Phelps arrest backfiring on sheriff, local publisher says

[kpete]

Source: Raw Story

Phelps arrest backfiring on sheriff, local publisher says
Rachel Oswald
Published: Friday February 13, 2009

Efforts by a South Carolina sheriff to pursue a criminal investigation into Olympic medalist Michael Phelps for smoking marijuana at a college party in November are backfiring, a local newspaper publisher says.

Since the news Wednesday that at least eight individuals have been arrested and questioned about the November party at a house near the University of South Carolina where Phelps was photographed smoking from a bong, public reaction has been less supportive of Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott. Lott’s decision to pursue a criminal investigation is now drawing questioning of why he even bothered.

“I think the general consensus is that it is a waste of taxpayer money and resources if that’s what he’s focused on,” said Paul Blake, publisher of Columbia’s alternative weekly, the Columbia City Paper.

Blake said Lott’s investigation into Phelps could be part of a wider publicity effort to bring attention to himself.

Read more: http://rawstory.com/news/2008/Public_derides_sheriff_in_Phelps_case_0213.html

[Vincardog]

1. The whole "War on drugs" is a waste of taxpayer money and resources

[kath]

41. A HUGH freakin' waste. It's way past time for it to end.

Something like 3000 Mexicans die violent deaths every year because of our failed "war on some people with some drugs" -- Rolling Stone had an article on it a couple of months back.

[empire we are]

70. How Can We Stop the Madness?

I support common sense groups and I always vote independent.
I've found that calling my reps; D or R is a waste of time.

Law Enforcement Against Prohibition
LEAP

NORML

[inna]

81. how is LEAP different from NORML?

(other than being a different organization)

[ShadowLiberal]

73. Yet conservatives would call it 'immoral' & 'dangerous' to stop wasting money fighting the drug war

Amazing it, considering how much conservatives rail against stimulus bills they call 'wasteful pork spending', yet they'd scream their heads off if anyone even dared to suggest ending their war on drugs, despite all of the episode that it's failing.

And we really are losing the war on drugs in almost every way imaginable if you take marijuana as an example. I mean consider this.

-In recent years increased police activity against marijuana has stopped almost all growing of it on American soil, but this is actually a bad thing because...
-Once the supply of marijuana got cut off from American producers of it, Mexican producers of it started to produce, and smuggle in & sell to Americans MORE marijuana then ever before.
-The result of this is that marijuana use is even higher then ever since there's more of a supply of it
-And of course the fact that you need people to work together to grow it, and get it into the country is increasing organized crimes in both America, and countries smuggling it in, like Mexico. The smugglers are killing a LOT of people down in Mexico in their drug wars lately, to the point that some towns aren't able to get anyone to step up and be the sheriff anymore, they kill them off in a matter of hours, it's that bad in some places.
-And of course the increased organized crime is causing more people to die, more lives to be ruined, and from that we need to spend more on law enforcement.

It's basically just a nightmare in every practical area of measurement of 'success' in the drug war.

What's most ironic about why the war on drugs doesn't work is that conservative arguments of how the economy works are the best way to explain why the war on drugs will never work. It's all about supply and demand, the war on drugs is all about fighting the suppliers and killing off the supply, but it does nothing to fight the demand, clearly people are willing to risk their necks buying it and selling it no matter what punishments the governments puts up for those who do it anyway.

[fishwax]

103. so true n/t

[aquart]

2. Oh, he's brought attention to himself all right.

Nice to know his budget is so large and he has nothing else to do all day.

[ReliantJ]

9. I love this

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

3. This is why law enforcement shouldn't be elected.

Not sheriffs, not DA's, not AGs, and not judges. The application of the law should not be determined by whether or not it will get you elected or re-elected, but on whether or not it's a good application of the law.

[barbtries]

8. so then they should be appointed

by who? people in powerful positions like the former president? what would your ideal alternative be?

[cosmicone]

16. Maybe a show like Survivor or Fear Factor

The one who wins gets to be a sheriff, DA or judge hahahahaha

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

17. What? Would you eliminate the Presidency entirely because of Bush?

Just because he sucked doesn't mean that system sucks. Yes, I prefer gubernatorial or presidential appointments with limited terms and term limits.

