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Ythan
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Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months
#25055729 - 03/11/18 07:57 AM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months fox13news.com
TAMPA (FOX 13) - Rebecca Shaw is not a criminal, but for months, she was treated like one. The mother of four -- who didn't break the law or do anything wrong -- sat in jail for five long, agonizing months.
“It felt like my whole life was over. It was terrible," Rebecca exclaimed. "My kids were devastated. I was away for five months. I cried constantly.”
Rebecca's perfect storm of hell started when she ran out of gas on the road. A Pasco County Sheriff’s Office deputy pulled up behind her, but instead of helping her, he asked if he could search her car.
“[He] said, 'What are these?' Rebecca recalled.
She told him they were vitamins, but he apparently didn’t believe her.
“He said, 'They don't look like vitamins. They look like oxycodone,’” Rebecca continued.
The deputy pulled out a field drug test kit -- kits used by law enforcement all over the country to detect illegal drugs. To Rebecca's shock, the presumptive kit produced a positive hit for oxycodone.
Rebecca insisted the pills were vitamins, not oxy. But it didn't help. "My heart just sank. I said, ‘That’s wrong!"
Rebecca was arrested, booked, and charged with trafficking oxycodone. With no way to pay a $5,000 bond she sat in jail. "It was scary being in there and having a public defender that didn't believe me," she continued.
After her husband was able to come up with the bail money, Rebecca waited another seven months for the state crime lab to confirm the pills were, in fact, vitamins.
The case was dropped but the damage had already been done, explained her new attorney Patrick LeDuc. "He does the field drug test and because it tests positive, nothing else mattered. It didn't matter she had no prior record, it didn't matter she was out of gas.”
FOX 13 previously conducted a yearlong investigation on the unreliability of field drug test kits and how they often get it wrong. Scientists showed us how household items like oregano, chocolate, and cough medicine tested positive for drugs, and how lives were turned upside down.
Despite all of that, law enforcement continues to use these faulty drug test kits and innocent people continue to pay the price.
"They’re putting innocent people in jail and ruining people’s lives," Rebecca added.
Rebecca is considering her legal options, but so far, no lawsuit has been filed.
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leschampignons
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: Ythan]
#25055763 - 03/11/18 08:33 AM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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man that is so screwed up.
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baraka
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: leschampignons]
#25055774 - 03/11/18 08:44 AM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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Pasco County is on that Live PD at times.
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stzacrack
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: baraka]
#25055836 - 03/11/18 09:27 AM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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How many millions is she gonna get?
How much does she deserve?
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bodhisatta
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Registered: 04/30/13
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: stzacrack] 1
#25055847 - 03/11/18 09:34 AM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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ACAB
It's sad it usually takes an occurrence like this for the average citizen to take off their rose tinted glasses for law enforcement.
Best part is that if she does get compensated for the wrongdoing it will be on the dime of Tampa taxpayers and not the cop or his department
Honestly I'd rather share the road with people high on painkillers than cops any day.
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JonEveryman88
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: bodhisatta]
#25055927 - 03/11/18 10:13 AM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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I was really happy when I read this story. Why?
Another lawsuit for the police I hope she gets as much money as she possibly can.
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impatientguy
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: JonEveryman88]
#25055997 - 03/11/18 10:51 AM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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5 months? That's at least 50 Grand based on that one thread
Wtf. I would sue for as much as possible in that scenario.
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durian_2008
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: impatientguy] 1
#25056307 - 03/11/18 01:24 PM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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They need to remove 'qualified immunity' and formally prosecute the responsible parties.
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nooneman
Registered: 04/24/09
Posts: 14,683
Loc: Utah
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: Ythan] 1
#25056347 - 03/11/18 01:48 PM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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Pretty soon Trump will be accidentally executing "drug dealers" like her.
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mycoprog
Modular Heretic
Registered: 01/12/06
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Loc: N. America
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: nooneman]
#25056583 - 03/11/18 03:42 PM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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Quote:
nooneman said: Pretty soon Trump will be accidentally executing "drug dealers" like her.
It's a scary thought. It would happen if that coward actually got his way.
