ix-Nay on the ADE-Jay

I told y’all that Jefferson Area Drug Enforcement’s big-time role in this would eventually be swept under the rug. Can’t really blame C’ville for not wanting people to know their well-funded JADE task force couldn’t tell the difference between a Meth lab and a Chem major’s pad.

Sentence of Former UVA Student Deferred
Posted: Oct 21, 2009 10:19 PM EDT
Updated: Oct 22, 2009 2:51 PM EDT

A former University of Virginia student who pleaded guilty to illegally possessing amphetamines had his sentencing deferred Wednesday afternoon.

The court placed 20-year-old Ian Diner on probation and will revisit his case next October.

In March 2009, police and HAZMAT teams were called to Diner's apartment on 14th Street, worried about an illegal drug lab.

Source.

The Hook doesn’t mention the Task Force by name in their piece about Diner either, although, to be fair, the local rag hasn’t been very pro-JADE -- especially recently -- and their headline “Illegal student chemist gets a pass” is a little clumsy (it’s not the student chemist that’s illegal) but otherwise it’s worth a read.

Not A Meth Lab After All -- Chemistry Major Pleads Guilty To Possession

From NBC29:

A University of Virginia student admitted Wednesday to illegally possessing amphetamine. Police, drug officers and haz-mat teams were all called to his apartment off 14th Street in Charlottesville back in March after several reports of chemical odors were reported.

20-year old Ian Diner, a second-year at the time, admitted he was guilty as part of a plea deal with the Commonwealth.

Lab reports indicate Diner was extracting amphetamine from Adderall pills, a stimulant, but not cooking meth as first had been thought.
[...]
The possession charge carries up to ten years in jail. Under the agreement, Diner likely won't be sentenced to more than probation.

More.

Inquiring Minds Want To Know

1. Whatever happened with that UVA chemistry major’s apartment Meth lab?

Nearly a month has passed since Jefferson Area Drug Enforcement responded to reports of pernicious odors emanating from a unit in the Grand Marc complex on 15th Street NW. On the evening of the initial call out, JADE Lt. Don Campbell seemed uncertain whether the alleged “potentially harmful” chemicals found inside the building were being used to manufacture drugs. A variety of substances were sent to a state crime lab in Richmond for analysis and as yet there has been no word on the results. Sources close to the former occupants of the apartment express doubt that there ever will be.

2. Why does the JADE Task Force continue to bust people for paltry amounts of cocaine when they could be going after the 2.2 pound vending machines that their notations indicate they know about?



According to Herb “cocaine and crack drive the violence in this community” and JADE’s “main goal in Charlottesville is reducing the violence.” Taken at face value that could explain the Task Force recently seizing a mere few ounces of powder and arresting Joniel Renere Edwards. Investigation into Edwards’ criminal history indeed shows how dangerous the man is; he’s been charged with such violent offenses as speeding, operating an uninspected vehicle, failure to appear (dismissed), and possession of marijuana. I dunno. I must be missing something.

From Brain To Bullet List

I’ve been mulling over the recent Grand Marc Meth story.

Earlier this week local Charlottesville media reported an apartment in their city was a “suspected Meth lab” or “possible drug lab.” The allegation gained support when Lt. Don Campbell, speaking on behalf of JADE, said upon inquiry “we think it’s possibly some type of drug lab.” The Lieutenant also stated that the chemicals discovered had been sent elsewhere “to find out what exactly we have.”

Though there are conflicting accounts regarding whether two people were found inside the apartment or had returned to it at a later time, one thing that seems to be certain is no arrests were made.

• Forget the media, let’s get right to JADE. “Think” it is? “Possibly”? What kind of low-level nitwit-filled Narcotics Task Force are we talking about here that doesn’t know if what it stumbled into is a drug lab?
• Perhaps actually Lt. Campbell and his team know exactly what it is, they just don’t want anyone to know they know. They’re being shrewd. After all they haven’t made any arrests yet.
• Maybe they can’t charge anyone without confirmation from the place they sent the chemicals to. Red tape and all that jazz.
• No matter if JADE can or can’t identify drug-making grounds, those two suspects connected to the apartment would know if they'd been operating a drug lab. Come. On.
  
• If I was running a Meth lab and I hadn’t been arrested when Drug Enforcement uncovered it, I wouldn’t hang around waiting for them to get back the results of their lab tests. Voy a Tijuana! Or at least Florida.
• Is the Drug Task Force hoping to flip someone in this -- you know cultivate informants? JADE wouldn’t be able to function without informants. Take away their snitches and they got nothing. I’m just sayin’.
• Could it be the “suspects” already are JADE informants?
• A Meth lab, it may not even be.
  
• Media have altered initial coverage. That makes it more challenging to get to the bottom of things.

MethBusters

March, 2009.
jade charlottesville


Charlottesville police believe someone may have been running a meth lab out of the Grand Marc Apartments on 15th Street northwest near the UVA corner. Fire, hazmat and police crews were all called to the scene because of reports of a suspicious odor.

Police say they received information Tuesday around 10:00 p.m. about strong chemical odors coming from apartment 301 15th Street northwest. The initial call was received by the Jefferson Area Drug Enforcement task force.

"I'm glad they called us because it could have been a dangerous situation," said Lieutenant Don Campbell with the Jefferson Area Drug Enforcement task force.
jade charlottesville