Police: Dad sent 6-year-old child to school with marijuana in backpack (St. Petersburg, Florida)

Dad is identified as (pothead) LARRY STEPHENS.

http://oldnortheast.patch.com/articles/father-arrested-for-putting-marijuana-in-son-s-backpack-at-school

Police: Father Sent Child to School with Marijuana in Backpack
The marijuana in the backpack weighed 89 grams, which makes it a felony amount. Larry Stephens, 25, has been arrested and charged with child abuse and possession of marijuana with the intent to sell.

By William Mansell
May 22, 2012

Today, a 6-year-old kindergarten student at Campbell Park Elementary School showed a teacher marijuana and a scale that were in the child's backpack.

St. Petersburg Police have arrested the child's father, 25-year-old Larry Stephens of 1726 Queen St. S., and charged him with child abuse and possession of Marijuana with the intent to sell.

Police said Stephens placed the marijuana in the child's backpack before dropping the child off at school this morning.

Stephens, police said, returned a short time later and tried to get the marijuana back, but the drugs had already been turned over to the teacher, so the father left the campus.

According to the arrest affidavit, Stephens told a witness at the school that he had come back to the school to get the marijuana because he uses it to "take care of his business and take care of his family."

The marijuana in the backpack weighed 89 grams, which makes it a felony amount.

According to police, officers were looking for Stephens when his attorney, Daryl Rouson, brought him to the St. Petersburg Police Department and turned him in.

Stephens, police said, admitted to the investigating officers that the marijuana belonged to him, but insisted it was for personal use only.

According to the arrest affidavit, a scale found in the backpack (and Stephen's statement to a witness mentioned earlier) indicated the marijuana was not intended for personal use.

The 6-year-old child was released to the child's mother, police said.