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Sheriff's son jailed on license, drug chargesBy MIKE BRASSFIELD© St. Petersburg Times, published December 12, 2001 ST. PETERSBURG -- The son of Pinellas County Sheriff Everett Rice was arrested Tuesday for the second time in five years. Everett Rice Jr., 36, was charged with driving with a suspended license, possession of marijuana and possession of a controlled substance. Police said he was carrying prescription painkillers but did not have a prescription. The younger Rice, who lives in St. Petersburg, was arrested Tuesday morning after he was pulled over by a St. Petersburg police officer. He was previously arrested in 1996 when he passed counterfeit $10 bills in exchange for crack cocaine. He pleaded no contest to two counts of counterfeiting and was put on probation for 18 months. He is no longer on probation. The sheriff, who was hurt and embarrassed when his son was arrested in 1996, politely declined to discuss his son's latest arrest Tuesday. "If it had anything to do with my job, I'd talk to you," the sheriff said. "But it's personal, and I don't really have anything to say about it." The sheriff has in the past pointed out that his son is a grown man who is responsible for his own actions. The younger Rice did not return a phone call Tuesday. Court records indicate his driver's license is suspended because he failed to pay a speeding ticket. St. Petersburg police said Rice Jr. was pulled over in his car about 8:30 a.m. at Second Avenue S and 22nd Street by an officer who recognized Rice from a previous encounter and knew he did not have a valid driver's license. Tuesday, the officer arrested Rice, searched him and his car and found a small amount of marijuana and four pills, said St. Petersburg police spokesman George Kajtsa. Rice told the officer the unmarked pills were aspirin, Kajtsa said. Medical officials told officers the pills were a generic form of Vicodin, a prescription painkiller and a controlled substance. Rice was released from jail Tuesday after posting $5,400 bail.
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From the Times South Pinellas desks |
