A Washington College student has been charged with several drug offenses after he was pulled over by a Chestertown Police Department officer for failing to stop at a flashing red traffic light.
William Wrobel, sophomore, was placed under arrest on Wednesday, Feb. 7 and transported to the CPD for processing. He posted bond at $500 the following day and was released.
Wrobel was charged with possession of controlled dangerous substance—10 grams of marijuana, possession of controlled dangerous substance— not-marijuana, two charges of possession of drug paraphernalia, and two felony charges of distribution.
At press time, according to online court records, no trial date has been set.
As with all policy violations, this case will be forwarded to the Honor Board for review, said Director of the Department of Public Safety Gerald Roderick.
According to the police report, the responding officer, Howard Eveland, pulled Wrobel over just before 11 p.m. at the intersection of Greenwood and Washington Avenues.
Eveland said that he could detect “the odor of marijuana coming from inside the vehicle” and asked Wrobel if there was “anything illegal inside the vehicle.” Wrobel said that there was.
Eveland then searched the vehicle and located a Mason jar filled with suspected marijuana as well as drug paraphernalia. According to the report, 10 grams of suspected marijuana were recovered from Wrobel’s car.
In addition to suspected marijuana, in the police report Eveland said that he found folded aluminum foil with white residue in a prescription bottle. He tested the residue with a Nik cocaine swab and it tested positive. The suspected cocaine will be sent to the Maryland State Police Crime Lab for analysis, the report said.
The report said that Eveland located a black-and-blue Jot receipt book, with three receipts filled out, as well as a “multicolored book” with “names of several subjects with weights and prices that were sold to them.”
Eveland wrote in the report that, “Through my training knowledge and experience the information written in the book showing weights and dollar amounts show that selling and distributing controlled dangerous substances which include Molly and marijuana.”
Roderick said that the Honor Board review outcomes vary depending on the case. The quantity elevates the seriousness of the policy violation, he said.
“If you go from casual use to what may possibly be distribution levels, that’s a much more serious offense,” he said. “At distribution levels, the College looks beyond casual use and looks at the health and safety of the community.”
Roderick said that there is a growing concern in Public Safety about the number of reports they are receiving about the odor of marijuana in many of the dormitories.
“The concerning piece of that is that people seem more relaxed about the casual use of marijuana on campus. I guess they feel the penalties have been lessened by the state of Maryland, so therefore they’re feeling like, ‘Well it’s legal, so I can do it.’ The fact of the matter is, it’s not legal… You have to consider the College policy for drug use. We still take that very serious. It’s not like we’re turning a blind eye,” he said. “I want students to be aware of that because we’re seeing students get in trouble based on misconceptions of both policy and law.”
Although marijuana has been decriminalized in Maryland “to a degree” and medical marijuana is legal, recreational use is still illegal, according to NORML.org.