mynameis
15-07-2008, 11:12 AM
Teen Released After Being Framed By Lake Worth Texas Police On Bogus LSD/Marijuana Cookie Charges
July 13th, 2008
LAKE WORTH, TEXAS – The case against a teenager accused of delivering drug-tainted cookies to police crumbled Thursday after scientific tests revealed no traces of narcotics.
Christian Phillips, 18, became a cookie monster and the butt of jokes around the globe following his arrest Tuesday after he left a basket of treats at Lake Worth police headquarters. Authorities said then that “field tests” they conducted on the cookies showed traces of marijuana and LSD.
A criminal charge against Christian Phillips was dropped
But lab tests performed by the Tarrant County medical examiner’s office were negative for drugs, and Mr. Phillips – who had been charged with tampering with a consumer product – was released from jail shortly after 5 p.m. Thursday. The felony charge was dropped.
Mr. Phillips, of Watauga, was facing up to 20 years in prison and fine of $10,000 if he had been convicted. Neither he nor his family would comment Thursday night.
“These are the facts of the case, and if the lab says it ain’t dope, that’s what I’m going to go with,” Lake Worth Police Chief Brett McGuire said.
Mr. Phillips’ attorney, L. Patrick Davis, said that his client was physically fine but that he was “a little upset” about the arrest and subsequent controversy. He said that neither he nor the family was surprised about the negative test results but that no decision has been made whether to pursue further legal action in the matter.
‘Rush to judgment’
In an earlier interview with KTVT-TV (Channel 11), Mr. Phillips’ father, Glenn, said the case against his son amounted to a “huge rush to judgment.”
“People just need to keep rationale here in perspective and not jump the gun and accuse people of stuff before we know the full facts,” he said.
Christian Phillips’ story drew worldwide attention – and scorn.
One Australian news anchor referred to Mr. Phillips as “disgruntled.” The incident was blogged on USA Today’s Web site and on a Corvette forum site. “Tampering with someone elses [sic] food? Lock-up and throw key away,” one blogger wrote.
Another typed, “Donuts dummy, not cookies.”
Mr. Davis said that his client was unfairly targeted by almost everyone who heard about the case.
“He got convicted before he got a chance,” Mr. Davis said. “He got buried in the media. He has been derailed, and we need to get him back on course.”
Community service
Mr. Phillips was delivering cookies as part of his 80-hour court-supervised community service following his arrest last year on charges of assaulting a police officer. That charge was reduced to simple assault, a misdemeanor, and Mr. Phillips was serving court-appointed community service with Mothers Against Drunk Driving when he delivered the cookies.
That case was to have been dismissed on Wednesday if Mr. Phillips successfully completed his community service hours. He was about 10 hours away, his attorney said.
On June 27, Mr. Phillips was videotaped delivering the snacks to Watauga police. He delivered more cookies to Blue Mound police Monday night and on Tuesday delivered another batch at Lake Worth. Officers there were notified by Blue Mound police officers that the cookies might be tainted.
Chief McGuire said a preliminary field test conducted on the chocolate chip cookies by police detected LSD. A canine was brought in and indicated drugs were inside Mr. Phillips’ car.
When he was arrested, Mr. Phillips was carrying a list of 25 police agencies in Dallas and Tarrant counties. Thirteen of the names had been checked off. Officers in some of the jurisdictions, including Fort Worth and Watauga, ate the cookies and reported no ill effects.
Lake Worth sent the cookies to the medical examiner’s officer for a more thorough review. Officials there conducted more stringent chemical tests and a microscopic examination as well as tests involving gas chromatography and mass spectrometry.
Officer stands by nose
Blue Mound police also sent cookie samples to the ME’s office and those, too, came back negative for drugs.
But Blue Mound police Lt. Thomas Cain said Thursday that while he respects and accepts the medical examiner’s report, he is sure he smelled dope on the home-baked Toll House treats.
“They did have a pungent, rancid odor,” Lt. Cain said. “They did have the odor of marijuana. I got within two feet of it; I could smell it.”
Blue Mound officers also conducted their own field test that came back positive for marijuana.
“How do you explain it? I don’t know,” Lt. Cain said.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/071108drugcookies.41d8ef87.html
http://www.badcopnews.com/2008/07/13/teen-released-after-being-framed-by-lake-worth-texas-police-on-bogus-lsdmarijuana-cookie-charges/
MADD And Police Re-Evaluate Stupid “Cookies For Cops” Program After Nutcase Lake Worth Texas Cops Imagination Creates Bogus Scare And They Framed Innocent Teen
July 12th, 2008
FORT WORTH, TEXAS — Mothers Against Drunk Driving is re-evaluating its “Cookies for Cops” program, and several police departments are being more cautious about homemade treats after this week’s scare over deliveries of suspected drug-laced treats.
