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Palm Coast Man Arrested After Tossing Prosthetic Urine Device in Patrol Car

The cruiser video raises questions about the security of supervised urine screening for people on probation.

Overview

  • Deputies stopped 52-year-old James Shepard for driving on a suspended license and placed him in a patrol car on Tuesday, July 14, which led to his arrest for violating felony probation.
  • Cruiser-camera footage shows Shepard reaching into his pants and throwing a concealed contraption onto the car floor while deputies transported him to jail.
  • Officers recovered a jerry-rigged device described by the sheriff's office as a prosthetic penis attached to a bladder of synthetic urine and a heating pad, which officials say was intended to fake a urine sample.
  • Shepard was booked on charges of attempting to defraud a urine drug test, tampering with evidence, driving without a valid license, and violating probation and he is being held without bond.
  • Officials say it is unknown whether the device was ever used or would have worked, and the case highlights a known risk probation and drug-court programs face when relying on supervised urine screening.