May 16, 2016
For Immediate Release
According to the State Attorney’s Office:
A Bay County jury convicted Travis Nathaniel Jones on Monday of possessing and trying to destroy three baggies of marijuana.
Assistant State Attorney Michele Lucas proved to jurors during the one-day trial that Jones, 34, of Apalachicola, tried to eat three baggies of marijuana after being stopped for a traffic infraction Aug. 26. Panama City Police Cpl. Dustin Patterson pulled over Jones at Ninth Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, but before he stopped the car he proceeded for several feet at a very slow rate and could be seen stuffing something into his mouth. When Patterson, Inv. David Harris and Inv. Darby Gay approached the car they could smell the odor of marijuana and saw particles of marijuana leaves on Jones’ lap. Jones was chewing something and officers struggled with him to remove the items from his mouth. They were able to extract a full bag of marijuana and an empty bag before Jones swallowed a third bag.
Jones was found guilty as charged of possessing marijuana, possessing drug paraphernalia, tampering with physical evidence and resisting an officer without violence. He faces up to five years in prison when Circuit Judge Michael Overstreet sentences him June 6.