Deputies say pot and popsicles don't mix

SPRING HILL — Hernando County sheriff's deputies have arrested a 34-year-old Spring Hill man, accusing him of smoking marijuana while he sat inside of an ice cream truck.

Gregory Westberry was charged Thursday with marijuana possession and possession of drug paraphernalia. On Friday afternoon, the Hernando County Jail had no record of Westberry still being in custody.

Deputies responding to a call at about 5:30 p.m. about a suspicious vehicle in a parking lot near 5226 Applegate Road approached an ice cream truck with the name "Hokey Pokey" on the side and rear.

Inside the truck was Westberry who, according to the arrest report, had "extremely slurred speech" and dilated pupils.

Westberry told the deputies that he had just finished his ice cream route and was waiting in the parking lot to pick up his children at a nearby day care center.

He eventually admitted to smoking a small amount of marijuana and drinking at least five beers while in the parking lot, according to the report.

Deputies said they found a little less than a gram of marijuana in a clear plastic bag and black smoking pipe in Westberry's pockets. Westberry was then arrested at the scene.

Comments on this article

by marie	Jul 22, 2008 3:52 PM
This is typical of most of the idiots I come across in a normal day.He should be hired as a store mananger at a major pharmacy chain,he would be a better employee than what I've seen.

by Pearl	Jul 22, 2008 3:37 PM
A drunk (and high) parent driving an ice cream truck, and you ask if the cops had nothing better to do? This community is so rude and unappreciative. If you dont like the SO, DONT EVER CALL THEM!! And, yes. DCF was called. As required by protocol.

by Sal	Jul 20, 2008 9:00 PM
Sad commentary here, as usual. People, I like to party as much as the next guy, but come on, driving around children while mixing pot with at least 5 beers. I think a lesson for Hooky-pooky is clearly in order.

by ME	Jul 20, 2008 8:59 PM
And tom.....to let you know....the owner your thinking of no longer owns the "hokie pokie" he sold it like 1 1/2 yrs ago.

by ME	Jul 20, 2008 8:59 PM
since when does drinking 5 beers make you drunk? if thats all it takes than your a lightweight. not agreeing to the whole drinking and driving thing i would never. but who was to say he was drunk? was that over legal limit?

by Rodger	Jul 20, 2008 8:58 PM
popsicles and pot dont mix, BUT BROWNIES AND POT DO!

by Lenore	Jul 20, 2008 8:58 PM
For all the people defending this guy, would you want someone that was high interacting with your children?

by joanna	Jul 20, 2008 8:58 PM
did they let him take his kids home and why was dcf not called? if they didn't smell alcohol it was probably pills.

by Kris	Jul 20, 2008 8:58 PM
What is wrong with all of you people ! Pot is an illegal substance, no matter how much you have. It also affects your judgement.We are condemming people who smoke cigarettes which by the way is legal. But smoking pot is ok. Come on people wake up...

by Knight	Jul 20, 2008 8:12 AM
Honestley i hardly call the law enforcement, i call it desparatley needing to find a collar for the day and coming up with sum pretty pathetic police work. Who honestly cares about the pot? The drinking and driving for shame.

by Tom	Jul 20, 2008 8:05 AM
The Hokie Pokie ice cream truck has been associated with drugs for years. Ask the New Port Richey police dept.

by Just Arrest Them	Jul 20, 2008 8:04 AM
Half gram today, one gram tomorrow then they're throwing the dishes and swinging the meat cleavers again.

by Jack	Jul 20, 2008 8:04 AM
It is very unlikely that the guy was selling anything. He had less than a gram, which is nothing at all. Besides, if he was a drug dealer and selling stuff from his ice cream truck, he'd have had a large quantity on-hand.

by Joe	Jul 20, 2008 8:02 AM
You would have to be high to do that job. The problem occurs when you smoke weed on top of drinking. If he would have just been high, no problems.

by Tomm!	Jul 20, 2008 8:01 AM
I smoked some pot on Saturday, had some ice cream and went out and rode my bicycle around St Pete. Want to do an interview?

