Parents were drug dealers for their 4 kids — who are under age 12, Florida cops say

Two Florida parents are accused of serving as drug dealers for their four children — all under age 12, according to the Washington County Sheriff’s Office on the Florida Panhandle.

The couple, ages 26 and 30, face four counts of child neglect for supplying their children with marijuana to smoke around the house, officials said.

It was their own children who prompted the investigation, when they told authorities “they had smoked marijuana with their parents,” the sheriff’s office said in a news release.

Deputies and representatives of the Florida Department of Children and Families reported finding evidence this month when they visited the family’s home on Wild Rose Lane in Chipley. The town is about 85 miles northwest of Tallahassee.

“After further investigation, it was determined the (couple) prepared drugs and allowed their children to use drugs on several occasions,” the sheriff’s office said.

“The (parents) have been arrested and booked into the Washington County Jail. ... All children have been removed from the home and placed with other family members.”

Investigators did not release the exact ages of the children. The investigation continues and “further charges may be pending,” officials said.

The Marijuana Policy Project reports Florida has a “medical cannabis program,” but “remains one of only 19 states that imposes jail time for simple possession.”

This story was originally published March 17, 2022 at 6:27 AM with the headline "Parents were drug dealers for their 4 kids — who are under age 12, Florida cops say."