Jump to content

What To Do When You Find Drugs?


Recommended Posts

Okay here is our story. Today we were at the National Arboretum (which I highly recommend going to) looking for a cache. We walked along a trail and my husband looks down and sees about 10 teeny tiny little blue bags of white powder. We assume it is cocaine. :) Near the tiny little blue bags is a larger green zip lock bag about an inch or so square that is open and empty. We think the tiny blue bags fell out of the green bag. There is no one else around this particular area although in general there are people on the pathways.

 

We left the drugs where they were and hiked back to the car and drove to the visitor's center (we couldn't find a security office building) and told the lady what we found and asked her to call security. The security officers arrived and just as they arrived a police car drove past the visitor's center but did not stop. We told the security ladies what we saw and where we saw it, but they didn't seem too interested. One of them thought it was outside the arboretum gate and we told her that it was inside the gate and on the arboretum property. I really wish the police officers would have come in the building instead of just the security. I don't know if the police were there because security called them before coming in to talk with us or if it was just a co-incidence that they drove by while we were in the visitors center.

 

We weren't sure what to do, do we leave the drugs and report the location, or do we take the drugs and turn them in and report the location? Did we do the right thing? We left the cell phone at home and even if we had the phone we don't know the phone number to the police department and in my opinion this didn't warrant calling 911.

Link to comment

That is why we left them where they were. With our luck something would have happened and no one would have believed we were on the way to turn them in.

 

No officer these aren't ours honest, we were just on our way to find you and give them to you. :)

 

Yeah right as they haul us off to jail and I lose my job!

Link to comment

After all that, I would think these people don't care and therefore call the police. (or Sheriff). call 411 for the non-emergency number.

 

Then I would follow up with the people really in charge of the park, even if it turned out to be powered sugar.

 

I would have no problem with these people thinking I was a hard a** about powder in small baggies. For some reason it's bad PR for them when they don't care and the public does.

Edited by BlueDeuce
Link to comment

I think you did the right thing.

 

I would have notified security and if they weren't going to check it out I would have called the police non-emergency number. I don't know what its like in your area but around here something like this would get a police response.

 

I wouldn't have moved the drugs myself.

 

Report your experience to the prroperty management during regular business hours. I think they would be interested to hear about the stellar work :) of that security guard.

Link to comment

If we would have had our cell phone with us we could have called someone else. Whenever we have the phone nothing happens.

 

Part of the problem on our part was the heat today. We went to the National Zoo to take a TB whose goal was to see the Zoo then we were going to place the TB in the cache at the arboretum. Before we went to look for the cache we looked at a few of the other gardens and by the time we found the white powder we were both fried. It was only 1:30 when we left the arboretum, but it was really hot and the humidity was terrible. We had to walk uphill to get back to the car and our shirts were sticking to our backs it was miserable out side and we were getting hungry - I think I'd like some cheese with my whine!

 

I really don't know what the security ladies did after we left. They may have called the police and went to the location. They just didn't seem very enthusiastic about what we found. Maybe they see the stuff al the time so it's nothing to get all worked up about.

 

I do think calling the arboretum tomorrow is a good idea.

 

BTW we had to report a DNF as neither of us felt like bushwacking where there was no path down a hill and back up again in this heat. We'll come back another day when it's about 15 degrees cooler.

Link to comment

you wanted to hear from law enforcement, so, hear goes;

Under the circumstances, you did the right thing, leaving the drugs where they were. Personally, I would've collected them just to keep them out of the hands of a kid that might wander by. Nobody gets arrested for calling the cops & turning in dope. Maybe the security guard dropped them? :)

Link to comment

If you observe narcotics in the field, there are a couple of things that I would suggest, and a couple of things that I would discourage.

 

Primarily, evaluate your own safety.

 

If you found a small stash that may look as if it had been discarded or accidentally dropped, you may have time to linger. If it appears to be an ownerless stash and your safety isn't compromised and there is little danger of anyone else accidentally finding it, then mark the stash as a waypoint and photograph the narcotics if you have a digital camera. Having other items in the photograph for reference or scale will be valuable to responding officers.

