Commonwealth vs. Beasley — The young black man in the photo above, a whip-smart college student, was involved in a tragic accident in 2011 during which he lost control of his car and his best friend was killed.
According to all reports, there was no sign of intoxication. Furthermore, the young man cooperated fully with the investigation.
At the time of the accident and as a matter of course, the Commonwealth took his blood. When it showed positive for THC, the Commonwealth saw fit to charge him — a year later — with the death of his friend.
On what did the prosecutor base such a serious charge? It was solely on the theory that the driver was intoxicated! This is despite published scientific articles demonstrating that you cannot tell whether someone is impaired based solely on the level of THC in that person’s blood!
Remember: there was zero sign of intoxication at the time of the accident.
Thankfully, the jury reached the only correct conclusion: that the accident was just that: an accident. Thank you to the team at Baldani, Rowland & Richardson* for the knowledgeable, well-researched and well-presented defense.
This is a charge that should never have been made. That any citizen of the great Commonwealth of Kentucky can be put in jeopardy of imprisonment, and be forced to defend himself against a half-cocked understanding of the science behind THC toxicology by an overzealous prosecution should be an outrage to anyone who values freedom.
Editor’s Note: Tucker Richardson is my brother. As a Cannabis activist (me, not him), when he gets it right, you’ll read the good news here.
Correction 6/12/15: The charge was manslaughter, not murder.
There was no news coverage of this case like there’s no news coverage of literally hundreds of thousands of cases that go through KY’s court system. Eventually, it may show up on some website that lists cases.
Do you think BRR made it up?
Jack Conway did not personally prosecute this case. As the top cop, he’s responsible for every case prosecuted by every AG in the state. THAT is his job.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attorney_General_of_Kentucky
I tried to find confirmation of this story and couldn’t. Did Jack Conway prosecute this case? Are there any other news sources that covered the story?