Cops Delete Facebook Post of Massive ‘Weed’ Bust After the Internet Corrects Them

In 2017, an unusual encounter between the police and social media captured the attention of the world during the digital age, highlighting the necessity of correct identification and public scrutiny during the digital age. The Jasper Police Department of Missouri was the town gossip when they openly shared a humongous “weed” bust on their Facebook account, eventually deleting it after netizens pointed out a deadly mistake.

The fiasco began when the Jasper Police Department posted pictures of what they assumed was a record marijuana bust. But keen-eyed web surfers immediately noticed that the plants that the police were holding were not marijuana, but another plant altogether. This public embarrassment was soon followed by an outpouring of ridicule that compelled the department to take down their initial post.

Although the specific inaccuracies of the false plants are not listed in the search results, there have been previous instances where law enforcement officials have mistakenly identified hemp or other inoffensive plants as marijuana. These cases indicate the difficulties that police officers face in identifying illegal drugs correctly and the risks of sensational public statements.

The accident is a wake-up call regarding the strength of social media and the need for fact-checking prior to going public. Police departments, just like any department, are not flawless, and the collective pool of information on the internet can readily spot weaknesses.

There have also been several recent instances of police agencies bragging on social media, especially Facebook, about their narcotics busts. For instance, the Port St. Lucie Police Department in Florida recently published a post on a December 2017 bust of a marijuana grow house, illustrating the widespread practice of sharing law enforcement action on social media.

But these flashy parades of drug busts will occasionally blow up in their faces. Such as the Jasper Police Department’s, the Loudoun County Sheriff’s Office in Virginia was taken to task for a now-deleted Facebook post about a drug bust involving a lone marijuana plant. The case is just another instance of the kind of scrutiny police departments are facing when they post drug operations on social media.

It should be remembered that with the reform of marijuana law across the United States, law enforcement agencies have been compelled to change their approach and means of communication. The hemp vs. marijuana misidentification, for example, is more common following the federal decriminalization of hemp in 2018.

While the 2017 Jasper Police Department embarrassment is to be lamented, it serves as a reminder of the necessity of identification and diligent communication in today’s age of instant information. Police officers need to walk the tightrope between their want to inform the public and the necessity of making full verification of facts before releasing public statements.

As we proceed with navigating the complicated terrain of drug laws and enforcement, cases like these remind us of the continuing struggle for law enforcement and the public to differentiate between legal and illegal drugs. They remind us, too, of the function social media has in keeping the powers that be accountable and driving public conversation on significant issues.