Story Archive

Sparkly Money

Miami Dade County, Fla., police were proud when they seized $19,934 in what they would claim was drug money, plus guns and products alleged to be marijuana oil and codeine cough syrup, from Lizmixell Batista and her husband, Ras Cates. “It’s amazing how something as simple as a traffic stop can lead us to crack a lot of cases,” a spokesman said at the time. But the police had searched the trunk of the car illegally. The guns belonged to Cates, who has a concealed carry license. The syrup was never tested, so it’s unclear whether it was legal or not. Neither suspect admitted to owning the pot. And as Batista told the cops at the time, she’s a stripper; she earns lots of cash on the job. “I felt that the glitter on the seized cash was compelling evidence, but apparently the police department disagreed,” said the couple’s lawyer, Jude Faccidomo. All charges have been dropped, and a judge ordered her money returned. The police even agreed to pay upwards of $3,000 worth of the couple’s legal bills — but getting the guns back will take more fighting. (AC/Miami Herald) ...If the cops still have their badges, there’s not enough stripping in this story.