STORY: "NYPD cops confused Jolly Rancher candies for crystal meth: suit" by reporter John Marzulli, published by the New York Daily News on October 17, 2013. (Thanks to Justin J. McShane for drawing our attention to this story in his eclectic blog "The truth about forensic science.") (Link below); HL); SUB-HEADING: Love Olantunjiojo, 25, was detained for around 24 hours after police found the seets on him and a friend, the lawsuit says. The results from the NYPD lab found the red and blue 'crystalline rocks of solid material' were not a controlled substance, but Jolly Ranchers, the suit alleges.
PHOTO CAPTIONS: "My client is not Walter
White," Olantunjiojo's lawyer Kenneth Smith says, referencing Bryan
Cranston's meth-making character (pictured) on the TV show 'Breaking
Bad.' "
GIST: "This drug bust went sour. NYPD cops nabbed a Brooklyn man for possession of crystal meth but the
drugs turned out to be a handful of perfectly legal Jolly Rancher
candies, a lawsuit says. The cop who arrested Love Olatunjiojo confidently stated in the
criminal affidavit that he had professional training in the
identification of methamphetamine. He might need a refresher course. “I don’t know if these cops have been watching ‘Breaking Bad,’ but my
client is not Walter White,” said lawyer Kenneth Smith, who filed the
suit Tuesday in Brooklyn Federal Court. Olatunjiojo, 25, and an unidentified friend had purchased the sweets at
the It’Sugar candy emporium on Surf Ave. in Coney Island last June. Several blocks away, the two were stopped by Officer Jermaine Taylor and several other cops who searched the men. The cops told Olatunjiojo, who ended up being detained for 24 hours, it
was “only a matter of time before they found something,” according to
the complaint. Taylor also claimed that he administered a field test to determine if
the candy was narcotics and got a “positive” result, the complaint
states. Two “red crystalline rocks of solid material” and four “blue
crystalline rocks of solid material” were then subjected to a gas
chromatography/mass spectrometry analysis at the NYPD lab. Two days later the results were in — Jolly Ranchers, not a controlled substance, Smith said. The Brooklyn district attorney’s office waited until Sept. 19 to seek
dismissal of the charges against Olatunjiojo and his unidentified
friend, who was also arrested with the hard candy. "
The entire story can be found at:
See Justin J. McShane's post in his eclectic Blog "The truth about Forensic Science: "Here is a curious article that shows shockingly what is typical in America........." (The post contains several court documents including the lab report);
http://www.thetruthaboutforensicscience.com/know-methamphetamine-looking-false-arrest-drugs/
PUBLISHER'S NOTE:
Dear Reader. Keep your eye on the Charles Smith Blog. We are following this case.
I have added a search box for content in this blog which now encompasses several thousand posts. The search box is located near the bottom of the screen just above the list of links. I am confident that this powerful search tool provided by "Blogger" will help our readers and myself get more out of the site.
The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be found at:
http://www.thestar.com/topic/
Information on "The Charles Smith Blog Award"- and its nomination process - can be found at:
http://smithforensic.blogspot.
I look forward to hearing from readers at:
hlevy15@gmail.com;