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bodhisatta
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Registered: 04/30/13
Posts: 61,891
Loc: Milky way
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: mycoprog]
#25056587 - 03/11/18 03:43 PM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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#notgoingtohappenforfuckssake
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mycoprog
Modular Heretic
Registered: 01/12/06
Posts: 797
Loc: N. America
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: bodhisatta]
#25056608 - 03/11/18 03:59 PM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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I think you might be giving society a little too much credit.
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Crispy224
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: mycoprog] 1
#25056646 - 03/11/18 04:25 PM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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Im not sure she going to get anything from this. She consented to have him search her car. He found what he thought was drugs and the test came back positive. As messed up as it sounds I'm not sure the cop did anything wrong in the eyes of the law. He didn't violate her civil rights. Many people sit in jail until their unfounded charges are dropped.
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Alan Rockefeller
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: impatientguy]
#25057189 - 03/11/18 08:49 PM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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Quote:
stzacrack said: How many millions is she gonna get?
How much does she deserve?
She will probably get nothing - the cops didn't do anything wrong. You can only sue the cops if they violate policy or the law. She consented to a search, the field test showed positive - so the cop was just doing his job as far as the law is concerned. So no lawsuit.
It doesn't matter that she had no drugs - it matters that the cop had probable cause to believe she did. If the cop knew she didn't have drugs but arrested her anyway, she could sue.
Quote:
impatientguy said: Wtf. I would sue for as much as possible in that scenario.
What law would you sue under?
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impatientguy
Ganjalf a very mighty lab wizard
Registered: 11/26/14
Posts: 5,054
Loc: USA
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: Alan Rockefeller]
#25057206 - 03/11/18 08:57 PM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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For emotional damage and lost wages.
Idk what law, that's why you get a lawyer.
Unlawful imprisonment? Lol
Maybe sue the creators of the bogus drug field tests.
Edited by impatientguy (03/11/18 08:58 PM)
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bodhisatta
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Registered: 04/30/13
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Loc: Milky way
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: impatientguy]
#25057244 - 03/11/18 09:16 PM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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Would the cop's competency and training come into play? Or the department's liability and competency concerning purchasing and using bunk identification kits.
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Alan Rockefeller
Mycologist
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: impatientguy]
#25057270 - 03/11/18 09:29 PM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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Quote:
impatientguy said: For emotional damage and lost wages.
Idk what law, that's why you get a lawyer.
Unlawful imprisonment? Lol
Maybe sue the creators of the bogus drug field tests.
If the cops think you committed a crime, you can't sue them for doing their jobs. The imprisonment was lawful because the kit gave the cop probable cause to believe a crime was committed.
Suing the makers of the drug tests might work. I am sure people have thought about it.
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Ogla
Registered: 02/16/04
Posts: 11,332
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: Alan Rockefeller]
#25057439 - 03/11/18 11:31 PM (6 years, 19 days ago) |
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Houston did away with these field test kits. it seems too often that they have false positives. There was a guy who got arrested for sheet rock dust. the cop thought it was cocaine and field test was a glass positive. he sued and got like 30,000$. I hope this woman can get some sorta compensation. now she has a record and probably has to pay to get it expunged. also they take way too long for lab results to come in. I had sat in jail and would've been in there longer if I hadn't got bailed. then the lab results came back inconclusive after like 5 months and got dismissed, so I would've been in there all that time for nothing. it's bullshit
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Coolwhip GA
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: Ogla]
#25058311 - 03/12/18 01:13 PM (6 years, 18 days ago) |
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I am really surprised to hear any municipality did away with the field test kits, way to go Houston. I was about to make a post saying we need to do just that, everywhere, but it's such an unpopular area politically that it would be a non starter.
It seems like ANYTHING will make those tests come back positive, I remember reading about how on of the most widely used test kits for cocaine would come up positive if used on FLOUR ffs.
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Thayendanegea
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Re: Another field drug test mistake sends woman to jail -- for months [Re: Coolwhip GA]
#25058493 - 03/12/18 02:44 PM (6 years, 18 days ago) |
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The woman should consult an attorney and look into filing a class action suit against the manufacturer....maybe sue them for damages. It sounds like they are at fault for peddling a product that doesn't perform as promised. If the company is found liable, the cops would have to stop using them....My thoughts, anyway.
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