Put Down the Crack Pipe When in Court on Crack Pipe Charges

You just don't bring a crack pipe to court. And that goes double for people who are at the courthouse to make an appearance on a previous crack pipe charge.

This isn't that complicated of a notion, but Stanley Ramos needs a little help navigating the world of common sense. The 32-year-old Florida resident brought a crack pipe to the Manatee County Judicial Center on Tuesday and with predictable results.

The crack pipe was found when he went through court security.

Perhaps the best part of this story is that Ramos was only at the courthouse because he had been arrested for carrying a crack pipe on December 31. He didn't exercise any common sense during that incident either -- the Bradenton Herald reports he had left it in plain view of officers.

The Manatee County Sheriff was kind enough to allow Ramos to complete his court appearance, according to NBC. When it was over, he was arrested and charged with bringing a crack pipe to court.

This second charge is going to make the first one much more difficult to fight. A judge will likely consider the second crack pipe incident proof that Stanley Ramos respects neither the law nor himself. If the first charge wasn't a big enough wake-up call, then a slap on the wrist won't do him any good.

Stanley Ramos should thus expect jail time for the crack pipe in court incident. If he's really lucky, he may be able to serve that time in a rehabilitation facility.

Related Resources:

• Cops: Man caught with crack pipe stem at Bradenton courthouse (Sarasota Herald-Tribune)
• State Drug Possession Laws (FindLaw)
• Woman Shows Up Drunk to DUI Hearing (FindLaw's Legally Weird)