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Florida man arrested after cops mistake doughnut glaze for meth crystals

<p>"Every other Wednesday, I stop at Krispy Kreme and get a doughnut there. And they found four little flakes of the icing," <a href="http://www.wftv.com/news/local/orlando-man-arrested-after-police-mistake-doughnut-glaze-for-meth/412930420" target="_blank">Dan Rushing told WFTV.</a></p><p>Those four little flakes of icing ended up causing Orlando resident Dan Rushing a huge headache.</p><p>Last December, Rushing was pulled over for speeding and failing to stop at a stop sign. Things escalated quickly. </p><p>According to Rushing's <a href="http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/breaking-news/os-cop-mistook-doughnut-glaze-for-meth-20160727-story.html" target="_blank">arrest report</a>, he cooperated with police and stepped out of his vehicle when asked. That's when an officer says she b</p><p>The arrest report goes on to say that thanks to 11 years of training and experience, the officer concluded it was a narcotic. </p><p>The officer conducted two roadside drug tests on the substance. She reported that both tested positive for amphetamines. </p><p>Rushing argued the substance was simply icing from his Krispy Kreme doughnut. The officer handcuffed him anyway, and Rushing reportedly spent about 10 hours behind bars before being released on a $2,500 bond. </p><p><b>SEE MORE: <a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/the-latest-pok-mon-go-hijinks-an-illegal-border-crossing/">The Latest 'Pokémon Go' Hijinks: An Illegal Border Crossing</a></b></p><p>A <a href="http://www.wftv.com/news/local/orlando-man-arrested-after-police-mistake-doughnut-glaze-for-meth/412930420" target="_blank">separate drug test</a> by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement reversed the officer's findings. The unit didn't determine what the substance was, but they did find it wasn't illegal.</p><p>"It was incredible. It feels scary when you haven't done anything wrong and get arrested. … It's just a terrible feeling," Rushing told the Orlando Sentinel.</p><p>Now Rushing has lawyered up and says he plans to go after the department. </p><p>"I just don't want this to happen to anybody else," he told WFTV.</p><p><i>This video includes images from Getty Images.</i></p><hr><b>Trending stories at <a href="http://www.newsy.com">Newsy.com</a></b><ul class="inline-related-links"><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/fewer-people-own-their-homes-but-don-t-worry-the-market-is-fine/">Fewer People Own Their Homes, But Don't Worry — The Market Is Fine</a></li><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/trump-adviser-calls-for-all-muslims-on-terror-watch-list-to-be-tagged/">Trump Adviser Calls For All Muslims On Terror Watch List To Be Tagged</a></li><li><a href="http://www.newsy.com/videos/fda-mulls-a-change-to-its-policy-against-some-gay-men-donating-blood/">FDA Mulls A Change To Its Policy Against Some Gay Men Donating Blood</a></li></ul>
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ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Daniel Rushing probably won't be eating Krispy Kreme doughnuts in his car any more.

The 64-year-old was arrested on drug charges when Orlando police officers spotted four tiny flakes of glaze on his floorboard and thought they were pieces of crystal methamphetamine, The Orlando Sentinel reports.

Cpl. Shelby Riggs-Hopkins wrote in an arrest report that during a traffic stop on Dec. 11, she noticed the flakes on the floorboard. Two roadside drug tests were positive for the illegal substance and Rushing was arrested. But a state crime lab test cleared him several weeks later.

"It was incredible," Rushing said. "It feels scary when you haven't done anything wrong and get arrested. ... It's just a terrible feeling."

It started on a Friday afternoon when Rushing dropped off a neighbor at a hospital for a weekly chemotherapy session. Then, he drove to a convenience store to pick up a friend who needed a ride home.

Riggs-Hopkins said she was staking out the area for drug activity. Rushing told her he had a concealed weapons permit, according to an arrest report. She asked him to step out of his car and noticed a "rock like substance" on the floorboard.

"I recognized through my eleven years of training and experience as a law enforcement officer the substance to be some sort of narcotic," she wrote.

Rushing agreed to a vehicle search. "I didn't have anything to hide," he said. "I'll never let anyone search my car again."

Riggs-Hopkins and other officers spotted three other pieces of the substance.

"I kept telling them, 'That's ... glaze from a doughnut," Rushing said.

He was charged with possession of methamphetamine with a firearm and spent 10 hours in jail before being released on bond.

The Florida Department of Law Enforcement told the newspaper that an analyst in its Orlando crime lab didn't try to identify what police found in the car, only to determine whether it was an illegal drug. They determined it wasn't, and three days after Rushing's arrest, the State Attorney's Office dropped the charges.

Rushing, who retired after 25 years as an Orlando parks department employee, told the newspaper he has hired a lawyer and plans to sue the city because he was arrested "for no reason at all."

Orlando police said in a statement that the arrest was lawful.