Posted on 07/25/2008 8:49:03 PM PDT by bamahead
After being caught twice with a "baggie" of marijuana, 23-year old Rachel Hoffman was reportedly told by police in Tallahassee, Florida that she would go to prison for four years unless she became an undercover informant.
The young woman, a recent graduate of Florida State University, was murdered during a botched sting operation two months ago.
"The idea of waging a war on drugs is to protect people and here it seems like we're putting people in harm's way," said Lance Block, a lawyer hired by Rachel's parents.
The Florida Attorney General's office says it is reviewing the procedures and protocol of the Tallahassee police.
"I'm calling her a criminal," Tallahassee police chief Dennis Jones told 20/20, who maintains that both drug dealers and drug users are considered criminals to his department.
Under Florida law, possession of more than 20 grams of marijuana is a felony.
The Tallahassee police chief says Rachel was suspected of selling drugs and she was rightly treated as a criminal.
"That's my job as a police chief to find these criminals in our community and take them off the street, to make the proper arrests," Jones told 20/20.
Rachel's case also is raising questions about how police recruit and use informants in undercover operations.
"There need to be some safeguards here," said Block, the Hoffman family lawyer.
The young woman received no training before being sent to an undercover meeting to buy a large amount of drugs and a handgun from two suspects.
Police says Rachel was killed by the very handgun she was supposed to buy.
"I don't think she understood the risk or danger that she was in," said Block.
Rachel was in a drug court diversion program when she became an informant.
(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...
US, but have spent time in many places.
As for “university” I prefer it to “college”. Any schmoe can get into a community college, not so with universities.
Just my arrogance.
You don’t need to process it at all, you can make tea straight from the poppies, just soak them in water.
Don’t know much about this stuff do you? People have been screwing with pot making it stronger and stuff as well, so the entire ‘natural’ argument is bunk and you know it. It also is dried and prepared typically.
Opium poppies are probably EASIER to use and are far more natural at this stage than pot is.
“Pot is a plant, put here by God, it doesn’t kill or harm.”
Poppy is a plant created by Go as is Cocca.
Just to point out...use or purchase was not prohibited under the Volstead act or the 18th.
Potheads have an incredible sense of entitlement. The world owes them a living.
Yeah, but you can get your butt kicked by the cops for chewing gum in Singapore. Its a police state where individual rights are scarce. Be careful what you wish.
A sense of superiority too, and the defense of their drug comes FIRST over every other topic. They take ANY attack on their drug and use of it as the most heinous of hate speech against them.
The addiction level and denial is astonishing.
So are peanuts, and they kill more people every year than pot.
Were you in the U of GA Redcoat Marching Band?
Is that right?
Yes
So as you make your rounds, you catch them smoking pot while framing houses, grading, installing AC, roofing, and installing electrical wiring etc?
How exactly do you catch them? You just surprise them?
If he’s in construction, I’d imagine it was people who are used to smoking openly in their native country...
50 is probably low in that line of work.
OK, you make opium tea, you lean over and fall asleep. You have to process poppies to make heroin. Is pot stronger now? Sure, because its illegal. Stronger pot means less volume to ship.
Who is harmed, other than you?
I don’t care if you are addicted, not my problem.
No, the only instrument I can play is my Ipod.
Oh, so you’re saying all his employees are illegal aliens?
I have no idea, but he said construction to figure it out yourself.
Seems you have it figured out already.
“Would you abuse opiates just because they were available legally for recreational use? I’m guessing not. Why do you think others would?”
Because that’s what people do. Same reason tobacco and alcohol have to be regulated by age.
So are you for legalized opium growing and selling then?
Being stupid is hardly reason for being put in mortal danger. They should have tried her and she shoud have faced the outcome.
Sounds like she made a CHOICE to do this... She did the crime, didn’t want to do the crime, but karma got her in another way..
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