Assignment:
Read the two cases below from when I worked undercover. These are actual cases I made. Read both cases and answer the following:
1. Did Case 1 involve entrapment? If yes, explain in detail why, and if not, explain in detail why not.
2. Did Case 2 involve entrapment? If yes, explain in detail why, and if not, explain in detail why not.
3. What are your thoughts about these type of undercover operations?
Case 1
I received information from an informant regarding an individual living in Dallas Texas who was manufacturing and selling LSD. The suspect worked for the public school system in Dallas. My informant called the individual and told him there is an interested party in Columbus wishing to purchase 5,000 hits of LSD. The informant negotiated the deal with the suspect to deliver 5,000 hits of LSD for $10,000. The day before the deal was to take place, I called the dealer to discuss the meeting. The dealer would fly into Columbus on a commercial flight arriving in the early evening. Once the deal was completed, the dealer was getting right back on the same plane he arrived on for his return to Dallas. We had about 30 minutes to complete the deal before he had to get back on the plane. Since I did not know the dealer, he advised he would be wearing red suspenders so I would recognize him. When the suspect arrived, I met him in the terminal lobby and introduced myself. We walked outside where I had a truck parked. We got into the truck and I produced the $10,000. He produced the LSD. When he did, I stepped on the brake pedal to illuminate the break lights, which was the prearranged signal for my team to move in and effect the arrest.
Case 2.
In one particular case I worked, we seized 35 pounds of high-grade marijuana. Once the case was disposed of, I put word out to my informants to let people know they knew someone with up to 35 pounds of high-grade marijuana for sale. One of my informants called me to say he had met an individual at a bar who was interested in purchasing marijuana. Arrangements were made for the informant to introduce me to the suspect. One afternoon the informant and I drove to the suspects place of employment. After the informant introduced me to the suspect, I got out of my vehicle to talk to him outside the presence of the informant. I asked the suspect how well he know my informant and he said he had just met him. I told the suspect I didn't really trust the informant and that I was going to tell the informant that I didn't feel comfortable doing a deal with the suspect, that I would drop off the informant, and return to discuss the deal (this way, the informant was not a witness to the deal).
I took the informant back to his car and paid him $50 for the introduction to the suspect. It was also agreed that if a deal was completed, the informant would be paid an additional amount of money based on the amount of the transaction. When I returned to meet with the suspect, and begin discussing a possible deal. At one point I told the suspect I was nervous about dealing with him because I didn't know if he might be a cop. I asked him if he had anything he could turn me on to so I would know he wasn't a cop. I told him "I'll know you're not a cop because cops can't sell dope." He said he had some weed in his pocket he could give me. It was about a gram. He gave it to me (this actually constituted the charge of distribution of marijuana). Over the next couple of weeks we had numerous phone calls discussing a sale.
Finally, it was agreed I would sell him ten pounds of pot for $5,000 (that was all the money he could come up with). On the day of the deal, I was to meet him in the parking lot of the old Columbus Square Mall where the movie theater was located (Now behind where the Library is on Macon Rd). We choose this spot because at the time of day we planned to do the deal there wouldn't be many people around and there were only two ways to get in and out of the parking lot and it allowed for easy surveillance from my back-up units. When the suspect arrived, I was sitting in a van.
He walked up to the drivers side window and I removed the lid from the box containing the marijuana and showed it to him. He showed me a wad of cash. I then told him to come get in the van and count out the money. As he was walking around to get in the van, I gave the signal for the take-down team to move in. Once he was in the van and counting out the money, the take-down team moved in and arrested him. We seized the money and charged him with Criminal Attempt to Purchase and Possess Marijuana. He was also charged with Distributing Marijuana for the marijuana he gave me during our first meeting.