Understanding Your Rights

4 Effective Defenses For A Marijuana Charge

The gravity of a marijuana charge really depends on a state by state basis. Therefore, it is highly recommended that you call on the services of a local and trusted defense attorney who specializes in such cases. If you have been charged with possession charges, there are a number of good defenses that your legal team can employ. Throughout the course of this brief article, you will learn of a few effective defenses that your attorney or legal team might employ.

Legal Possession

There are many scenarios where, despite marijuana's legality, a law officer may write you a citation or attempt to charge you with a criminal offense. If the state in which you possess marijuana has laws in which medical use is legal, then possessing a certain amount should not lead to an offense. Your attorney should know the amount of which is considered legal to hold in your state, and you should be able to present your prescription to a court of law, if this is the case.

Illegal Stop, Detention and Search

If any portion of the process that led to your charge was not conducted under the letter of the law, then the case very well may be dropped. If a law officer pulled you over or detained you with no constitutional basis, or performed a search on your vehicle without probable cause, then this is a perfectly apt defense.

Fleeting Possession

The prosecution must prove that your possession of the marijuana was more than transitory. For example, if a police officer noticed that you were handling an amount of marijuana for but a brief moment – in this case, perhaps just taking a look at a small bag of marijuana that your friend handed you – then he or she cannot charge you with an offense due to the fact that you had no dominion over the marijuana. In fact, you very well could have been unaware of what you were handling at the time.

Invalid Search Warrant

If your home or place of business has been searched for marijuana, then it is important that you discover any detail you possibly can about the search warrant. A search warrant can be considered defective and ultimately unconstitutional for a number of reasons. Among them include a "stale" warrant, in which the facts relating the case no longer apply, or the warrant was not employed shortly after the judge ordained it or simply a lack of probable cause.

For more information and legal advice, talk with a marijuana defense attorney.


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