Pubdate: Fri, 07 Mar 2008
Source: St. Petersburg Times (FL)
Copyright: 2008 St. Petersburg Times
Contact: http://www.sptimes.com/letters/
Website: http://www.sptimes.com/home.shtml
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/419
Author: Logan Neill
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/testing.htm (Drug Testing)

DEPUTY QUITS AFTER ADMITTING MARIJUANA USE

He was facing a drug test after an accident. In a separate incident,
a state trooper is hurt.

SPRING HILL - A Hernando County sheriff's deputy who was involved in
a car crash Thursday afternoon resigned after admitting to superiors
that he had recently  smoked marijuana.

In another, unrelated incident Thursday morning, a Florida Highway
Patrol trooper was slightly injured  when the driver of a car he had
stopped tried to drive  off, dragging the trooper a short distance.

The crash involving the deputy occurred at 12:08 p.m. at Spring Hill
Drive and Mariner Boulevard. Deputy  Patrick Craven was responding to
a call when his  cruiser collided with a 2008 Dodge being driven by
Wanda Urquhart, 46, of Spring Hill, according to a  report.

After the crash, Craven was given a drug test, which is Sheriff's
Office policy. When advised that a second  drug test would be given,
Craven admitted that he had  smoked marijuana two weeks ago, according
to sheriff's  spokeswoman Donna Black.

After declining the second test, the 29-year-old deputy immediately
quit the force, where he had been employed  since July 2006. Black
said there was no indication  that Craven was impaired at the time of
the crash or  during the investigation.

The sheriff's report stated that Urquhart said she did not see or
hear Craven's cruiser as it approached the  intersection. There were
no serious injuries reported,  and no charges have been filed, Black
said.

In the earlier incident involving the trooper, 19-year-old Joshua A.
Turbeville of Spring Hill was  arrested after he allegedly dragged the
trooper along  the road with his car.

Turbeville remained in the Hernando County Jail on charges of
aggravated battery, resisting an officer  with violence, fleeing and
eluding a police officer, and failing to remain at a crash scene
involving  injury.

According to FHP spokeswoman Heather Glenny, Turbeville was driving
on Middlesex Drive near Toucan Trail near  Weeki Wachee at 1:17 a.m.
when he was stopped by Trooper David Frye for having a headlight out.

Glenny said Frye reached into Turbeville's vehicle as Turbeville was
driving off, and was dragged alongside  the car for about 30 feet
until he was able to free  himself. Other troopers at the scene
stopped Turbeville  and made the arrest, she said.

Frye, a three-year veteran of the force, was taken to Oak Hill
Hospital, where he was treated for minor  scrapes and bruises.

"He got away lucky," Glenny said of Frye.

A check of Turbeville's Florida driving record indicated several
moving violations in recent years. In  addition, his license had been
suspended in 2007 for failure to pay traffic fines.
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