[inna]

82. i think it's a really, really bad idea

it's undemocratic, and the potential for abuse is huge

[Xicano]

88. You know Supreme Court justices are appointed, and

they are just as much, if not more, political play things as any elected person is. So now instead of having a Sheriff who'll try and play up to the people for reelection he'll play up to the person(s) who appoints him/her regardless if that means ignoring the public's wishes or not or correctly applying the law or not.

Sorry but I have to totally disagree with you and go with the democratic process over the good old boy process.

[Cronus Protagonist]

36. Maybe they could just apply for the job like normal people do?

Just a thought.

[AlbertCat]

42. That's "by whom"...and it's a good question.

[Hippo_Tron]

52. Appointed by an executive and confirmed by a legislative body for a fixed term

And they cannot be fired by the Mayor/Governor.

[jmowreader]

66. I know what MY ideal alternative would be

Allow a board of sheriffs selected at random--maybe by drawing their names from a hat--to hire and fire new sheriffs. Seat five sheriffs on the board, and have five alternates just in case a board member, or a sheriff from a county adjoining a board member's county, needs to appear before the board. Have the state commissioner of public safety (aka "chief of the state police") serve as the non-voting president.

At first I thought of just letting the commissioner of public safety do the hiring and firing...then I remembered Sarah Palin's christofascist chief and decided that would be a very bad idea.

[Occulus]

87. Perhaps a strict seniority system is in order n/t

[Ticonderoga]

27. That was very well said,

and I totally agree.

[varkam]

96. I agree with you. Democratization of criminal justice only means that elected...

officials feel the effects of the public's biases and hatreds. IMO it is one of the primary reasons why we incarcerate more people in this country, per capita, than any other on the face of the globe.

[Ian David]

4. I predict the sheriff will get his own TV Show: "Are Y'all Smarter Than a South Carolina Sheriff."

It'll be like "Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader," but easier.

[Vinnie From Indy]

5. I wrote the dumbass!

I mentioned that there are quite a few unsolved HOMICIDES on the Richland Sheriff's website that might be a better place to focus energy.

This guy Lott is the perfect example of a jackass. While in the narcotics division, Lott used to get off on running around in Miami Vice costumes and driving confiscated exotic vehicles.

[LiberalFighter]

13. That would be a good angle to pursue and publicize.

Any local reporters with gonads should ask that question every time.

[joeglow3]

28. I've always HATED that argument

Using that reasoning, ALL laws should go unenforced until you solve 100% of the most important crimes and then work your way down the ladder.

Same thing with global concerns. We should not focus at all on anything politically until you 100% solve the most important issue (genocide, maybe).

I agree that this is not the most important thing out there, but it a law WAS broken.

[Enthusiast]

31. Needless to say,

it's a matter of priorities. This is the most egregious waste of law enforcement resources I have ever heard of. Obviously Sheriff Lott is not fit to hold public office.

[Obamanaut]

53. Isn't it true that all they have to go on is a photo of a man holding

what "some say" is "drug paraphernalia?" Is that really evidence strong enough to conduct an investigation, and what would the question be? "Was you smokin' some of that killer weed in that funny pipe, boy?"

[smiley]

57. having your picture taken with your mouth on a bong?

wow - I didn't realize that was against the law

[EvolveOrConvolve]

61. Unfortunately, it probably is

If the picture is evidence that you were in possession of drug paraphernalia, then yes it could be against the law.

That being said, only an asshat would waste the time and resources pursuing something like this.

[smiley]

65. I might not be 100% correct on this.....

and I'm sure it varies from state to state or even county to county but paraphernalia only becomes paraphernalia if residue is found within the so-called device. This can't be proven from the photograph. All that can be proven from this photograph is that Micheal Phelps has his lips on a bong. For all anybody knows there could have been flavored tobacco in this bong. You ever been to a hookah shop? Paraphernalia all over the place - but only tobacco being smoked.

and you're right only an asshat would waste time on pursuing this.

