Mifflinburg woman pleads guilty in marijuana delivery case involving son

A Mifflinburg mother pleaded guilty in Union County Court after prosecutors said her medical marijuana vape pen was shared with her 15-year-old son, turning a home drug issue into a child-safety case with criminal consequences.

Melissa Ann Wagner, 40, of North Eighth Street, entered the plea on April 11 before Union County Judge Michael Piecuch at the Union County Courthouse in Lewisburg. Wagner admitted to one misdemeanor count of possession of marijuana with intent to deliver. Under the reported agreement, if Piecuch accepts it, Wagner faces three to six months in jail or house arrest.

The plea marks a major step in the case, but it is not the final word. The judge still must approve the deal and decide whether to attach conditions tied to sentencing, supervision or treatment. Earlier charges included a felony count of endangering the welfare of a child, and that charge was among those expected to be dismissed under the agreement.

The case began with a ChildLine referral. ChildLine is Pennsylvania’s 24-hour hotline for suspected child abuse and child-wellbeing concerns, and cases routed through it can trigger review by the state and local system when a child’s safety may be at risk.

The underlying facts matter because Pennsylvania’s Medical Marijuana Act, enacted in 2016, permits medical marijuana for registered patients and caregivers, but it does not give a parent open-ended authority to provide marijuana to a minor. State child-welfare law says a parent, guardian or other person supervising a child under 18 can commit endangering the welfare of children by knowingly endangering the child through a breach of the duty of care, protection or support.

For Mifflinburg, a borough of about 3,473 people, the case carries the kind of visibility that comes with a small community and a local defendant. Piecuch, who previously served as Snyder County district attorney before joining the bench in 2023, heard the plea in a court that covers both Union and Snyder counties. The resolution may close the criminal charge, but it leaves the central question intact: how a claimed medical marijuana use case crossed into the territory of juvenile risk and child welfare.