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 ...
Me too
Wanna bet? I wouldn’t put any money on it if I were you.
You would outlaw informants? You scare me.
And, we all know that good, high profile, successful, conservative folks who shape opinion would never, ever abuse oxycontin!
Right..........
Again, there’s nothing to sue over. She made a deal with the cops, and got murdered.
It happens... What are the cops supposed to do, give drug user/dealers ninja training for this stuff?
I’m sure she signed all sorts of waivers, so oh well..
Of course not!
She was caught committing her crimes. She cut a deal to avoid conviction. Her choice.
YES. They will be liable for sending an untrained girl into an area she was not equipped to deal with. Watch and see.
In case you didn’t know this you can’t sign away your civil rights.
Oh I see if you are “caught” doing a crime, that’s it, is it? Right to prison or a “deal” without a trial?
Did you wake up in another country today? Like Iran?
Not a chance in hell.. That would render the entire operation of informants for every situation, including terrorism, as illegal.
Wishful thinking on your part.
I got a pile of pain pills, and muscle relaxants in my bathroom, none up to Oxycontin, but some strong stuff. Its legal, available and I can abuse it any time I want, I don’t though. At the same rate, I can go and buy any amount of pot I want, I don’t, have no interest in it.
Now, a fine Stout or Lager, I’m there!
She was dealing Ecstasy, not Oxycontin. Or are you just a closet DUer surfacing to take gratuitous swipes at Rush?
Watch and see. I’m going to bed now.
Food for thought. The time is coming that the war on drugs will be put into the trash heap where it belongs, and people with attitudes like yours won’t be able to do anything about it. Count on it. Because most of us have had enough.
I’ve heard this ‘drugs will be legalized’ stuff for decades now. Not gonna happen, sorry.
No, that's not it. You can try to cut a deal. Like she did.
They send out this young dummy, she gets blown away...All over some pot she had?
You think law enforcement comes away looking good here?
Some of the comments I've read here, such as yours, I would expect from some slacked jawed, toothless morons.
These defenders of the little angel seem to think the cops grabbed her off the street, found drugs, took her to the nearest crackhouse, and told them ‘HERE YOU GO’.
Reality is so far removed from these people it’s hard to believe.
Speaking of slack jawed moron, the pic you posted sure is one. Looks stoned as hell too.
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