Drug Mule's Cocaine Pellets Burst on Plane

By Jeralyn, Section Crime in the News
Posted on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 08:31:00 AM EST
Tags: drug mules, cocaine (all tags)

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Colmin Smith, age 48, was flying from Antigua to London with 239 grams of cocaine (about 1/2 pound) in pellets in his stomach. Shortly after the packed Virgin Atlantic flight took off, the pellets burst. He managed to tell a flight attendant right before he lost consciousness.

The plane made an emergency landing in Bermuda, where medics performed emergency surgery at the airport, and then took him to the hospital. He survived, and then had to face the judge.

The penalty: No jail, just a fine of 417 pounds (about $700.00). Why did he catch such a break? [More...]

The prosecutor explained to the media afterwards:

‘There was no evidence that the drug was to be peddled on Bermuda's streets so he could only be charged with possession. ‘If he had been found guilty of supplying the narcotics he would have been banged up for life.

‘He is one very lucky man. He came close to losing his life, either by overdose or by life sentence.

The judge told him:

Senior magistrate Archibald Warner told Smith he should ‘thank his lucky stars’ he was here to face charges rather than dead.... ‘You should thank whoever you worship, or look to, because you are really lucky. ‘You didn't come to the first heaven, but you came to Bermuda, the second heaven.’

Smith paid his fine, and with the help of the British embassy, flew back home.

He is indeed lucky. These two Americans weren't so lucky in Bermuda last year, when they were caught with similar amounts.

I wonder what the outcome would have been if the plane landed in Miami instead of Bermuda. Would DOJ and the DEA have said since he knowingly possessed the drugs, and he was inside the U.S. when the drugs were removed from his stomach, he's guilty of possession with intent to distribute -- regardless of where he intended to distribute them?

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Drug Mule's Cocaine Pellets Burst on Plane | 30 comments (30 topical)

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No wondering necessary, Jeralyn. (5.00 / 4) (#3)
by Mr Natural on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 08:28:42 AM EST

They would have bigfooted the mule. Godzilla vs. Bambi. Laughs all around the table where the assistant prosecutors are assigned cases. Smirks from the Judge when he contemplates the ill luck that landed the unfortunate in the Land of the Free. Chuckles from the B.O.P. as they manacle another $29,000/year billing unit.

And complete silence from an uncomprehending populace that still has no idea how any of this is supposed to protect us from anything.

That's a big dose of disrespect for (5.00 / 1) (#6)
by oculus on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 08:54:26 AM EST

our federal judiciary. Unwarranted, IMO.


Totally warranted imo... (5.00 / 3) (#8)
by kdog on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 09:22:37 AM EST

Granted, the original sin lies with Congress (and the voters who staff it), but the judiciary is on board the sin bandwagon. Our mass incarceration epidemic is a three-pronged government effort...legislative, executive, judiciary.


Do You Think Them Royalty? (none / 0) (#12)
by squeaky on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 11:29:59 AM EST

No. But I have never observed a (5.00 / 2) (#13)
by oculus on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 12:50:18 PM EST

federal judge mock a defendant being sentenced. Sweeping generalities about any profession are annoying.


Condescension from the bench... (none / 0) (#19)
by kdog on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 01:26:52 PM EST

mockery is for chambers.

But yes, not all, just too many. The good ones apologize during sentencing because Congress handcuffed judicial discretion.


: Trite. Except as to judge pointing out (none / 0) (#22)
by oculus on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 01:30:49 PM EST

Congress' limiting the court's discretion. Although those mandatory minimums are no longer mandatory.

(Sigh!) What some people ... (none / 0) (#1)
by Donald from Hawaii on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 03:44:10 AM EST

... will do for a perceived windfall. And at age 48, Mr. Smith can't even claim as an excuse that he was young and stupid. He is indeed a very lucky man, and should take advantage of his recent good fortune and make something useful of his life. I suppose any number of us have stories to tell about a potential wrong turn in life which could have otherwise ended very badly, were it not for a fortunate break which allowed us to somehow correct our course and make things right again.