 

If you wandered into a crop, you should quickly and carefully leave the area while watching everything around you. When you encounter "commercial" growers, you're likely to also find improvised warning devices such as rat traps loaded with shotgun shells or fish hooks hanging at head level. Walking into a crop is like walking into a combat zone... get out of there carefully and don't touch anything.

 

Under no circumstances should you ever touch the narcotics. Many narcotics are absorbable through the skin and handling them may introduce the narcotics into your body. This has been a huge issue with police unions because careless handling of narcotics has led to accidental absorbtion and positive drug tests that jeopardized (or cost) the officer their job. Handling it also contaminates the evidence, as we can often retrieve prints off of plasticene baggies. If you need any further discouragement of the hazard, I will forward the story of a police officer that assisted in a raid of a meth lab and then wore the same combat boots home at the end of the day. The residue on the boots that he tracked across his living room carpet overdosed and killed his two year old son.

 

If there's a chance someone else may accidentally wander onto the stash and you have a cell phone, you may elect to stay with it and call the local or state police.

 

The primary concern is your own safety.

Link to comment

The story about the meth on boots sound like an urban legend, got any more info on that?

 

As for the drugs, if you chose not to move the baggies to not hinder an investigation of some sort... well there wouldn't have been much of one. Not wanting to touch them without gloves is reasonable, but maybe placing something on top to obscure them from view would have been a good idea, animals and children may have picked them up... not good. Unitil it is tested there is no way of knowing what was in them, it would just end up being destroyed.

Link to comment

Some time ago in a Pennsylvania Game Lands I found a nice well-maintained garden that was covered with netting to keep the deer from eating the crop of 16 healthy looking marijuana plants. It was in a fairly isolated area maybe half a mile from a road. I reported it and drove back up to lead them in to it. The plan was to set up cameras with motion detectors and try to get a photo of the gardener.. I never heard anything more.

Link to comment

Definitely have a witness with you and then go to the nearest toilet and flush it all, opening the bags before flushing. Then walk away and go about your business.

Go to public payphone and call PD, telling them of drug activity in this area then hangup.

 

Unless, you desire to be questioned for at least how many hours? All your information given to the police-then they can always suspect you as well, in the present or future.

 

Flush, dispose of in porta-toilet, creek, water soluble unit. Why let some other fool ruin your day.

 

Then again I have seen cops use drugs, they may just want you to stop and hand over what you have found. :P No kidding.

Link to comment
Definitely have a witness with you and then go to the nearest toilet and flush it all, opening the bags before flushing. Then walk away and go about your business.

 

Go to public payphone and call PD, telling them of drug activity in this area then hangup.

I would strongly urge the reader to disregard this particular advice for a number of reasons.

 

Proximal possession by one, particularly in a motor vehicle, is sufficient evidence to charge EVERYONE in the motor vehicle with possession of narcotics, so involving a friend with misguided aspirations that they would serve as a witness is of value only if you wish to share the possession charges and terminate that friendship.

 

Given the shortage of public safety officers, another general rule of thumb is that resources are not wasted on anonymous tips.

 

Without a name, address, and contact number for the reporting party the anonymous tip has zero credibility and evidence gathered under such circumstance becomes extremely questionable under U.S. Supreme Court case law.

 

If you have further questions pertaining to law enforcement interdiction or interaction, please contact your local police department or the regional State Police barracks.

Link to comment
I read with some amusement a while ago where a cacher found a bunch of marijuana plants near the container. They didn't do anything about it but those plants were gone the very next day when the next cacher came. I guess someone online got a quite a cache of hash, as it were. :unsure:

The cacher came back at night and snagged 'em! :anitongue:

Link to comment

Seems like people have some differing ideas here... but I have to disagree with the ones saying to pick it up and/or destroy it. What good is it going to do calling the cops if you've destroyed the evidence?? Nada.

