“Hello 9-1-1, what is your emergency?”
“I was just ripped off, I was robbed, I need the police now!”
“Ma’am, is everyone OK, can you describe the suspect?”
“It was Charlie, he just ripped me off, you should see the
size of the rock he game me. I gave him
$100, this thing aint worth $50.”
“Rock?”
“Yeah rock, my crack, don’t you listen lady, he just tore
out of here and I need the police to go run him down. This things is too small.”
OK, I have no idea of that was really a word for word
account of what was actually said. According
to the police report it was pretty close, but the years have passed and this is
as close as I can get from memory.
In case my attempt to recreate the phone call between a
9-1-1 dispatcher and the soon to be defendant was confusing, I will be more
concise. This was a real case one of my colleague
prosecuted where a drug user called 9-1-1, to report her dealer because her
rock of crack that she just purchased from him was entirely too small for what
she paid.
Now I know what a lot of you are thinking, isn’t it illegal
to possess crack? Yes it is. It was a horrible idea to call the police. When the officer arrived, I can only assume
thinking he was being pranked, he found just what the 9-1-1 dispatcher said it
would be, A very large, very angry lady
who wanted him to chase down her dealer and get her money back because “that
rock is just too small for $100!”
The officer, somewhat flabbergasted, asked the wronged drug purchaser
to put the rock in to the evidence bag.
He then promptly put the handcuffs on her and took her in. Based on the officers report the entire ride
to the jail was the lady trying to convince him that she was not the bad guy,
but her dealer was? “That rock was just
too small, Charlie know better.”
While not every prosecution is as easy as the drug user
calling and then freely handing over her drugs, this one was and we can all
learn a valuable lesson: don’t do
drugs. When you do, you start to
think I it is ok to call the police when you don’t have enough crack.
Good read. Some grammatical errors. And I think you should remove the "very large" comment about the lady's size. Otherwise you'll be accused of body shaming in this day and age.
ReplyDeleteWell, if the rock was too small, maybe she has a point. LOL!
ReplyDeleteI though the moral might be to make sure you have a honest dealer? Great story - I might have to share this one in criminal law. The students love dumb criminals and dumb victims.
ReplyDeleteThanks Wendy B! Stay tuned, if you want more dumb criminal stories, there are many on the way.
DeleteVery funny but I am sure some girls say the same thing about their wedding ring! Lol
ReplyDeleteI like the Vietnamese drug or murder story better can't remember which crime it was
Well was the rock too small for $100 or not? Do I have to wait for the sequel? The suspense is killing me.
ReplyDeleteI had a very similar car as an officer in Emerald City up North. The lady had called and said that a man promised to give her $20 worth of heroin, but when he showed up he just took the $20 and walked away. I asked her if she honestly wanted me to force him to deliver to her the drugs so that I could arrest him for sales and her for drug possession. She said “never mind Officer. Thank you for your time” And walked away ��
ReplyDeleteThat is too funny. I think she had to much of that rock to start with.
ReplyDeletePlease tell me you tacked on a theft of goods charge to the drug sales charge when you caught the dealer.
ReplyDeleteAaron, you should be in charging my friend!
DeleteWe had one here in Graham where a “citizen” called to complain about a local weed dealer. I guess his product caused her to hallucinate and she either set the blinds in her hotel on fire or just imagined it. Either way she called dispatch and complained about the quality of dealers in our town. I was sad that the case never made it to Superior Court.
ReplyDeleteNext on America's dumbest criminals.....
ReplyDelete