Broward prosecutors and a judge will be in court to clear the records of dozens of people convicted in the 1980s and 1990s in reverse drug stings involving crack cocaine that was manufactured by law enforcement.

Background

A total of 42 people will have their records cleared during the hearing as part of a program launched in 2024 by the Broward State Attorney’s Office. Some of the people will be in court in person or by Zoom, while some live out of state or said they want to maintain their privacy. At least 10 have died but will have their records cleared posthumously, officials said.

According to prosecutors, Broward Sheriff’s deputies had found about 2.2 pounds of powder cocaine in a Greyhound bus station locker and, in February 1989, BSO employees began to “cook up” crack cocaine to use in reverse stings between 1989 and 1992, the state attorney’s office said.

In 1993, the Florida Supreme Court ruled the crack manufactured by law enforcement couldn’t be used in reverse sting arrests. But during a routine review of public documents, the state attorney’s office found that hundreds of people arrested and charged in the stings may still have the arrests and convictions on their records.

Next Steps

The process of reviewing the old paper records began in 2024 and is ongoing. To date, about 2,800 records have been preliminary reviewed and about half were already found to have not included the manufactured drugs, officials said. The remaining 1,400 or so cases are still being reviewed.

Anyone who may be impacted or have a family member impacted can contact the state attorney’s office at [email protected] or call 954-831-6543.

Original reporting: NBC6 Miami — read the source article.