Fowler is serving a seven-year sentence for burglary and theft.
When the inmate who was suspected of having the marijuana was called out of the recreation room to be checked, Fowler admitted the marijuana belonged to him.
"It (marijuana) was on another property," said Jailer Barry Harmon. "The one who actually had it confessed it was his."
That shows there is an "honor system among thieves," the jailer said. "It usually doesn't happen that way."
Harmon estimated each joint of marijuana was worth at least three packs of cigarettes.
Urine tests were taken
Buck also searched the laundry room where Fowler worked but didn't find anything.
Deputy jailers took urine tests from both inmates. Fowler and his belongings were immediately moved to another cell where he will stay until the state Corrections Cabinet decides his fate.
When a state inmate is found with contraband or breaks the rules, he is usually sent to a state prison, Harmon said. The inmate usually loses the "good time" hours he has accumulated and gets additional time in prison.
Before the search began, inmates were brought out of the cells to a recreation room.
Nothing was found in the first cell where Boyle and Mercer County inmates who are on work release are housed.
"Nothing. That's what we want," said Harmon. "If it's there, we want to find it."
Buck checked out five cells and the laundry room in between brief rest periods. He made several hits in another cell but didn't come up with anything.
Harmon not surprised
Harmon said sometimes the dog will pick up a scent of marijuana smoke on a photo or other personal items that have been brought into the jail.
Buck sat down several times by an envelope with personal items as he ran through the bunks. "He's trained to smell an odor even if nothing is there," said Robbins.
Harmon was not happy nor surprised to find pot in the cell. He said it's almost impossible to keep illegal drugs out of the jail. That's why he does random searches without even alerting the deputy jailers.