 

This would be a particularly difficult situation if there were only one person on this hunt/find... but since there were two of you, one could stay behind and guard the stash if you were worried about someone finding it by accident. Of course, by the stated heat this would obviously not be a watch I'd want to take. If the place isn't very busy, and you're off trail, chances are it wouldn't be found unless another cacher happened to be in the same area. Covering it up MIGHT be safe, but again you could be destroying valuable evidence. And depending on what you used to cover it you might actually draw attention to the area.

 

Personally I think you did the right thing. I'd mark the area as a waypoint and proceed to the nearest phone to call the police. Notifying the security that it was there (so they wouldn't freak when the cops showed up) is an option... but it's not their job to take on such an investigation and they probably wouldn't want to mess with it either.

 

In short, the fewer people disturbing the area the better. DO NOT TOUCH IT under any circumstances. Not only are you taking a chance on destroying fingerprint evidence, but you are risking the chance that there may be drugs on the outside of the baggies which would get into your system.

 

But please, do not flush it or dump it into a nearby creek :lol:. Yes, we want to get this garbage off the streets, but that's not your job. And you definitely wouldn't want to be caught with it in your possession. Maybe it was just a coincidence that the cops drove by... what would have happened if they happened to see you dumping white powder into the creek??? :(

 

convict.gif

Link to comment
[..]

Not only are you taking a chance on destroying fingerprint evidence, but you are risking the chance that there may be drugs on the outside of the baggies which would get into your system. 

[...]

Remember: drug tests are nowadays terrible sensitive .

So: never touch anything that might contain drugs. When your boss tests your piss the next day you could be fired on the spot and labeled as a drug user!

Link to comment

Wow-

 

So many differing opinions. I will say after reading these responses, I am sure for our circumstances we did the right thing. It never crossed my mind to pick up and destroy the drugs although the Anacostia River is in throwing distance, it is polluted enough and I am certainly not afraid of being detained for hours because the police might think I am guilty of something. I have faith in our justice system and the truth. I just didn't want to destroy any finger prints or take a trip I wasn't prepared for because there was residue on the outside of the baggies and later I stick my finger in my eye or something.

 

The drugs were off the main path and the National Arboretum is not a hot spot for kids. There's more chance a bird or small animal might come by and sample one of the packets than kids (squirrells gone crazy). There was no one in the area at all. I still wish we would have been able to talk to a police officer instead of just the security, but we did the right thing by contacting the authorities even if they were just security. After that it was their turn to do the right thing. Our cell phone was forgotten at home on this trip, so calling the police was not really an option.

 

I do want to thank all of you who responded no matter how you responded. I really do enjoy the forums and I asked for opinions.

Link to comment

look, there will be no "investigation" for personal use quantities, don't leave it for kids or animals to find! Fingerprints? You must be joking. Destroy it and let the PTB know. Or if you can't bring yourself to do that, leave it but try your best to secure it in someway, and then tell the cops, that way they can be taken off the streets not responding to calls for the time it takes them to get there, find it, process the dope for testing and destruction and write a report... all a huge waste of time and resources for something that will get destroyed.

Link to comment
I think that I would leave them there and report where they are left at. I would hate to have them in my hands as the police would think that they are yours, It would be best to leave them alone and report them bickhart 814 Joel :laughing:

Yeah, you don't want to have your fingerprints on it. With the legal system today, just report it to a local officer and keep away from it.

 

If you're in Texas an you pick it up, you may be in the chair the next day. <_<

Link to comment

Well here is my 2cents as a Law Enforcement Officer (specifically a Narcotics Detective)

 

There are numerous variables to this.

 

1. What kind of drugs is it?

ie did you find a pot field or is it a meth lab?

marijuana is not absorbed through the skin while coke and meth could be

 

Marijuana fields would be looked at and a decision would be made as to whether to just pull the plants with no investigation or to sit on the plants with the hopes of catching the grower. We do sometimes find fields with booby traps in them but not often in my jurisdiction. (NC) Just be observant. Take a reading at the site and advise Law Enforcement as soon as you can and provide them with what information you can. ( feel free to continue on the hunt unless the grower is actually present and knows u spotted them.)

