Oops! New Orleans prosecutor 'drops a JOINT in court...in front of police officers'

Jason Cantrell, 43, was issued a summons and released under a city policy for marijuana cases



Worked as a drug court attorney

In 2009, Cantrell unsuccessfully ran a race to become a Juvenile Court judge

His wife is currently vying for a seat on the City Council

Embarrassed: New Orleans assistant city attorney Jason Cantrell, 43, was issued a summons after getting caught with a joint in court

A New Orleans lawyer would have saved himself a lot of trouble if only he checked his pockets before heading to court on Monday.

Assistant city attorney Jason Cantrell was issued a summons after he dropped a joint while talking to a police officer in Orleans Parish Criminal District Court.

Cantrell, 43, was cited for simple drug possession and released under a city policy for low-level marijuana cases, according to police.

According to the New Orleans Police Department spokesperson Garry Flot, Cantrell was talking to one of the officers waiting to testify in court when the rolled up joint tumbled out of his pocket and landed on the floor.

People who witnessed the comical scene said that two officers glanced at the joint, and then exchanged a bemused look before making arguably the world's easiest drug bust.

The pair were spotted chuckling as their colleagues led Cantrell out of the courtroom at around 4.15pm to issue him a summons.

Ryan Berni, a spokesman for Mayor Mitch Landrieu's office, told the New Orleans Times-Picayune that at the time of the incident, Cantrell was not working on behalf of the city. He was suspended without pay pending an investigation.

Comic scene: Cantrell was talking to a cop waiting to testify in Orleans Parish Criminal District Court when a joint fell out of his pocket on the floor

According to a statement issued by Cantrell's wife, LaToya Cantrell, her husband resigned his city post late Monday.



Besides handing traffic court cases in his capacity as an assistant city attorney, Cantrell also has a private practice. Calls to Cantrell's office were not immediately returned.

Cantrell has practiced civil and criminal law in New Orleans for 17 years, including six as a public defender in Juvenile Court. In an ironic twist, the 43-year-old also worked as a drug court attorney.



In 2009, he lost in a race for a Juvenile Court judgeship. His wife is currently vying for a seat on the City Council.



In an apparent attempt to minimize the fallout from the embarrassing incident, LaToya Cantrell issued a statement apologizing for her husband’s actions and saying that she is ‘angry, embarrassed, and disappointed’ with the 43-year-old’s ‘lack of judgment.’

Ambitious: Cantrell, left, unsuccessfully ran for a Juvenile Court judgeship in 2009, and now his wife, right, is vying for a seat on the City Council

‘I love my husband unconditionally and am very concerned for his health and well-being, and for that of our family,’ Cantrell said. ‘I hope that this incident will encourage Jason to seek the professional help he needs and ask that the public respect our privacy in this very personal family matter.’

The City Council in late 2010 made marijuana possession a municipal offense, allowing police to issue a summons rather than arrest and book an offender on state charges in an effort to reduce the case load.