by james	Jul 20, 2008 8:00 AM
much ado about nothing---like the police dont have anything better to do than this, like fighting some real crime---decriminalize recreational drug use, America---its the 21st century, not the middle ages--wake up and face reality, we are all doped--

by Jim	Jul 20, 2008 8:00 AM
In San Francisco, it is legal to smoke pot anywhere that people are allowed to smoke cigarettes. All you need is an easily obtainable note from the doctor.

by Craig	Jul 19, 2008 2:41 PM
So Pete, if the headline had read "Man arrested for drinking five beers" how many people would have read it? A lot less I promise. The paper is a for-profit business. They use catchy headlines to get us to read.

by Simon	Jul 19, 2008 2:41 PM
One would have thought that an ice cream truck would be the perfect place to get baked. I guess we know now.

by Joey	Jul 19, 2008 2:41 PM
This poor man is lactose intolerent. Obvious to me is the fact ice cream, heat, and just a silly job can make you have slurred speech. The pot & 5 beers is just a cover for larger problems! He's gluttenous!

by lol	Jul 19, 2008 12:50 PM
Big Worm! The real issue is the drinking and driving. The pot is a sidebar, and fodder for jokes. 1 gram of pot is such a rediculously small amount, I highly doubt he sold it.

by Jeff	Jul 19, 2008 12:50 PM
It's Big Worm! From the movie "Friday"!

by weed man	Jul 19, 2008 12:45 PM
to the guy that said it's hard to get a decent joint out of a gram: you must be smoking garbage, because really you only need like 1/3 of a gram for a "decent" joint... or buy a vaporizer, that much would have you gooned for a couple hours

by Greg	Jul 19, 2008 12:45 PM
The only thing that would make this story more interesting is if he had a clown outfit on and was throwing start pops at the cops.

by lucy	Jul 19, 2008 12:45 PM
insane a drunk guy driving an icecream truck with our kids running aroud! how absurd. I'm glad they got him. think of all of the accident that could have happened. whats more he was planning on picking up his own child from day care. what an idiot!

by Jim	Jul 19, 2008 12:44 PM
This just totally gve me a flashback from the movie "Nice Dreams'. Remember the cop? "Hey,can I have a bite of your hotdog?"....rofl

by Sandi	Jul 19, 2008 12:44 PM
I agree with you Pete. It was not the pot that made him a danger.

by Pete	Jul 19, 2008 10:17 AM
It wasn't the pot that slurred his speech and made him a danger to himself and others. It was the 5 beers, yet your headline emphasized the pot. Shame on your misleading choice of headline.

by Steve	Jul 19, 2008 10:17 AM
Another instace of cops wasting their time on stupid things. This is why I had to wait 3 hours after a hit and run

by bill	Jul 19, 2008 9:56 AM
Let me get this straight, cops are called in to investigate a suspicious vehicle...an ice cream truck?

by Joe	Jul 19, 2008 9:56 AM
Sorry Bill, Chuck can't join the force because idiots like you voted for amendmant I and the cops need to make budget cuts. They probably sold the weed they confiscated so they could buy the donuts and coffee for the next shift.

by Mary Jane	Jul 19, 2008 9:56 AM
A gram of weed?!?! In Massachusetts where people are smart, the school system rocks, and there is no housing crisis that would be almost legal. Flori-duh; you try to hard. Stop wasting tax dollars...

by bill	Jul 19, 2008 9:16 AM
Chuck, since you seem to know so much about what the cops should be doing, why don`t you join the force and help out?? If that guy got caught while in the act of selling to kids you would complain that the cops should have caught the guy sooner.

by Tuck	Jul 19, 2008 9:16 AM
The guy sounds like a hippie to me...not a drug dealer. Otherwise, he would have had way more than a gram people! Shoot. I would smoke pot too if my job was being the ice cream man.

by Stu	Jul 19, 2008 9:16 AM
The only thing that bothers me is that he may have been driving the truck while intoxicated around children. He was still planning to drive the vehicle home after getting blasted. If he did that at home, it wouldn't be anyone's business.