 

Meth Labs are unique dangers all by thierselves. (ie chemicals, booby traps and violent subjects) Get a reading and advise LE IMMEDIATELY!

Leave the area IMMEDIATELY!

 

Advise LE of what you may have seen and stand by for them to respond if possible. Be aware that there is potential for "cross contaimination" from the chemicals used in meth manufacturing.

 

2. What is the quantity of drugs?

ie did u find a dime bag of weed of personal use amounts of cocaine?

This will determine our response. If it's personal use then a Patrol Officer/Deputy will probably respond. If it's a pot field or lab then a Narcotics Detective will respond. Either way we will respond, that's our job.

 

Things to remember:

Above all your safety is paramount! Never do anything that jeopardizes that.

We rarely fingerprint found narcotics unless we have a suspect in mind.

Please don't leave narcotics in the open in an area where children might find them. At a minimum try to cover them with leaves or something.

ALWAYS atleast notify Law Enforcement so that we may recover the evidence and be aware of a potential area of concern.

Never attempt to destroy the evidence yourself, that is what Law Enforcement is for.

 

Hope this helped !

Link to comment
I also found some "exotic" plant life as well. Stay away from the area southwest of the cache. It may keep you out of trouble!!!!!

 

this happened at GCG70C Genealogy of a Geocacher. I went straight to the East Longmeadow, MA police dept. They asked me all sorts of questions and made me feel like I was trying specifically to get someone I knew in trouble. Thankfully one of the officers owned a GPS but never heard of Geocaching. Whatever happened after that is a mystery.

Link to comment

NEVER TOUCH THE ITEM.

If you do, advise the officer who responds to your call that you touched it.

NEVER remove the item, try and get someone to go for a law enofrcement officer while you stand by the suspicious item.

You will be questioned, and your name will be taken, this is all part of the process.

Try and be patient, it may take some time.

Link to comment

Why should we involve ourselves in other peoples business? I know this isn't the popular view here, but I'm not the type of guy to rat out someone, especially someone growing a couple weed plants for their own enjoyment. I could see turning in a meth lab next door, but why risk someone loosing their career, their freedom and their family for smoking a little herb, we don't who they are, or why they feel the need to get high, maybe we should feel sorry for them instead of ruin their lives. Many of us partake in drugs that some senator decided was OK (alcohol, nicotene, Paxil) why should some poor slob be incarcerated because they don't share the same values as other people? I just can't see setting up a chain of reactions in peoples lives we know nothing about.

Link to comment
Just curious, but how does Paxil get lumped in with addictive substances? It's an anti-depressant.

It's a drug that makes people feel better and it's not illegal, there's nothing wrong with it. Alcohol is another drug some people choose to use that is not illegal and also not addictive (unless your genetically predisposed to alcoholism). Weed is also NOT addictive and some people use it to feel better also, it probably has less side effects than many legal drugs. The point is that senators make arbitrary judgements on what people can and can not use to feel better, and us as individuals tend to make moral judgements based on what the legislators morals are. I prefer to think for myself.

Not trying to start a flame war, just saying for ME, I don't feel comfortable making decisions about other peoples lives.

Link to comment

It looks like you got an endless list of answer, so I'll try to keep this one short.

 

While hunting for a cache, we found a black taped object. my husband started to unroll the tape, in a little bit, we noticed that it was not a cache, but rather was a plastic bag with white powder inside.

 

We called information, and asked for the non-911 phone number (we were out of town). They connected us, and we explained where we were and what we had found.

 

COUNTER TO THE ABOVE CLAIMS, we were not stuck there for hours waiting. It took about 10 minutes and a cop appeared. (note, this was in a fairly large city - no Barney Fife with nothing better to do - they CARE about drugs) It took about 15 minutes to explain what we were doing, what geocaching was, and exactly what we had and had not done with the package. No hassle. No thinking we were bad guys (c'mon, if they were our drugs, why would we be giving them to the cops?).

