The Drug War: Still a Stupid Idea

Public sentiment has turned against America's "War on Drugs," but that has not made our criminal justice system any less ridiculous. How ridiculous a man almost served 15 years in prison because:

A 29-year-old Oklahoma man was sentenced to 15 years in prison after police said they found cocaine in his backpack. But it wasn't cocaine. (TOWFIQU/Getty Images)

[Police]demanded to search his backpack, they found a large clear plastic bag of white powder stuffed in a coffee can.

Police concluded that the substance was cocaine and charged Gregg with a felony. Last week, after spending nearly two months in jail, the 29-year-old pleaded guilty to cocaine possession with the intent to distribute, and was sentenced to 15 years in prison. But on Thursday, just two days after learning his fate, Gregg was back in court, this time to withdraw his guilty plea. The lab tests had come back, and they showed that the suspicious-looking white substance was powdered milk.

These kind of stories slip through the cracks because our political system has become a hot pile of garbage lately, but its always important to remind ourselves that the drug war is still going on and it is just as stupid as it ever was.