But police stations won’t stop accepting brownies and other goodies because they say most citizens simply want to show their appreciation.
“We’re not going to let something like this mar that kind of relationship,” Lake Worth Police Chief Brett McGuire said.
Earlier this week when a teenager walked into the Lake Worth police station with a basket of chocolate chip cookies, officers smelled marijuana and did preliminary tests that found LSD, McGuire said. Then officers brought in a drug dog that indicated illegal substances were in the cookies and the teen’s car, McGuire said.
Lake Worth had been tipped off by police in nearby Blue Mound, where preliminary tests on cookies had shown traces of marijuana, said Blue Mound police Lt. Thomas Cain.
Christian V. Phillips, 18, was charged with tampering with a consumer product, a second-degree felony that carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, and jailed in Lake Worth on $75,000 bond.
But two days later after county lab tests showed no traces of drugs in the Lake Worth and Blue Mound cookies, the charge was dropped and Phillips was released.
Drug tests are pending on several Fort Worth and Watauga officers who ate cookies delivered there. No illnesses were reported.
“During the holidays, we have elderly people bring us stuff … and sometimes people from City Council,” Cain said. “But if we don’t know them, we’re not going to eat it.”
Phillips, who was doing community service for MADD, had denied putting any drugs in the cookies and said his friend may have been smoking pot while he was baking, McGuire said.
Phillips chose to do community service with MADD’s North Texas chapter to fulfill about 80 hours as part of his sentence last year in his pretrial memorandum agreement, something for first-time offenders, said his attorney L. Patrick Davis.
Phillips was charged with assault of a public servant, a felony, after being arrested at a party last year in Watauga. The charge was later reduced to assault with bodily injury, a misdemeanor.
But MADD spokeswoman Heidi Castle said the organization usually works with those arrested on alcohol-related offenses. Had it known Phillips was initially arrested for assaulting an officer, he would “absolutely not” have been allowed to distribute cookies to police stations, she said.
Castle said MADD was also trying to determine how Phillips came to be involved in the cookie program, which is new in North Texas but has been done nationwide for years.
MADD also distributes bottled water and food for officers at sobriety checkpoints in other states, she said.
“This (cookie) program won’t be stopped, but we need to figure out what safeguards are in place and are we doing it consistently across the country,” she said.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5883864.html
http://www.badcopnews.com/2008/07/12/madd-and-police-re-evaluate-stupid-cookies-for-cops-program-after-nutcase-lake-worth-texas-cops-imagination-creates-bogus-scare-and-they-framed-innocent-teen/
July 13th, 2008
LAKE WORTH, TEXAS – The case against a teenager accused of delivering drug-tainted cookies to police crumbled Thursday after scientific tests revealed no traces of narcotics.
Christian Phillips, 18, became a cookie monster and the butt of jokes around the globe following his arrest Tuesday after he left a basket of treats at Lake Worth police headquarters. Authorities said then that “field tests” they conducted on the cookies showed traces of marijuana and LSD.
A criminal charge against Christian Phillips was dropped
But lab tests performed by the Tarrant County medical examiner’s office were negative for drugs, and Mr. Phillips – who had been charged with tampering with a consumer product – was released from jail shortly after 5 p.m. Thursday. The felony charge was dropped.
Mr. Phillips, of Watauga, was facing up to 20 years in prison and fine of $10,000 if he had been convicted. Neither he nor his family would comment Thursday night.
“These are the facts of the case, and if the lab says it ain’t dope, that’s what I’m going to go with,” Lake Worth Police Chief Brett McGuire said.
Mr. Phillips’ attorney, L. Patrick Davis, said that his client was physically fine but that he was “a little upset” about the arrest and subsequent controversy. He said that neither he nor the family was surprised about the negative test results but that no decision has been made whether to pursue further legal action in the matter.
‘Rush to judgment’
In an earlier interview with KTVT-TV (Channel 11), Mr. Phillips’ father, Glenn, said the case against his son amounted to a “huge rush to judgment.”
“People just need to keep rationale here in perspective and not jump the gun and accuse people of stuff before we know the full facts,” he said.
Christian Phillips’ story drew worldwide attention – and scorn.
One Australian news anchor referred to Mr. Phillips as “disgruntled.” The incident was blogged on USA Today’s Web site and on a Corvette forum site. “Tampering with someone elses [sic] food? Lock-up and throw key away,” one blogger wrote.
Another typed, “Donuts dummy, not cookies.”
Mr. Davis said that his client was unfairly targeted by almost everyone who heard about the case.
“He got convicted before he got a chance,” Mr. Davis said. “He got buried in the media. He has been derailed, and we need to get him back on course.”
Community service
Mr. Phillips was delivering cookies as part of his 80-hour court-supervised community service following his arrest last year on charges of assaulting a police officer. That charge was reduced to simple assault, a misdemeanor, and Mr. Phillips was serving court-appointed community service with Mothers Against Drunk Driving when he delivered the cookies.
