BEDFORD — A Bedford man is facing multiple drug and impaired driving charges following a late-night traffic stop on Mitchell Road that involved a police K-9 alert, failed sobriety tests, and a subsequent recovery of narcotics.
Cory Brent Lee, 34, of Bedford, was arrested on April 11, 2026, by the Lawrence County Police Department. Court documents reveal he now faces preliminary charges of possession of methamphetamine, a Level 6 felony, possession of a legend drug, a Class A misdemeanor, and operating a vehicle while intoxicated/controlled substance, a Class C misdemeanor.
According to the probable cause affidavit filed by Sgt. Robin Compton, the incident began at approximately 9:15 p.m. while the sergeant was patrolling northbound on Mitchell Road near Sandpit Road.
Sgt. Compton observed a 2019 Jeep Cherokee traveling northbound with its rear hatch open and a small four-wheeler partially protruding from the cargo area. The officer witnessed the vehicle slow down, drift left of the center yellow line, and strike a water drainage grate before correcting. After observing several more instances of the vehicle crossing the center line, Sgt. Compton initiated a traffic stop.
The Jeep pulled into the parking lot of the Marathon gas station located at 3016 Mitchell Road. Upon making contact, Sgt. Compton noted that Lee’s speech was slow and his movements were lethargic. Lee claimed he was traveling to a residence on 11th Street and attributed the erratic driving to having a compact “donut” spare tire on the front of his vehicle.
When Lee denied a request from Officer Martin to search the vehicle, a specialized K-9 unit was called to the scene. Officer K. Carter arrived with his K-9 partner, Boon, a dual-purpose police dog certified in narcotics detection.
While Lee underwent standardized field sobriety tests, K-9 Boon performed a free-air sniff of the vehicle’s exterior. The dog gave a final alert by sitting near the driver’s side door. A subsequent physical search of the vehicle by officers uncovered a pink Velo nicotine tin on the driver’s floorboard containing a plastic baggie with a crystal-like substance that field-tested positive for methamphetamine.
Officer Martin reported that Lee failed multiple portions of the roadside sobriety tests.
Officer Carter then administered an Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement (ARIDE) evaluation, which further demonstrated signs of substance impairment:
- Finger-to-Nose Test: Lee was slow to respond and repeatedly missed the tip of his nose.
- Modified Romberg Balance Test: Instructed to close his eyes and count to 30 in his head, Lee stood for 45 seconds before advising he was finished.
Officer Haluda with the Bedford Police Department arrived to assist with a Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) evaluation. Though Lee ultimately declined the full DRE evaluation, he did submit to Indiana Implied Consent for a chemical test. He was transported to IU Health Bedford Hospital, where a registered nurse drew a blood sample at 10:34 p.m.
Lee was then transported to the Lawrence County Security Center for booking. Upon exiting the patrol vehicle at the jail, Lee reportedly handed Sgt. Compton a prescription bottle, stating he “wanted to be honest.”
Inside the bottle, officers discovered:
- Additional methamphetamine, bringing the total combined weight of the recovered meth to approximately 1.4 grams.
- An unidentified prescription pill.
- An unidentified black-and-white substance weighing approximately 1.8 grams.
Lee was formally arrested on-site and booked into the county jail.
All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. This article is based on the information provided in the probable cause affidavit and does not represent a final determination of guilt or innocence.
