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The 18-year-old La Crosse man dropped the gun after a few moments, police said, and was taken into custody along with his father.
As officers handcuffed him, David A. Remen told them he was prepared to fire at the door if he heard a knock because he had been robbed previously, according to the criminal complaint filed by the La Crosse County District Attorney's office.
Along with the gun, Remen had a switchblade knife, a butterfly knife, a can of mace and a cue ball in a sock, police said.
His father, 49-year-old Gregory R. Remen, was asleep on the living room floor when officers burst into the apartment at 232 Main St. just after 2 a.m. Tuesday.
Police said they found marijuana in Gregory Remen's backpack and marijuana, opium and drug paraphernalia in the apartment. Prosecutors on Tuesday accused the men of operating a large marijuana distribution operation out of the apartment for some time.
The apartment had a video surveillance system and a scanner to monitor police activities, according to the complaint.
During a hearing Tuesday in La Crosse County Circuit Court, Assistant District Attorney Jeri Marsolek said the Remens admitted to police they had sold about 60 pounds of marijuana in the past several months.
David Remen, who was charged with eight crimes, including several felony drug counts, said he received between 1 to 2 pounds of marijuana a week for the past year.
Gregory Remen was charged with four counts, including conspiracy to delivery marijuana in excess of 10,000 grams, party to the crime of possession of marijuana with intent to deliver and warehousing while armed.
Dan Springer can be reached at (608) 791-8269 or dspringer@lacrossetribune.com.