Anyway, I just want to say that I really appreciate the often thankless work you do as a criminal defense attorney. I served as the chief clerk for the judiciary committees in both the State House and State Senate, and I can't begin to tell you how many truly outrageous ideas about criminal law crossed my desk over the years, most all of which were wholly punitive in the author's desire to exact some sort of vengeance and retribution on behalf of society. Even though 95% of bad legislation eventually does get eighty-sixed, suffice to say that generally, state legislators aren't inclined to make your job as defense counsel any easier.

People can and do sometimes show the most appalling personal judgment in both the company they choose to keep, and the things they will do accordingly under such questionable influences. Not all of them can be necessarily categorized as so-called "bad people;" they were just incredibly and blindingly stupid at a particular moment in time.

It's attorneys such as yourself who ensure that at least a few of them will catch that aforementioned break, and thus enjoy an opportunity to hit life's reset button. What they do afterward with that second chance, and whether or not they choose to prove themselves worthy of such consideration, is all up to them.

Aloha.

I am for legalization. (none / 0) (#2)
by lentinel on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 08:04:21 AM EST

That would eliminate this kind of trafficking.
Not to mention that the consumer would have an idea of what they are consuming.

I have also read that pure cocaine has a very mild and smooth descent. In short, there is no problem of withdrawal - and the related resorting to alcohol to numb the descent - or the need to keep snorting in order to avoid the depression of withdrawal.

This should be another matter between a consumer and - if an intermediary is necessary - a doctor, not a dealer.

In a related note, I think it is important that the Times came out for legalization of marijuana, but their editorial has the caveat that it should only be legal for people over 21.

That will insure the continuation of a class of teenage criminals - and the continued collateral instruction of contempt for law.

Withdrawal is rarely "medically" serious (none / 0) (#4)
by oculus on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 08:30:02 AM EST

Per WebMD. The mental effects could be serious.

Note: further reading at this site includes "addiction to baseball."


No more than (none / 0) (#5)
by CaptHowdy on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 08:38:59 AM EST

Addiction to tv. There is something for everyone to scroll past.


Not exactly the same thing (none / 0) (#9)
by jbindc on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 09:41:08 AM EST

as a TV addict

The short-term physiological effects of cocaine include constricted blood vessels, dilated pupils, and increased temperature, heart rate, and blood pressure. Large amounts (several hundred milligrams or more) intensify the user's high but may also lead to bizarre, erratic, and violent behavior. These users may experience tremors, vertigo, muscle twitches, paranoia, or, with repeated doses, a toxic reaction closely resembling amphetamine poisoning. Some users of cocaine report feelings of restlessness, irritability, and anxiety. In rare instances, sudden death can occur on the first use of cocaine or sometime thereafter. Cocaine-related deaths are often a result of cardiac arrest or seizures followed by respiratory arrest.
Long-term effects of cocaine use include addiction, irritability and mood disturbances, restlessness, paranoia, and auditory hallucinations.

Yeah - my heart my race watching an action sequence on Burn Notice or watching a hot sex scene, but I probably won't have any of the effects of cocaine (and I will still be sober enough to leave the TV and go out and do things like drive a car).


But don't let me interrupt (5.00 / 1) (#11)
by CaptHowdy on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 10:57:30 AM EST

Your obligatory "evils of drugs" screed.

Just, you know, because I was responding to a comment about baseball addiction.


"Evil of drugs" (none / 0) (#14)
by jbindc on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 12:57:19 PM EST

Ha. I prefer to think of it as "living in reality" and not touting the "drugs aren't bad!" philosophy


an alternative one I think (5.00 / 1) (#23)
by sj on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 02:16:12 PM EST

I prefer to think of it as "living in reality" and not touting the "drugs aren't bad!" philosophy

Or maybe just one that is exceedingly paranoid.

Also tilting at windmills and straw men. No one here who favors decriminalization/legalization of marijuana has ever declared unilaterally that "drugs aren't bad".

Your mischaracterization is as insulting to yourself (reading comprehension) as it is to the rest of us (results comprehension).


I will (5.00 / 2) (#24)
by CaptHowdy on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 02:46:58 PM EST

Drugs aren't bad.