 

As cachers, I think we still have the rights and responsibilities of citizens. Our responsibility was to notifiy the police. Once they took it over, our role was over.

 

BUT, as cachers, we have one more responsiibility -- TO MAKE SURE THE CACHE OWNER KNOWS ABOUT IT! in a private e-mail or in a post, whatever you feel most comfortable with. But, the owner needs to think about whether or not they want to pull the cache, or if they want to risk the safety of future cachers. in our case, the owner pulled the cache.

 

That said - in the situation stated to start this thread, I think you basically did the right thing, especially if you also made sure that teh cache owner knew about it. We were in a more ideal situation (50 degrees and very near our car), so we could wait in the locked car in relative comfort and greater safety. you didn't have a perfect situation like that, but you certainly did a reasonable job of trying to bring it to someone's attention.

Link to comment
I'm not sure whether to respond to this post as a law enforcement officer again, or just start running BOP and warrant checks on some of the cachers that thought that your question was a chance to soapbox!

 

Maybe you should have just asked for opinions from cachers that could pass a urine test?

Let me guess, you were a hall monitor in grammar school.

Link to comment

Very interesting responses I've gotten here.

 

Beffums mentioned notifying the cache owner. In this case we did not notify the cache owner privately because the baggies really were not close to the cache. Since the baggies were strewn about on a paved pathway it seemed as though they were accidently dropped. Not llike someone was hiding the drugs near the cache so it was unlikely to happen again. We wrote about the experience in our log.

 

More recently we found a cache in woods near a residential area. While looking through the ammo can I found a ziploc bag with squished aluminum foil in it. I thought it was a strange thing so I took it out and when I unsquished it I could see that it was a homemade pipe used for either hash or pot.

 

In reading through the log book, we read that the cache had been ransacked a few weeks before and the cachers who found it said they picked up everything they could find and put it back in the cache. Since this aluminum foil pipe was in a ziplock bag they probably didn't even realize what it was. I think who ever trashed the cache probably dropped the pipe. In this case, I did not mention the pipe in my log, but I did PM the cache owner. Oh yeah we took the pipe with us and when we drove to the next cache we deposited the pipe into a trash can in the parking lot.

 

I am confident we did the right thing in both instances. Although I do have some regrets about the Arboretum. I wish we would have been more insistent about talking to the police instead of the Arboretum security. Had we brought our cell phone with us at the arboretum we would have called the police ourselves, but we forgot the phone at home that day. The second case was not worth calling the police for.

Link to comment

I think I'd go with the "cover it and mark it" plan. What if you picked it up and you were the second person like you to find it? Now you're walking around with drugs in your pocket after someone has called the police. Not good. I also think that this would warrant a 911 call. The public is in danger in this case. What you found was already processed and ready for "use". It's not like a plant that would require some kind of processing. There is a genuine sense of urgency Don't be ashamed to call 911 if you don't know the local number. I think the police would understand in this situation.

 

I think it's also important to mention that alot of meth labs are out in the woods with people camping nearby. (I watch COPS alot ;)) These are not reasonable people. They will kill you. If you see tents and smell chemicals, get out and call the police once you're safe and don't give interviews to the media.

Link to comment
Definitely have a witness with you and then go to the nearest toilet and flush it all, opening the bags before flushing. Then walk away and go about your business.

Go to public payphone and call PD, telling them of drug activity in this area then hangup.

 

Unless, you desire to be questioned for at least how many hours? All your information given to the police-then they can always suspect you as well, in the present or future.

 

Flush, dispose of in porta-toilet, creek, water soluble unit. Why let some other fool ruin your day.

 

Then again I have seen cops use drugs, they may just want you to stop and hand over what you have found. ;) No kidding.

No offense but what if that suspected substance isn't drugs but instead something like: anthrax that you just flushed into the local system.

 

In addition to disposing of evidence.

