Oakland rapper Too Short accused of drug possession, DUI in California

 Posted on March 20,2013 in DUI Drugs

Police in Los Angeles have not provided a great deal of public information, but authorities claim that rap artist Too Short was arrested on driving under the influence and drug charges early Wednesday morning. The allegations apparently arose after some kind of stop--Reuters reports that the stop was a routine traffic stop, but, the New York Daily News claims more specifically that the officer made the stop to investigate the driver for DUI.

Police claim that during the investigatory stop the officer believed that the hip hop artist appeared to be under the influence. The officer says that he requested that Too Short perform field sobriety tests. However, authorities claim that the rap artist tried to flee on foot. A spokesperson for the Los Angeles Police claims that Too Short tripped after about a half of a city block while running and was taken into custody on suspicion of DUI.

Authorities claim that while sitting in the police car the rapper discarded undisclosed drugs in the back seat of the squad. Too Short was processed on the DUI allegations--the artist blew a 0.09 percent alcohol level during the investigation, according to TMZ.

The original DUI arrest was recorded around 3:10 Wednesday morning. Law enforcement booked the artist on the felony drug possession charge shortly before 6:00 a.m. Too Short was booked into jail on $10,000 bond. The artist grew up in Oakland, California and rose to fame in the 80s--he is credited with being a pioneer of West Coast hip hop.

Authorities often use traffic stops to look for other evidence to bring charges for crimes outside the scope of an initial traffic stop. The rules for making a traffic stop and for expanding the scope of an investigation are complex. Our system of justice does not give authorities free reign to investigate based upon mere whim or caprice, and a person accused of a crime have the right to defend against the government's allegations.

Sources:

• Reuters, "U.S. rapper Too Short arrested on alcohol, drug charges," Eric Kelsey, Piya Sinha-Roy and Doina Chiacu, March 20, 2013
• New York Daily News, "Too Short arrested: Rapper busted for alleged DUI and drug possession," Nancy Dillon, March 20, 2013
• TMZ, "Too Short Busted for DUI Flees from Cops," March 20, 2013