Classic Florida | Calling 911 For Stolen Pot

In this edition of Classic Florida, we find ourselves in Pasco County, where authorities had to tell a man to stop calling 911 to report allegedly stolen marijuana. A video posted Saturday shows Deputy Neal Zalva explaining the situation prior to calling the individual. It can be seen on the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office official Twitter account, which is surprisingly engaging. 

Someone called dispatch because his weed was stolen. Deputy Zalva is making contact. #TweetAlong pic.twitter.com/eDTZv8YhiD

— Pasco Sheriff (@PascoSheriff) October 13, 2019

An office spokesperson reported to USA TODAY that no arrests were made after Deputy Zalva’s communication with the man. The video was posted as part of a #TweetAlong series giving Twitters users an exclusive behind-the-scenes perspective of the Pasco County Sheriff’s Office’s day-to-day operations. 

“Alright, so I just received a call,” Zalva said. “A guy's calling in, saying his roommate stole his weed. About $20 worth, and he's upset. He keeps calling 911. So, I've got to give him a call to tell him, ‘stop calling about his weed.’”  He continued, “he started to freak out a little bit on the phone and then hung up on me shortly after.”

No charges were pressed upon the person in question. On Tuesday, sheriff's office communications director Kevin Doll said they just wanted the man to stop calling about the stolen weed. 

On March 18, 2019, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed SB 182 into law, repealing the ban on smoking medical cannabis. Via Marijuana Policy Project: “SB 182 also allows patients to receive up to 2.5 ounces of whole flower cannabis every 35 days as recommended by their doctor and requires patients under the age of 18 to have a terminal condition and to get a second opinion from a pediatrician before smoking medical cannabis.”

However, recreational marijuana remains illegal throughout the state of Florida. “Possession of 20 grams or less of marijuana is a misdemeanor punishable by a maximum sentence of one year imprisonment and a maximum fine of $1,000. Possession of more than 20 grams of marijuana is a felony punishable by a maximum sentence of five years imprisonment and a maximum fine of $5,000.”