Woman Sues After Spending Almost 4 Months In Jail After Test Misidentified Cotton Candy As Meth

Why do I feel like this is something that would totally happen to me?

According to this, a Georgia woman spent almost four months in jail after authorities misidentified her cotton candy as meth. This all went down on New Year’s Eve 2016. Police pulled her over for her window tint (which turned out to be legal). They spotted a blue substance in a bag and asked her what it was. She told them it was cotton candy. They didn’t believe her and performed a roadside drug test, which inexplicably labeled her delicious sugary treat as methamphetamine.

As a result, Dasha Fincher was arrested and “charged with meth trafficking and possession of meth with intent to distribute.”

A judge set her bond at $1 million, her lawsuit said, but Fincher remained in jail because she couldn’t pay the cash bond.

But in March 2017, GBI lab tests came back to say that the substance in the bag was not an illegal drug.

The charges against Fincher were dropped four weeks later, in April 2107.

Fincher’s lawsuit argues that the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office was reckless and negligent and violated her civil rights.

The suit said the test was manufactured by Sirchie Acquisitions, a company based in North Carolina.

The test, called Nark II, has a history of false positive test results, the suit says.

Blue food coloring used in the cotton candy would likely cause a false positive test result, the suit argues.

Can you imagine spending nearly 4 months in the slammer over possession of COTTON CANDY? Holy crap dude. That would suck.

Three months in jail for cotton candy. End the drug war. https://t.co/yoIWaGBDsT

— John Stossel (@JohnStossel) November 25, 2018

Police thought this woman had meth. She told them it was Cotton Candy. They tested it, Carmen back positive for meth. She stayed in jail for 3 months.

Lab test came back it was cotton candy: she bout to get a check check. https://t.co/81DfHANHWH

— BIGNOAH 👨🏽‍💻 (@BIGNOAH256) November 25, 2018

This woman sat in jail for 3 months after field test falsely showed her cotton candy was meth. This test has a history of false positives, showing vitamins, breath mints, and headache powder were illegal drugs. Police need to stop arresting people based on these unreliable tests. https://t.co/C1iIR242uf

— Michael Bloch (@MichaelBloch15) November 25, 2018

That woman deserves justice. That much is certain.

h/t WMAZ