Lakeland, FL | Almost a year after coming under suspicion he was in the marijuana business, former National Football League receiver Freddie Mitchell appears home free.
The reason Mitchell won't have to worry anymore: Police have taken too long to bring a case against him to court, his lawyer says.
Mitchell, a former Kathleen High standout, played for UCLA and the Philadelphia Eagles.
The marijuana accusation stemmed from a Feb. 5 incident last year in which a package sources said contained about 7 pounds of marijuana was delivered to Mitchell's grandmother's home. Mitchell lived elsewhere.
Police then delivered it to Mitchell at Brothers Bar-B-Q, which he owned at the time. Mitchell was handcuffed, seated in the back of a patrol car and eventually released.
The act of taking someone into custody begins the tick ing of the "speedy trial" clock, said Mitchell's lawyer John Liguori.
For a felony charge, the clock expires 175 days after a person is taken into custody.
Mitchell, 31, was unquestionably in custody, Liguori said.
"Was he restrained? Yes," Liguori said. "Was he free to leave the back of the cop car and walk away? No."
Liguori maintains the acts of handcuffing Mitchell and putting him in the back of a squad car suffice for "custody." But he said Mitchell also was told he was under arrest as he was being handcuffed.
Lakeland Police Chief Roger Boatner said Liguori appears to be right about the law.
"I don't dispute (Liguori's) legal wisdom," Boatner said. "I'm sure he's probably correct. But that doesn't mean our investigation is done."
Boatner said his department will continue investigating and turn over any potential evidence to prosecutors.
"We'll base any further action on what the State Attorney's Office wants us to do," Boatner said.
Chip Thullbery, spokesman for the State Attorney's Office, said he could not comment on what may be a case pending before prosecutors.
A source familiar with the investigation told The Ledger that the usual procedure is to have a normal package delivery, but with a device inserted in the package that would alert investigators when the package is opened. When it is, then an arrest is made.
Boatner said his officers "used the techniques available to them at the time."
Boatner said there has been no internal investigation over any accusations that police jumped the gun in detaining Mitchell.
An internal investigation could have been triggered by a complaint from Mitchell or by concerns within the department. "I'm not aware that Mr. Mitchell filed a complaint," Boatner said.
"We reviewed the situation," which is standard procedure, Boatner said. He said there was "nothing drastically out-of-the ordinary" with policy or procedure when police confronted Mitchell.
"Could we have done things better?" Boatner asked. "Of course, but they can always be done better."
Boatner said he did not feel his officers jumped the gun. He said his concern about doing things better "was from an officer-safety perspective."
Mitchell, who has been living in Los Angeles, could not be reached to comment.
Investigators are likely trying to trace the source of the package, which police sources have said came from Texas, Liguori said.
"There's only about 5 billion pounds of dope a year that comes through Texas, So I'm sure they'll be able to find the source of this," Liguori said, tongue-in-cheek.
The February incident began when the package, sent via FedEx, was "hit on" at some point by a drug-sniffing dog and Lakeland police were notified.
The package was delivered to Mitchell's grandmother. Mitchell said at the time that his grandmother is 90 years old and "takes memory pills."
The grandmother, according to both Mitchell and the law enforcement sources, told the delivery driver the package wasn't hers and she suggested it was probably intended for Mitchell.
Liguori has said Mitchell's grandmother was given a FedEx phone number for Mitchell to claim the package, and he called the number.
Mitchell has said the package was delivered to him at Brothers, where he frequently received packages of restaurant supplies.
Mitchell has said he didn't know what was in the package - and still doesn't other than the reference to "dope'' made by police officers.
Mitchell was inside the restaurant during what he said was a lunch rush. He said he was told he had a FedEx package to sign for in the parking lot, so he went outside and signed.
As soon as he did, Mitchell said, "police were everywhere."
After his arrest, Mitchell first closed and then lost the restaurant.
In September, Polk County Judge Anne H. Kaylor ordered Mitchell to return the restaurant to owner Mary Harris. Mitchell had a lease-to-own agreement with her but hadn't paid the remaining purchase price, according to court records.
News Hawk- Weedpipe 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: THE LEDGER
Author: Rick Rousos
Contact: The Lakeland Ledger
Copyright: 2010 TheLedger.com
Website:|Ex-NFL Star Freddie Mitchell May Avoid Trial on Pot Charges
The reason Mitchell won't have to worry anymore: Police have taken too long to bring a case against him to court, his lawyer says.