Link to comment
Why should we involve ourselves in other peoples business? I know this isn't the popular view here, but I'm not the type of guy to rat out someone, especially someone growing a couple weed plants for their own enjoyment. I could see turning in a meth lab next door, but why risk someone loosing their career, their freedom and their family for smoking a little herb, we don't who they are, or why they feel the need to get high, maybe we should feel sorry for them instead of ruin their lives. Many of us partake in drugs that some senator decided was OK (alcohol, nicotene, Paxil) why should some poor slob be incarcerated because they don't share the same values as other people? I just can't see setting up a chain of reactions in peoples lives we know nothing about.

Because that person might just use and get on the road.

 

My brother got caught up in maryjane a few years ago, no big deal right, except he was known to drive while high for one thing. WRONG. He now has a meth problem. And while on meth has driven. He also has paranoid delisions and has bought weapons to protect himself. I was the one that turned him in when I found out what he was doing. Yep he has a difficult time now getting and holding jobs, he struggles daily not to use, yep he almost lost a job, but you know what in the long run he has thanked me. Why because he got help and while he struggles he now knows how to try and deal with things.

Link to comment
Just curious, but how does Paxil get lumped in with addictive substances? It's an anti-depressant.

It's a drug that makes people feel better and it's not illegal, there's nothing wrong with it. Alcohol is another drug some people choose to use that is not illegal and also not addictive (unless your genetically predisposed to alcoholism). Weed is also NOT addictive and some people use it to feel better also, it probably has less side effects than many legal drugs. The point is that senators make arbitrary judgements on what people can and can not use to feel better, and us as individuals tend to make moral judgements based on what the legislators morals are. I prefer to think for myself.

Not trying to start a flame war, just saying for ME, I don't feel comfortable making decisions about other peoples lives.

Myh brother would STRONGLY disagree with you that Maryjane is not addictive or that it is not a gateway drug to other use of other drugs.

Link to comment

MORML you mean the organization which wants to change the MJ Use law. Man that one's too funny. Can we say ulterior motive.

 

Off topic so probably need to take this off line.

 

Ongoing studies of teenagers and their drug use patterns show that very few use other drugs without first trying marijuana. For instance, the risk of using cocaine has been estimated to be more than 100 times greater for those who have tried marijuana than for those who have never tried it. To date, there have been few studies on factors associated with this so called gateway theory of drug use and dependence, but growing evidence suggests a combination of biological, social, and psychological factors are involved.

 

Research published in the January 22, 2003 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association is the first major attempt to tease apart the genetic and environmental factors that predispose young marijuana users to develop subsequent problems with other, more dangerous drugs.

 

The findings suggest that children who used marijuana before age 17 were much more likely to go on to other drugs and to have alcohol or drug dependance problems compared to their twins who did not use marijuana before the age of 17.

About the Study

 

Researchers in Australia studied 311 twins (622 individuals) who participated in the Australian Twin Register. These men and women (average age 30 years) were telephoned by the researchers and asked questions about their non-medical drug use: specifically about the initiation and frequency of the drug use and related problems.

 

Question on factors associated with an increased risk of using marijuana and other drugs (like psychiatric disorders and early tobacco or alcohol use) were also asked. The researchers then calculated the odds of later drug use and dependence if a person started smoking marijuana before the age of 17.

 

The Findings

 

The majority of those who reported both marijuana and other drug use said that they started using marijuana before using other drugs. Compared to their twin who had not used marijuana before the age of 17, those who had used marijuana by this age were 2.1 to 5.2 times more likely to have reported drug use, illicit drug abuse or dependence, and alcohol dependence.

 

By using twins, the researchers were able to adjust for genetic and a number of environmental factors that could have influenced initiation of marijuana and other drug use. This allowed them to get a better understanding of the role that early marijuana use might play in later drug use and dependence.

 

RESOURCES:

 

National Institute on Drug Abuse

 

National Institutes of Health

 

But I am sure we can each find listing after listing to prove our sides. I'll believe what I say with my own eyes.

Link to comment

I see that this topic teeters between a discussion of what to do if you encounter drugs while geocaching (an excellent subject for this forum), vs. a debate about the morality and effects of drug use (a topic better suited for the off-topic forum). If you post, please stay on topic. Thank you.

Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...