Police in Illinois say that reports of a suspicious vehicle in Joliet on the evening of Aug. 28 led to the discovery of heroin, cocaine, drug paraphernalia and a substantial quantity of 9mm handgun ammunition. A 24-year-old woman was taken into custody by officers at the scene. She was subsequently transported to a Will County detention facility on drug and weapons possession charges.
Officers who were dispatched to West Jefferson Street at about 8:00 p.m. say that they arrived at the scene to find a silver Mazda Tribute SUV with all of its doors open outside a pharmacy. A man and a woman were standing near the vehicle setting rags on fire according to the officers. This behavior and the woman’s alleged erratic actions led officers to believe that she could be under the influence of narcotics. The woman is said to have denied taking drugs, but reports indicate that she told officers that heroin and drug paraphernalia were concealed inside the vehicle.
Police say that all of the items recovered during the subsequent search were discovered on the passenger side of the vehicle where the woman was thought to have been sitting. The haul included what police described as drug equipment, a small quantity of suspected crack cocaine and a plastic bag containing a substance thought to be heroin.
Experienced criminal defense attorneys may study the results of toxicology tests closely when presented with facts like those in this case. Criminal suspects have the right to remain silent and speak with a lawyer, and attorneys may seek to have confessions, and any evidence stemming from them, ruled inadmissible and drug charges dismissed when their clients could have been denied these rights.
Source: The Joliet Patch, “Woman Had Heroin, Cocaine And Bullets: Joliet Police”, John Ferak, Aug. 30, 2018
