This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/jul/29/us-police-mistake-icing-from-krispy-kreme-doughnuts-for-crystal-meth

The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
US police mistake icing from Krispy Kreme doughnuts for crystal meth US police mistake icing from Krispy Kreme doughnuts for crystal meth
(25 days later)
Daniel Rushing probably won’t be eating Krispy Kreme doughnuts in his car any more.Daniel Rushing probably won’t be eating Krispy Kreme doughnuts in his car any more.
The 64-year-old was arrested on drug charges when Orlando police officers spotted four tiny flakes of glaze on his floorboard and thought they were pieces of crystal methamphetamine, The Orlando Sentinel reports.The 64-year-old was arrested on drug charges when Orlando police officers spotted four tiny flakes of glaze on his floorboard and thought they were pieces of crystal methamphetamine, The Orlando Sentinel reports.
Cpl. Shelby Riggs-Hopkins wrote in an arrest report that during a traffic stop on 11 December she noticed the flakes on the floorboard. Two roadside drug tests were positive for the illegal substance and Rushing was arrested. But a state crime laboratory test cleared him several weeks later.Cpl. Shelby Riggs-Hopkins wrote in an arrest report that during a traffic stop on 11 December she noticed the flakes on the floorboard. Two roadside drug tests were positive for the illegal substance and Rushing was arrested. But a state crime laboratory test cleared him several weeks later.
“It was incredible,” Rushing said. “It feels scary when you haven’t done anything wrong and get arrested ... It’s just a terrible feeling.”“It was incredible,” Rushing said. “It feels scary when you haven’t done anything wrong and get arrested ... It’s just a terrible feeling.”
Related: Chelsea Manning faces charges, solitary confinement after suicide attempt
It started on a Friday afternoon when Rushing dropped off a neighbor at a hospital for a weekly chemotherapy session. Then, he drove to a convenience store to pick up a friend who needed a ride home.It started on a Friday afternoon when Rushing dropped off a neighbor at a hospital for a weekly chemotherapy session. Then, he drove to a convenience store to pick up a friend who needed a ride home.
Riggs-Hopkins said she was staking out the area for drug activity. Rushing told her he had a concealed weapons permit, according to an arrest report. She asked him to step out of his car and noticed a “rock like substance” on the floorboard.Riggs-Hopkins said she was staking out the area for drug activity. Rushing told her he had a concealed weapons permit, according to an arrest report. She asked him to step out of his car and noticed a “rock like substance” on the floorboard.
“I recognized through my eleven years of training and experience as a law enforcement officer the substance to be some sort of narcotic,” she wrote.“I recognized through my eleven years of training and experience as a law enforcement officer the substance to be some sort of narcotic,” she wrote.
Rushing agreed to a vehicle search. “I didn’t have anything to hide,” he said. “I’ll never let anyone search my car again.”Rushing agreed to a vehicle search. “I didn’t have anything to hide,” he said. “I’ll never let anyone search my car again.”
Riggs-Hopkins and other officers spotted three other pieces of the substance.Riggs-Hopkins and other officers spotted three other pieces of the substance.
“I kept telling them, ‘That’s ... glaze from a doughnut,” Rushing said.“I kept telling them, ‘That’s ... glaze from a doughnut,” Rushing said.
He was charged with possession of methamphetamine with a firearm and spent 10 hours in jail before being released on bond.He was charged with possession of methamphetamine with a firearm and spent 10 hours in jail before being released on bond.
The Florida’s law enforcement department told the newspaper that an analyst in its Orlando crime lab did not try to identify what police found in the car, only to determine whether it was an illegal drug. They determined it was not and three days after Rushing’s arrest the state attorney’s office dropped the charges.The Florida’s law enforcement department told the newspaper that an analyst in its Orlando crime lab did not try to identify what police found in the car, only to determine whether it was an illegal drug. They determined it was not and three days after Rushing’s arrest the state attorney’s office dropped the charges.
Rushing, who retired after 25 years as an Orlando parks department employee, told the newspaper he had hired a lawyer and plans to sue the city because he was arrested “for no reason at all”.Rushing, who retired after 25 years as an Orlando parks department employee, told the newspaper he had hired a lawyer and plans to sue the city because he was arrested “for no reason at all”.
Orlando police said in a statement that the arrest was lawful.Orlando police said in a statement that the arrest was lawful.