Melissa Koeppler Sentenced for Attempted Meth Possession, Faces Parental Rights Action

Melissa Ann Koeppler, 39, of Menominee pleaded guilty to attempted possession of methamphetamine and was sentenced Feb. 20, 2026, to 18 months to five years in prison by Judge Mary B. Barglind in the 41st Circuit Court. The sentence follows a criminal case that local prosecutors say included repeated noncompliance with court-ordered supervision.

Koeppler was placed on probation in December 2024 with terms intended to rehabilitate her, according to Menominee County prosecutorial filings cited by the county prosecutor’s office. Prosecutors and court records show multiple probation violations in 2025 that prompted additional jail time that year “in an effort to coerce compliance with the court’s orders following several probation violations in 2025.”

Following those 2025 sanctions, Koeppler later pleaded guilty to two probation violations: one for use of methamphetamine and one for failing to report to her probation officer, filings and press materials from the prosecutor’s office state. Those violations were folded into the criminal proceedings that culminated in the Feb. 20 sentencing by Judge Barglind.

A contemporaneous family-division abuse and neglect case was filed in the Family Division of the 41st Circuit Court before Judge Daniel E. Hass with an initial stated goal of reunifying Koeppler with her children. The children were removed from Koeppler’s custody because of her ongoing drug use, and Judge Hass subsequently terminated Koeppler’s parental rights to her four children, court notices and local reporting show.

Menominee County Prosecuting Attorney Jeffrey T. Rogg emphasized the case as symptomatic of local drug problems, stating, “Ms. Koeppler’s cases illustrate the powerful hold that methamphetamine has on addicts.” Rogg added, “I know her very well, and I am dismayed that she still craves methamphetamine and likes the experience of using it,” and “At some point, a prison sentence is the only option left available. That her innocent children have suffered the loss of their mother in their lives is also extremely disconcerting.” Rogg further said, “Methamphetamine’s presence in Menominee County has grown in recent years. Combatting this methamphetamine activity, at the user and supplier levels, is among the highest priorities of my office.”

Judge Barglind, in handing down the prison term, observed that Koeppler “has not demonstrated progress or a willingness to change,” language recorded in the sentencing materials. Public reports of the case do not include the original arrest date, the amount of meth involved, exact plea dates for the probation violations, or whether restitution or post-release supervision were ordered.

With the 18-month to five-year sentence entered in the 41st Circuit Court and Judge Hass’s termination order on the family-division docket, Koeppler faces a period of incarceration and the loss of parental rights to four children, according to court actions and statements from the Menominee County Prosecuting Attorney’s office.