[tblue37]

75. For all anyone knows, he could have just been posing, the way young

people sometimes do, for a lark. When I was 18, I did not smoke or drink, but one Christmas I posed with a cig in one hand, pretending to swig from an empty beer bottle. I still have the picture.
There is no proof in the picture that he was actually smoking pot, except, of course, that he has since publicly acknowledged that he was smoking pot and apologized for it.

[WolverineDG]

68. You still have to prove what was IN the bong nt

[Suji to Seoul]

69. Sometimes a law needs to be broken to show it up for the sham it is, right John Scopes?

Priorities? Weed v. Unsolved Homicide???

[LiberalFighter]

78. There is also a difference in pursuing prosecution based on politics vs need.

[Vinnie From Indy]

83. That is just silly!

The fact is that Richland County has a way above average of UNSOLVED homicides and this jackass is running around trying to build a case that will most likely be thrown out of court.

Also, I never offered that 100% of the law enforcement in Richland County should be devotd to solving the most serious crimes. You simply created a straw man argument.

[christx30]

98. Oh no!

My laws! My precious laws! :sarcasm:

The argument is not "We shouldn't go after lesser crimes until we solve 100% of major crimes."
It's "Let's get to work solving the murders before we hurt this world class athlete for doing something that a great deal of other people do time and time again with no penalty because they aren't famous enough for anyone to care." It's about priorities. Why viciously go after Phelps for smoking pot at a party when there is a kidnapping case that could be worked on instead? Why spend the resources going after him at all, when all you actually had to begin with is nothing more than a photograph? I mean, a few years ago I saw a video online that was called "Diving for crack" where guys would put their crack rocks in plastic baggies and throw them in a pool so they could dive for it. Just a stupid video these guys did for fun, kind of like a stupid picture of Phelps at a party. But I did not see a vigorous case made against these guys, just like I don't see the cops going after less famous people for pictures online of them doing stupid things. It's all just because a jerk wad sheriff and DA from a backwater town want to make a name for themselves. Political ambitions perhaps? Just bored and want to hurt someone just because they can? The marijuana law needs to be repealed because it is never going to stop drug use. All it does it make the drug cartels more money, push the use and sale of it underground, and empower cops to do unreasonable searches just because "I thought I smelled pot".

[mountainvue]

101. I suspected as much. n/t

[barbtries]

6. i'd like to know

how a photograph of someone hitting a bong could give rise to a criminal prosecution? as for the publicity-hungry sheriff, ha! watch out what you wish for, you just might get it.

[DCKit]

7. Guess running for Governor is out, huh?

Fascist asshole.

[ronnykmarshall]

10. Good!

This guy just wants to get his name in the media.

[grannie4peace]

11. someone on du posted the sheriff's phone # one day &

i called & told them just that! maybe we need to do it again!

[monmouth]

12. I'd love for Nancy Reagan to say the War on Drugs is a loser and MaryJane

should be legalized. The jails are over-crowded now with stupid cases like this..Legalize prostitution also.... Too Liberal?...n/t

[AlbertCat]

43. They did in Nevada, didn't they?...

....except the pot part.

Nevada's pretty red, isn't it?

[LiberalFighter]

14. Do they have enough officers?

I would say they have more than appropriate.

The Richland County Sheriff's Department is built on the cornerstone of a rich and proud law enforcement tradition that spans over 200 years. The Department currently employs over 600 uniformed officers and 140 non-sworn personnel, making it one of the largest law enforcement agencies in the State.

Estimated population: 348,000


Allen County, Indiana.
The Allen County Sheriff’s Department has over 350 employees, 125 of which are sworn police officers.

Estimated population: 346,000



It would appear that Richland County has more law enforcement than is needed.

[Politicalboi]

15. This can actually help the cause

For legalization. When more and more people see this and get pissed it just makes it easier for people to accept pot for what it is, a weed.

[tblue37]

76. Heh. Parents might start pushing their athletic wannabe kids to toke up

in order to become Olympic quality athletes--or at least to have a shot at a college scholarship!

[Politicalboi]

102. Hey if it helps LOL!

Maybe they can go on the promote "Weedies" Breakfast of Champions.

Yes Weed Can!

[Metta]

18. Mazel freaking tov. ... chickens come home to roost.

Happy karma, sheriff.

