Ross M. Cammisa

A Butler man was sentenced to jail Tuesday for hosting multiple drug operations — including running a methamphetamine lab with his sister — and driving under the influence.

Ross M. Cammisa, 36, was sentenced to a total of 16 to 32 months in state prison for three cases.

Cammisa pleaded guilty to possession of a controlled substance, with which he was charged March 26, 2018; operating a methamphetamine lab and risking catastrophe, with which he was charged in 2017; and driving under the influence May 6, 2016. He pleaded guilty to all charges March 22.

Angelo Papa, the defendant's lawyer, said the sentencing marked a lifetime of struggling with substance abuse. Cammisa received a year's worth of credit for time already served in jail.

“This guy is not a violent criminal,” Papa said. “And that's a common thing we see when you can't get past the addiction. We're hoping Ross not only transitions right out of prison with no problem, but goes straight into total abstinence.”

In the methamphetamine case, Cammisa was arrested in 2016 at his home on 105 Elm Court for operating a methamphetamine lab with his sister, Melissa M. Cammisa, 33, and James C. Kidd, 23, of Pittsburgh. Kidd and Melissa Cammisa both pleaded guilty in December to charges including operating a meth lab and risking a catastrophe and are serving state prison sentences.

The state police Clandestine Lab Response Team, with assistance from the state Attorney General's Office, searched the home and turned up evidence of the manufacturing of methamphetamine, police said.

Investigators, in court documents, described the operation as “one-pot” cooking, also known as the shake-and-bake method. The practice typically uses a two-liter soda bottle or plastic drink bottle to mix ingredients and create methamphetamine.

Authorities took a closer look outside, including in a trash bin, and noticed a plastic grocery bag containing a cold compress bag that had been cut open. They also found lithium battery packages and batteries that had been cut open — all common ingredients of methamphetamine production.

Police were back at his home on March 26, 2018. At the time, he was free on a $25,000 bail for the methamphetamine case when police were called for several complaints of drug activity. During a search of the home, police said, officers seized 11 stamp bags of suspected heroin in the bedroom area.

“He has to pay his price and that's what he's going to do,” Papa said.