Police Stealing Weed From the Police

In recent news, a Richmond police officer was found in possession of 3 pounds of cannabis at his home. Authorities say Veteran K-9 officer Joe Avila will likely not be charged.

According to a search warrant affidavit obtained by Contra Costa Times News, officer Avila confiscated a 4- to 5-pound box of cannabis from a UPS store on Nov. 25, 2013. Officer Avila radioed his dispatcher and indicated he would file the appropriate report — thing is, he never actually followed through.

According to several police sources, officer Avila violated Richmond police protocol and took the weed to his home in Oakley, instead of depositing the evidence in a department evidence locker. And he would have gotten away with it too — if it weren’t for a meddling officer who launched an investigation after officials noticed that Avila had failed to file over 3 dozen reports. Maybe all that weed made him too lazy to do his job. The Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office has been investigating since the case came to its attention earlier this year, but is not inclined to file charges, said Robin Lipetzky, the county’s chief public defender.

During the investigation, officials informed officer Avila that he would be placed on administrative leave while he failed to write 37 reports, including the report for the weed he confiscated. According to Richmond police, officers are given strict guidelines on labeling, packaging and storing potential evidence and are required to file a police report before their shift ends, unless special circumstances dictate they don’t.

After questioning, Avila told police that he had used 2 pounds of the confiscated cannabis to train his K-9 unit during February. When pressed further officer Avila admitted that the rest of the weed might be found at his home or in his car. Sure enough, police found the rest of the box at the officer in questions home. But instead of being punished for his actions, Officer Avila has been sitting pretty on paid administrative leave since September. Yup, good old government tax dollars going to pay the wages of the finest  policemen Richmond can offer.

Despite the clear case of an officer committing theft of weed and police evidence, officer Avila will not face arrest due to “lack of evidence” against him. However, Avila’s status as an employee working as a law enforcement officer in Richmond may be at risk. But for now, the future of Officer Avila’s employment with Richmond police remains to be determined.