[Royal Sloan 09]

19. Such a waste of money and

time, is this a distraction from the important stuff?
No, this issue was one of the top ten on the change.org site, and the people have spoken clearly requesting changes to the laws, concerning marijuana. Is this the start of something that does need to be changed, such as the WAR ON DRUGS must be stopped? It's time has come and gone, and the costs has been very expensive, for and against, the people of the USA and the rest of the World.

Yes, We Cannabis!
:smoke:
Legalize

[brindis_desala]

20. The sheriff should be commended

for exposing this country's racist, hypocritical drug enforcement policies. Of @ 26,000 arrests in South Carolina in 2006 over 17,000 were for marijuana possession. Of those arrested- 67% were African Americans despite being only 29% of the state population.

[Enthusiast]

33. Thank you for calling this

to our attention. Sheriff Lott is a joke.

[AlbertCat]

45. Of those arrested- 67% were African Americans despite being only 29% of the state population.

"Ganja Babe....my sweet Ganja Babe
I love the way you love me
And the way you misbehave..."


I wonder if the Sheriff has ever had a drink on duty! PROSECUTE!!!!!

[inna]

85. thank you! i reposted this info elsewhere - but do you happen to have a link?? nt

[BlancheSplanchnik]

97. sounds like a good LTTE to circulate around those parts

the more they get the backdraft from this right in their smug, moneywasting, conservative, attention whoring faces, the better!!!!!

I hope many outraged people make a big frikkin stink about it....

more evidence to let everyone SEE the rw hypocrisy (that we've been painfully aware of for YEARS)

[laureloak]

105. There should have been 17,420 whites arrested for marijuana.

Is that what you're saying?

[Alcibiades]

21. Oh, and BTW, they have a TANK

"As part of the department’s tough-on-crime image, Lott oversaw the acquisition last year of an armored personnel carrier. The APC, which can travel at speeds of 30 miles per hour, was nicknamed “the Peacemaker” and purchased from army surplus. It comes with a turret-mounted .50-caliber belt-fed machine gun. The APC is used by the department’s Special Response Team, which responds to high-risk crimes."

I'm a little surprised they didn't use it in one of these raids. What possible use is a .50 caliber machine gun in Richland County? Thinks must be very different there than they were when I was a kid. I'm glad I don't live in Columbia any more.

[sammythecat]

44. 50 caliber machine gun, indeed.

What's next, an A-10 Warthog with a 20mm gatling gun to stop speeders? I mean, really, when it's time for a 50 caliber machine gun, it's time to call the Governor and have him send in the National Guard. No deputy sheriffs need to have such a destructive weapon.

Now they have it and I can't help but feel that half of those guys probably just can't wait for the slightest reason to bring out the 50 cal and shoot down a fucking building.

[jmowreader]

67. He's probably planning to buy a Soviet Army-surplus Hind D attack helicopter

Not only does it have a gatling gun, hardpoints for missiles and one of the finest optics arrays in the world, it's got a troop compartment that will hold an entire SWAT team. Just the thing for raiding crack houses, meth labs, and parties where really fast swimmers smoke the whole bowl in one hit.

[DainBramaged]

22. Here is the asshole, his troops, and his APC

What a freaking publicity hound, a typical GrandOldPrick.

[Ellipsis]

23. .

:patriot:

[lib2DaBone]

30. "Ya, see how tough we are? We have no clue what we are doing...

.. but we are doing it. Big Bad SWAT team defending against jay-walkers and Marijuana.. break out the .50 cal..."

[pauldp]

40. Hands in his pockets to cover his big hard on. nt

[AlbertCat]

46. The GUN's big...not his hardon.

[DainBramaged]

47. I was going to say the same thing, guys like that are known as 'Peanut' around the gym

[RagAss]

94. Yup...lol....if the ladies only knew !

[HillWilliam]

60. He's playing pocket-pool and the referee's a prick. n/t

[wordpix]

84. just looking at this, he looks like an asshat - must be a * buddy

[IDFbunny]

24. Nifong lives

[KamaAina]

25. Too bad it didn't happen down in Aiken County

we'd be teeing off on Sheriff Mike Hunt! (though he seems to have caught on and is going by "Michael Hunt" these days ;-) )

[Bolo Boffin]

26. Wouldn't it be nice...

...if the repercussions of this led to a saner drug policy? One in which marijuana was legalized, controlled, and taxed? Obama's first pardon -- a blanket commutation or outright pardon of all non-violent drug offenders?

