Pot Makes You Stupid

From Findlaw yesterday, via the AP, comes a story of unfortunately not-so-rare criminal stupidity. Seems that a man going through a courthouse security check point accidentally tossed a bag of marijuana onto the table as he emptied his pockets. Once he realized his mistake, the man took off in an attempt to escape police, only to be foiled by a locked door. The truly stupid part? He was coming to court for a hearing on a drug and driving charge!

One summer while in law school I worked for a county prosecutor in West Virginia. It was the law students job to work through the minor cases in magistrate court during the afternoon. One recurring theme I witnessed shares a lot with the pothead in the AP story. People would come to court to deal with a charge of driving without a license, or on a suspended license, etc. - something arising from the fact that they should not be driving a car. Many showed up by themselves. How did they get to court? They drove. Thank you very much, sir - next case!