Any more than air is bad. Or butterflys. Or baseball bats. People sometimes do bad things with baseball bats. That doesn't mean baseball bats are bad. Even the ones used for bad things.


I Wouldn't Say That sj... (5.00 / 1) (#25)
by ScottW714 on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 03:47:19 PM EST

...but I will say that there is a strong belief that legality is what separates good drugs from the bad ones. Which in most case is simply untrue.

Every med I see advertized on the TV has more really bad side effects then the propagandists ever put out about marijuana or cocaine.

Check this out ad for Celebrex, it's basically two mins of side effects and the claim that their side effects are better than the competitions. If weed was actually this dangerous, no one would smoke it, but with permission slip from your doctor you can enjoy Celebrex while getting tossed in jail for marijuana.


: exactly (none / 0) (#26)
by sj on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 04:21:18 PM EST

...but I will say that there is a strong belief that legality is what separates good drugs from the bad ones. Which in most case is simply untrue.

I guess that comes from (none / 0) (#15)
by jbindc on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 12:58:24 PM EST

Not having brain cells die from doing drugs.


All cells die... (5.00 / 2) (#16)
by kdog on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 01:11:34 PM EST

better to burn them out than let them fade away.


To what do you attribute (none / 0) (#17)
by oculus on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 01:16:30 PM EST

your long life, sir? "All cells die ...."


: Stress Management... (5.00 / 2) (#18)
by kdog on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 01:22:30 PM EST

through cannabis, of course! And luck, always luck;)

: "Conservation of energy... (5.00 / 1) (#29)
by Mr Natural on Tue Jul 29, 2014 at 08:25:23 AM EST

Never stand up when you can sit down. And never sit down when you can lie down."
- Winston Churchill

Correction (5.00 / 2) (#21)
by ScottW714 on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 01:27:07 PM EST

You mean legal drugs, because there is no doubt you have taken plenty of drugs in your life time and most of them hill brain cells as well. FYI, stress also kills brains cells along with junk food and being dehydrated.

But don't let me stop you from regurgitating the Big Pharma and government's talking points about how bad illegal drugs...


Bedwetting? (none / 0) (#20)
by squeaky on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 01:26:53 PM EST

Info on brain cells, things that kill them and neurogensis.

Bottom line: Brain cell loss isn't really that big of a deal


You don't (5.00 / 1) (#28)
by lentinel on Tue Jul 29, 2014 at 03:25:56 AM EST

sound as if you are actually familiar with the effects of cocaine.
Especially pure cocaine - which was part of the information I offered in my post regarding legalization.

Incidentally, the effects you describe above, those evil effects, remind me of the description of possible side effects offered in a packet of Ambien.


Um (none / 0) (#10)
by CaptHowdy on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 10:49:52 AM EST

"addiction to baseball."

Yes... (none / 0) (#7)
by lentinel on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 08:54:28 AM EST

The "mental" effects are minimized when one is using cocaine in its pure form. That is what I have read.

I do know that the stuff that is sold by dealers is mixed with all kinds of stuff - including amphetamines - which cause the sense of deadly depression felt by those coming down. And causes the user to keep ingesting in order to avoid the crash.

Interesting that you alluded to "addiction to baseball'.
That goes along with my belief that people are addicted to all kinds of things that give them a sense of relief or meaning - and there is no social stigma attached to them.

I believe that some people, like myself, sometimes experience a sense of addiction to TalkLeft... noticeably when the site was down for a number of hours and the psychic withdrawal symptoms started to appear...


Are you advocating no age limit for marijuana? (none / 0) (#27)
by Jack203 on Mon Jul 28, 2014 at 07:55:13 PM EST

"That will insure the continuation of a class of teenage criminals - and the continued collateral instruction of contempt for law."

I disagree.
Alcohol has an age limit of 21 and there is no "class of teenage alcohol criminals"...that I know of anyway.

I think 21 makes the most sense, with slaps on wrist for violators...just like alcohol. The only exception being driving under the influence, which should have harsh penalties.


: Sure there is... (5.00 / 3) (#30)
by kdog on Tue Jul 29, 2014 at 08:27:33 AM EST

and there is no "class of teenage alcohol criminals"...that I know of anyway
I believe it's called "college".