[lib2DaBone]

29. this small town Sheriif needs a .50 cal machine gun and an armored vehicle?

..they are so used to dealing with the Bush administration that pandered to death and destruction.. they think that they can continue to get federal dollars for acting like assholes. Im sorry to tell them their gravy days are over.

Not a penny more for these brain-dead knuckle draggers.

[sammythecat]

32. This cynical asshole should

have his face slapped silly in the town square, be barred for life from public office, and be labeled a felon for his ultra cynical attempt to gain notoriety by ruining the lives and reputations of others.

This guy knows better. He's just an arrogant prick, the worst kind of human there is. We're lucky he's just a sheriff. What a pig!

[LynneSin]

34. I have never smoked pot and even I find this whole thing a joke

I mean this is not the first time I've seen celebrities smoking pot. They have pictures of Cameron Diaz and Charlize Theron smoking pot (not together) and yet I don't think any police ever tracked them down and have them arrested.

This economy is faltering and this is the best we have to worry about?

[christx30]

86. Heck yes this is a joke!

Michael Phelps kicked butt in the Olympics and brought a lot of pride to this country! And what has that Sheriff prick done? Just ruined the lives of a lot of perfectly wonderful people. He's a pathetic waste of space and deserves to be voted out at the next opportunity.
He deserves nothing but the best in open ridicule.
I have never smoked pot and I hardly see why it is so popular. That said, the enjoyment of a fairly harmless drug is hardly reason enough (in my eyes) to throw someone in prison where they will probably be subjected to harsh conditions and abuse at the hands of actual criminals and the prison guard culture. Especially since legal drugs like alcohol and Xanax are abused and cause so much more harm to individuals and society in general. I know people that the sheriff don't care what we, the little people, think of him. However, a large sale protest would shut that town down. And it would attract a lot of attention to the cause of legalization. To me, it's not just a matter of stoners wanting to get high to have fun. It has everything to do with the cause of continued freedom in this country.
After all... who owns you? Do you? Or does the government?

[Swede Atlanta]

35. Another idiot in law enforcement

This is just so lame. As various posts here have already pointed out I'm sure if you sat the residents of his town down and listed all the various unsolved crimes, this would come toward the bottom of the list. This guy is only doing this either to promote his image and get his name in the media or it is because he has penis envy of this young virile Olympian. He should be run out of town on a rail.

I wish the U.S. would wake up and realize that the war on drugs is an oxymoron. If we were fighting a war on drugs we would be fighting against demand through education and treatment just as we do for tobacco and alcohol.

This is a war against those who profit from the fact the drugs are illegal. I'm not suggesting every illegal drug be immediately legalized but I do suggest that the approach to dealing with the crime and violence use creates be reviewed. I think some lower risk drugs could be either legalized or decriminalized and we focus on abuse of those more serious drugs. If you shrink demand, supply will fall.

[AlbertCat]

49. Anna and Heath did not die from illegal drugs

Let us remember that they had prescriptions for everything they took. And pot is still illegal
Just sayin'....

[jeff30997]

37. I hope that ...

Lott’s wife won't look back.You know, salt statue.:rofl:

What an asshole.

[Bo]

38. WTF !!! IS THIS GUY ON...! A 50 CAL. TALK ABOUT PENIS ENVY

WHAT AN ASSHOLE

[AlbertCat]

51. Couuldn't get a job with Blackwater...bitter ever since...I quess...

[mitchum]

39. Leon Lott made his name as a hot dog undercover narcotics cop back in the 80s...

he owes his good fortune to the bogus war on drugs.
He's just a little sawed-off opportunist.

[20score]

48. Here's the link to the petition.

http://www.petitiononline.com/LottPot/petition.html

[LibertarianDave]

50. Why I hope Phelps is punished...

I am an avid supporter of ending the War on Drugs, the government has absolutely no right to control what you do with your body. When I say I hope Phelps is punished I am not saying I hope the government has any part in punishing him.

