A little over a week ago, I announced that I had been selected to sit on the jury of a criminal trial. Due to an emergency illness with Daughter #2, I was excused after one day of testimony. We, the jury, were told by the judge that the case would take two days. I was in attendance for the opening statements by both the prosecution and the defense. The United States presented their case and rested at the end of the day. I was not there to hear the defense. I have been watching the local paper to see if the case is mentioned and thus far…..nothing.
I couldn’t possibly have formed an opinion about whether the defendant was guilty or innocent having only heard half the story. I am left with many questions but they are not about guilt or innocence.
It was a drug case. The defendant was accused of selling crack cocaine and marijuana within 1000 feet of an elementary school and attempted assault on a police officer. Evidence was produced. I saw crack cocaine for the first time in my life. I also saw marijuana……..again. Hey, I was a teenager during the 70s. You would have had to have lived under a rock to have never seen marijuana during those times.
I learned that drugs are commonly concealed in those little plastic tubes that super glue comes in. Now every time I see super glue, I’m going to wonder…….Drug dealer? Drug user? Broken dishes?
The marijuana evidence was presented in little ziploc bags measuring about a square inch. Once filled with this grassy substance, the bag was about the size of the end of my thumb. I had to wonder if this amount would even be enough to fill one
This got me thinking. Where do you get little, tiny ziploc bags like that? I’ve never seen bags that size in my local grocery. Who supplies the suppliers? This drug business is a whole industry in itself. Who knew? Certainly not me.
The crack cocaine was presented to us in even tinier ziploc bags. Where do you get these things? And by the way, the bags are yellow. I got the impression from testimony that nine out of ten leading drug dealers prefer yellow bags over any other color.
I was also surprised to find that these drug deals can go down (I kinda sound like DeNiro there, huh?) for less than $10. My chocolate addiction is more expensive than that. I was always under the impression that illegal drug use was completely unaffordable. Obviously I was misled by the propaganda distributed by my parents and teachers. I’m not advocating that we all take up new drug addictions. I’m just simply stating that I was misinformed.
So, assuming that you are not an illegal drug dealer or a drug user, I have to ask: Have you ever seen these ziploc bags for sale? Have you seen them used for something other than crack or marijuana? What are the other uses for this type of baggie? Do the suppliers know the intended use of their product? These are questions I would like to have answered.
Can you help a smart mouth broad? This inquiring mind needs to know.
