One-Letter Error in Narcotics Law Sets Suspect Free
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SAN BERNARDINO — A man accused of selling a hallucinogenic drug to undercover officers beat the charge because of a one-letter typographical error in the new California narcotics law.
A jury had been sworn in and testimony was about to begin Monday in the trial of Albert Robinson Jr., 31, of Los Angeles, when the court learned of the legislative mistake, which effectively repealed the law. Robinson was accused of sale and possession of PCP.
Superior Court Judge Charles Bierschbach dismissed the case Tuesday, saying the state Supreme Court had ruled in 1976 that the repeal of a previously existing statute affects all pending cases.
Because the charges cannot be refiled when the Legislature corrects the mistake, Robinson will escape a possible three-to-five-year prison sentence. However, after his arrest last year, he was convicted of violating parole and sentenced to a year in jail.
The mistake occurred when the state attorney general’s office revised California’s drug law classifications to bring them in line with federal standards.
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