I am calling for all stoners and medical marijuana proponents to condemn Phelps because once again a celebrity has been caught using marijuana and instead of standing up for themselves they quiver like a slug being pelted with salt.

I want Phelps to come out and say 'Hey, If anyone deserves to smoke a little grass it's me. I've spent my entire adolescent life in a pool full of chlorine to claim a little glory for this nation. Smoking Marijuana is not a crime, and I will not apologize for doing something that is well within my constitutional rights. If you want to go after someone, you go after everyone who criticizes me while smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol, or popping pharmies. All of which kill more people every minute than have ever been killed by someone using marijuana."

[someone else]

55. Vote the sherrif out.

This is stupid and petty. I'd bet that even the folks who support the WOD would think this is stupid. I hope this guy loses come reelection time. I am really getting sick of the WOD.

[ooglymoogly]

58. Just think back to when you were 23 nt

[tblue37]

77. Remember when Al Gore said he smoked pot in college--and

definitely inhaled.

[HughMoran]

54. Fucking jerk

Whatanasshole.

[ooglymoogly]

56. Granted, attention can be good for a politician

However loathing is not the kind of attention he thought he would get....He is just a stupid idiot and now a hated idiot.

[TheCowsCameHome]

59. C'mon sheriff, it isn't like Phelps smoked a bible.

[RainDog]

62. cause Americans are tired of this shit!

the law and the lawmakers are far, far behind the will of the people.

the noisy few who want to have some "demon rum" to hate on will not give up their hate, but, as some states' laws reflect, many, many people are ready for an end to this prohibition.

children and teenagers should not drink alcohol or smoke pot. adults - it's a personal decision and it's time for the government to stop harassing people for doing something that is no worse than drinking a glass of wine.

[and-justice-for-all]

63. bloody ridiculous and totally absurd!!

WTF?!

[Cha]

64. Good! As it

should!

[xchrom]

71. recommend

[NC_Nurse]

72. Good. I hope people start to feel this way in general about the "War on Drugs"

[BlueJac]

74. Just another reason to legalize pot!

What is wrong with people?

[Miss Chybil]

79. How could they prosecute anyway?

You can't prove drug use from a picture. Of course, Phelps admitted it, but if anybody walked into the sheriff's office and said, "I smoked a joint yesterday. Arrest me," the deputies would tell them to get lost. The whole thing's a joke. Are they going to send the picture to the lab and have it analyzed for THC?

[inna]

80. un-fricking-believable.

8 people have been arrested already??? this is insane. (and i'm not even a pot smoker!)

[cboy4]

89. What's wrong with some of these backwards sheriffs?

Here's another asshole.

[DinahMoeHum]

90. They'd be great entertainment, but their antics cost real human lives

more often than not.

:evilfrown:

[sasquuatch55]

92. Police states must be quashed!

More lives are exponentially damaged by Marijuana arrests, than its use.

[Greenheron]

91. Sherspliff Lott

I say we fire off a campaign here at DU. Everyone here who has a bong or knows someone with one should have their picture taken with their mouth on the bong and send it to this ass hat.I live in the state of South Carolina and this kind of thing is normal here. There is a reason we rank dead last in education.
South Carolina..........first in STD's and last in SAT's.

[Wapsie B]

93. Someone needs to ask this sheriff where the $$$ goes when he raids a drug operation

and confiscates houses, cars, bank accounts. I realize this is off topic but this along with the Phelps investigation are more examples of why the war on drugs is a farce.

[NBachers]

95. The Nadya Suleman of "law enforcement"

[raysr]

99. How many non-athelete's

are in the joint for the same offense? The rich and famous truly are above the law. This country is so screwed up. But the rich get away with their crimes in all countries.

[mountainvue]

100. A bunch of kids smoked pot at a college party?

Get the fuck out! The taxpayers need to run this asshole out of town. What a complete waste of time and resources. Just out of curiousity, have there been any sexual assaults on campus or in the area recently? And if so, how ardently has Sheriff Lott pursued them?

[mdmc]

104. good questions