How soon before the butts left on the street will be traced back to the careless fools that drop them?

The smoke break by the burglar came back to haunt a Pacific Grove man this week. He was convicted in Monterey County Superior Court of first-degree burglary and now faces a possible seven-year prison sentence.

“Smoking — it’s kind of bad for your health,” said Deputy District Attorney Sam Nong on Thursday.

Nong prosecuted Daniel Edward Jeske, 33, of Pacific Grove from the March 20, 2012, break-in.

He said police forwarded the cigarette butt to the state DNA database — which includes about 1 million samples collected from felons and persons arrested on a felony charge.

Cigarettes Can Be Hazardous To Your Freedom