A former detective with the West Chester Police Department failed to convince a judge that his corruption was the result of an addiction to anabolic steroids. David Busemeyer was sentenced to six months in jail for tipping of a drug dealer to the identity of an undercover informant. Busemeyer had pleaded guilty to attempted tampering with evidence and obstructing official business.
“I became jaded and angry,” said Busemeyer in court. “My thought process during that time also became warped and convoluted due to my own drug addition.”
Richard Skelton, the defense attorney for Busemeyer, had hoped to argue that treatment for his client’s steroid addiction would be an appropriate sentence for his crime.
Court documents indicated that Busemeyer had been using anabolic steroids for four years and used 10-15 prescription pain pills to deal with the supposed steroid-induced pain.
However, Common Pleas Judge Keith Spaeth refused to buy the steroid addiction excuse. The judge seemed prepared to hand down a harsher sentence but was prevented from doing so by sentencing guidelines.
“To jeopardize the safety of a confidential informant and to jeopardize an investigation, to tarnish not only yours, but the reputation of your entire department is indeed despicable,” said Judge Spaeth.
Busemeyer was having an extramarital affair with the sister of the drug dealer that was a target of a police investigation. Court documents revealed that Busemeyer told his girlfriend and her brother that the West Chester Police were setting up a sting to bust the drug dealer.
While Busemeyer did not provide the name of the undercover informant, he provided sufficient information that the drug dealer was able to determine the identity of the informant.
After a panicked informant notified police that her cover had been blown, police obtained a search warrant and found anabolic steroids and paraphernalia consistent with steroid use at Busemeyer’s home.
David Ernst and David Wagner were two aliases that Busemeyer reportedly used to obtain prescription anabolic steroids from local pharmacies. (He met his girlfriend after placing a dating ad on Craigslist.com using the name David Ernst.)
Prosecutors chose not to pursue charges against Busemeyer for steroid possession or fraudulent steroid prescriptions.
T-shirt design: Spreadshirt.com
Source:
Callahan, D. (March 8, 2012). Former detective gets six months in jail. Retrieved from http://www.middletownjournal.com/news/crime/former-detective-gets-six-months-in-jail-1340684.html
