Drug arrest targets future Palin in-law

WASILLA, Alaska — Sherry Johnston, mother of Bristol Palin's fiancé, faces a Jan. 6 court date for an OxyContin-related arrest at her home by Alaska state troopers.

A troopers' spokeswoman said Friday afternoon that the charges "are in relation to the drug OxyContin."

Johnston, 42, is the mother of Levi Johnston, the Wasilla 18-year-old suddenly placed in an international spotlight in September, when Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin — then running for vice president on the Republican ticket with John McCain — and her husband, Todd, said their daughter Bristol was pregnant, and Levi was the father.

Bristol Palin, 18, is due to give birth today, according to a recent interview with the governor's father, Chuck Heath.

A wedding date has not been announced.

Johnston was arrested Thursday by troopers serving a search warrant in an undercover drug investigation. A standard news release issued by troopers said Johnston was arrested on six felony counts: second-degree misconduct involving a controlled substance — generally manufacturing or delivering drugs — and fourth-degree misconduct involving controlled substances, or possession.

She was released on $5,000 bail a few hours after her arrest Thursday.

Johnston has not responded to phone messages or requests for comment left at the family home, and nobody answered the door Friday.

Troopers spokeswoman Megan Peters wouldn't say if there were other potential defendants involved.

A spokesman for Sarah Palin on Thursday said the arrest was "not a state government matter" and so no comment or interviews on the topic would be forthcoming.