Mitchell, a former Kathleen High standout, played for UCLA and the Philadelphia Eagles.
The marijuana accusation stemmed from a Feb. 5 incident last year in which a package sources said contained about 7 pounds of marijuana was delivered to Mitchell's grandmother's home. Mitchell lived elsewhere.
Police then delivered it to Mitchell at Brothers Bar-B-Q, which he owned at the time. Mitchell was handcuffed, seated in the back of a patrol car and eventually released.
The act of taking someone into custody begins the tick ing of the "speedy trial" clock, said Mitchell's lawyer John Liguori.
For a felony charge, the clock expires 175 days after a person is taken into custody.
Mitchell, 31, was unquestionably in custody, Liguori said.
"Was he restrained? Yes," Liguori said. "Was he free to leave the back of the cop car and walk away? No."
Liguori maintains the acts of handcuffing Mitchell and putting him in the back of a squad car suffice for "custody." But he said Mitchell also was told he was under arrest as he was being handcuffed.
Lakeland Police Chief Roger Boatner said Liguori appears to be right about the law.
"I don't dispute (Liguori's) legal wisdom," Boatner said. "I'm sure he's probably correct. But that doesn't mean our investigation is done."
Boatner said his department will continue investigating and turn over any potential evidence to prosecutors.
"We'll base any further action on what the State Attorney's Office wants us to do," Boatner said.
Chip Thullbery, spokesman for the State Attorney's Office, said he could not comment on what may be a case pending before prosecutors.
A source familiar with the investigation told The Ledger that the usual procedure is to have a normal package delivery, but with a device inserted in the package that would alert investigators when the package is opened. When it is, then an arrest is made.
Boatner said his officers "used the techniques available to them at the time."
Boatner said there has been no internal investigation over any accusations that police jumped the gun in detaining Mitchell.
An internal investigation could have been triggered by a complaint from Mitchell or by concerns within the department. "I'm not aware that Mr. Mitchell filed a complaint," Boatner said.
"We reviewed the situation," which is standard procedure, Boatner said. He said there was "nothing drastically out-of-the ordinary" with policy or procedure when police confronted Mitchell.
"Could we have done things better?" Boatner asked. "Of course, but they can always be done better."
Boatner said he did not feel his officers jumped the gun. He said his concern about doing things better "was from an officer-safety perspective."
Mitchell, who has been living in Los Angeles, could not be reached to comment.
Investigators are likely trying to trace the source of the package, which police sources have said came from Texas, Liguori said.
"There's only about 5 billion pounds of dope a year that comes through Texas, So I'm sure they'll be able to find the source of this," Liguori said, tongue-in-cheek.
The February incident began when the package, sent via FedEx, was "hit on" at some point by a drug-sniffing dog and Lakeland police were notified.
The package was delivered to Mitchell's grandmother. Mitchell said at the time that his grandmother is 90 years old and "takes memory pills."
The grandmother, according to both Mitchell and the law enforcement sources, told the delivery driver the package wasn't hers and she suggested it was probably intended for Mitchell.
Liguori has said Mitchell's grandmother was given a FedEx phone number for Mitchell to claim the package, and he called the number.
Mitchell has said the package was delivered to him at Brothers, where he frequently received packages of restaurant supplies.
Mitchell has said he didn't know what was in the package - and still doesn't other than the reference to "dope'' made by police officers.
Mitchell was inside the restaurant during what he said was a lunch rush. He said he was told he had a FedEx package to sign for in the parking lot, so he went outside and signed.
As soon as he did, Mitchell said, "police were everywhere."
After his arrest, Mitchell first closed and then lost the restaurant.
In September, Polk County Judge Anne H. Kaylor ordered Mitchell to return the restaurant to owner Mary Harris. Mitchell had a lease-to-own agreement with her but hadn't paid the remaining purchase price, according to court records.
News Hawk- Weedpipe 420 MAGAZINE ® - Medical Marijuana Publication & Social Networking
Source: THE LEDGER
Author: Rick Rousos
Contact: The Lakeland Ledger
Copyright: 2010 TheLedger.com
Website:|Ex-NFL Star Freddie Mitchell May Avoid Trial on Pot Charges
