SLIP OF TONGUE LEADS TO MARIJUANA ARREST

A Greenfield man probably wishes he had locked his lips instead of his car
after an Elm Grove police dispatcher overheard him say he hoped officers
coming to assist him would not notice his marijuana pipe.

Police officers who responded to help the man get back into his locked car,
parked at Bakers Square, 15300 W. Blue Mound Road, Sunday found not only
the pipe but two small bags of marijuana.

They arrested the man, Mark D. Cichon, 18, and gave him a municipal
citation alleging possession of marijuana, according to police Capt. Gus
Moulas.

Cichon is scheduled to appear in Elm Grove Municipal Court March 11. If
convicted, he could be subject to a forfeiture of $160.

When attempting to reach Cichon at home, a woman who answered the phone and
identified herself as Cichon's mother said her son was at work and that she
did not know about the ticket.

According to police:

The dispatcher sent two officers to the parking lot at Bakers Square, where
the Cichon was waiting for their help to get back into his 1997 Saturn
about 10 a.m. Sunday.

While many police departments have stopped helping motorists open locked
car doors, Elm Grove officers still offer the service, Moulas said.

Police usually send one officer in such cases, but the dispatcher sent two
after hearing the man say to someone: "The bowl is sitting right there.
I've got to keep my fingers crossed -- hopefully they won't see it,"
according to Moulas.

Cichon was alone when officers arrived, so Moulas was uncertain to whom he
had been talking. Officers, who quickly opened the car door, said they
noticed a brass pot pipe between the car seats.

Although the driver attempted to get in his car quickly, an officer
confronted him about the pipe, which police said he nervously admitted
belonged to him.

Police said the man told them he kept his marijuana in a cigarette box.

They found two plastic bags containing 0.7 grams and 3.3 grams of
marijuana. He also had cigarette papers in his wallet, police said.