They are charged with a sacred duty to serve and protect and, as such, we rightly hold them to a higher standard of ethics than the average citizen. Police officers are given greater powers in order to keep us safe, so when one breaks that trust, it can shake a community to the core.
That aforementioned community upset may be what is happening in Palm Beach after a detective’s drug crime investigations are all being questioned. The officer was allegedly caught lying about a crack buy. On May 20, the undercover detective was arrested after it was discovered that he’d apparently fabricated a crack cocaine purchase at a house he had raided. He’d used the buy to procure a search warrant, but surveillance video showed that members of the house actually refused to sell him the drugs. Instead, according to the dashboard video from his car, he bought the crack from another dealer and used them to secure the search warrant on the house.
The officer is facing charges of making false statements, official misconduct and an additional charge of cocaine possession — when he was booked, authorities found more crack cocaine on his person.
This case begs the question: how many other victims had their evidence fabricated by this detective? How many citizens were denied their due process because the courts take the word of a police officer over an accused drug user? In all likelihood, all official review of his other cases is underway, but it may be too late for justice in many instances.
The criminal system is set up to give average citizens access to justice, but when officers take the law into their own hands using the extra powers vested in them that justice can be denied. If you’ve been charged with a drug offense, contacting a Florida defense attorney quickly may be your best bet to secure a favorable outcome in your case.
Source: beforeitsnews.com, “This Week’s Corrupt Cops Stories,” May 27, 2014
