Garden shop owner gets 30 years in prison for selling iodine
25 June 2006
Federal Judge Curtis Collier on Friday morning sentenced former Broadway Home and Garden Center owner Joe Swafford to 30 years in prison for supplying a key ingredient to meth dealers.
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Judge Collier said Swafford "made a calculated decision" to begin supplying iodine to meth dealers after his business began to fail.
He said the decision "caused immeasurable damage" to many people.
Judge Collier said over several years Swafford supplied enough iodine to produce meth "for every man, woman and child in Southeast Tennessee and several surrounding counties."
He said Swafford "chose to exploit a lucrative new market."
Garden shop owner gets 30 years in prison for selling iodine
The Chattanoogan (Chattanooga, TN), June 16, 2006
A decision to exploit a lucrative new market is normally considered a wise business decision.
Now, since when is iodine illegal? And since when is the seller required to know how the product they sell is going to be used?
And let us imagine that an illegal drug lab needs distilled water to operate. Are we going to see people go to prison for just selling water?