That case was to have been dismissed on Wednesday if Mr. Phillips successfully completed his community service hours. He was about 10 hours away, his attorney said.
On June 27, Mr. Phillips was videotaped delivering the snacks to Watauga police. He delivered more cookies to Blue Mound police Monday night and on Tuesday delivered another batch at Lake Worth. Officers there were notified by Blue Mound police officers that the cookies might be tainted.
Chief McGuire said a preliminary field test conducted on the chocolate chip cookies by police detected LSD. A canine was brought in and indicated drugs were inside Mr. Phillips’ car.
When he was arrested, Mr. Phillips was carrying a list of 25 police agencies in Dallas and Tarrant counties. Thirteen of the names had been checked off. Officers in some of the jurisdictions, including Fort Worth and Watauga, ate the cookies and reported no ill effects.
Lake Worth sent the cookies to the medical examiner’s officer for a more thorough review. Officials there conducted more stringent chemical tests and a microscopic examination as well as tests involving gas chromatography and mass spectrometry.
Officer stands by nose
Blue Mound police also sent cookie samples to the ME’s office and those, too, came back negative for drugs.
But Blue Mound police Lt. Thomas Cain said Thursday that while he respects and accepts the medical examiner’s report, he is sure he smelled dope on the home-baked Toll House treats.
“They did have a pungent, rancid odor,” Lt. Cain said. “They did have the odor of marijuana. I got within two feet of it; I could smell it.”
Blue Mound officers also conducted their own field test that came back positive for marijuana.
“How do you explain it? I don’t know,” Lt. Cain said.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/071108drugcookies.41d8ef87.html
http://www.badcopnews.com/2008/07/13/teen-released-after-being-framed-by-lake-worth-texas-police-on-bogus-lsdmarijuana-cookie-charges/
MADD And Police Re-Evaluate Stupid “Cookies For Cops” Program After Nutcase Lake Worth Texas Cops Imagination Creates Bogus Scare And They Framed Innocent Teen
July 12th, 2008
FORT WORTH, TEXAS — Mothers Against Drunk Driving is re-evaluating its “Cookies for Cops” program, and several police departments are being more cautious about homemade treats after this week’s scare over deliveries of suspected drug-laced treats.
But police stations won’t stop accepting brownies and other goodies because they say most citizens simply want to show their appreciation.
“We’re not going to let something like this mar that kind of relationship,” Lake Worth Police Chief Brett McGuire said.
Earlier this week when a teenager walked into the Lake Worth police station with a basket of chocolate chip cookies, officers smelled marijuana and did preliminary tests that found LSD, McGuire said. Then officers brought in a drug dog that indicated illegal substances were in the cookies and the teen’s car, McGuire said.
Lake Worth had been tipped off by police in nearby Blue Mound, where preliminary tests on cookies had shown traces of marijuana, said Blue Mound police Lt. Thomas Cain.
Christian V. Phillips, 18, was charged with tampering with a consumer product, a second-degree felony that carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison, and jailed in Lake Worth on $75,000 bond.
But two days later after county lab tests showed no traces of drugs in the Lake Worth and Blue Mound cookies, the charge was dropped and Phillips was released.
Drug tests are pending on several Fort Worth and Watauga officers who ate cookies delivered there. No illnesses were reported.
“During the holidays, we have elderly people bring us stuff … and sometimes people from City Council,” Cain said. “But if we don’t know them, we’re not going to eat it.”
Phillips, who was doing community service for MADD, had denied putting any drugs in the cookies and said his friend may have been smoking pot while he was baking, McGuire said.
Phillips chose to do community service with MADD’s North Texas chapter to fulfill about 80 hours as part of his sentence last year in his pretrial memorandum agreement, something for first-time offenders, said his attorney L. Patrick Davis.
Phillips was charged with assault of a public servant, a felony, after being arrested at a party last year in Watauga. The charge was later reduced to assault with bodily injury, a misdemeanor.
But MADD spokeswoman Heidi Castle said the organization usually works with those arrested on alcohol-related offenses. Had it known Phillips was initially arrested for assaulting an officer, he would “absolutely not” have been allowed to distribute cookies to police stations, she said.
Castle said MADD was also trying to determine how Phillips came to be involved in the cookie program, which is new in North Texas but has been done nationwide for years.
MADD also distributes bottled water and food for officers at sobriety checkpoints in other states, she said.
“This (cookie) program won’t be stopped, but we need to figure out what safeguards are in place and are we doing it consistently across the country,” she said.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5883864.html
http://www.badcopnews.com/2008/07/12/madd-and-police-re-evaluate-stupid-cookies-for-cops-program-after-nutcase-lake-worth-texas-cops-imagination-creates-bogus-scare-and-they-framed-innocent-teen/