Donna Shiffler during her detention hearing.
A Somers Point woman who admitted to running a cannabis business that employed her teenage son was sentenced to five years in prison Tuesday.
Donna Shiffler, 40, pleaded guilty May 1, to first-degree maintaining a drug-production facility and possession with intent to distribute marijuana, along with child endangerment.
She and her boyfriend, John Garman, ran the business out of the home they share with their three minor children.
The eldest — then 14 — worked for the business and was often paid in product, some of which was found when the family's home was raided in May 2023.
Garman was arrested after police seized about 65 pounds of marijuana, 32 pounds of THC gummy candy, 1½ pounds of Psilocybin mushrooms, 10 pounds of THC cartridges and half-pound of additional THC-infused candy, according to the report at the time. There was also about $119,526 in cash confiscated.
The community rallied around the family when news broke.
In a GoFundMe his sister started for the family, many donors wrote of Garman's kindness and generosity.
“John and his family are in a very hard spot where they have lost everything,” Jessica Garman wrote. “Everything, right down to their last dollar.”
Garman did not hide his business. In fact, his Facebook page was filled with advertisements for Gaman's Goods. He even held "treasure hunts," where free product would be hidden somewhere in the community.
They had business cards, flyers and videos promoting their business.
Shiffler was arrested days after Garman, and released following a detention hearing. Garman was at first held, but the state then consented to his release as well.
John Garman's Department of Corrections photoHe is now in South Woods State Prison where he is serving a 10-year sentence.
Shiffler was taken into custody after her sentencing and is in the Atlantic County Justice Facility awaiting transfer to state prison.
