up psychedelic research and review processes.
Miller remains one of the most successful American alpine skiers in history. He won six Olympic medals, including gold in the super combined event at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. During his career, he also claimed 33 World Cup victories, two overall World Cup titles and four gold medals at world championships.
His last major international race came at the 2015 World Championships in Beaver Creek, Colorado, where a heavy crash ended his competition and eventually led to surgery for a torn hamstring tendon.
