What
To Do If You Get Arrested For Possession Of Marijuana In Albany, NY
Though some states have realized the harm inherent in prosecuting nonviolent individuals who are found to be in possession of marijuana, New York unfortunately has not; despite our modern understanding of the relatively benign nature of most “soft” drugs, New York retains strict drug laws. Even if you are caught with just a small amount of marijuana—obviously intended for personal use rather than sale—you can be charged (though a first time offender with under 25 grams of weed will usually only be charged with a violation and fined, rather than arrested). Only medical marijuana use is permitted within New York state, and even then only if the user has a qualifying condition.
Handling A Charge of Marijuana Possession In Albany, NY
Sometimes a marijuana user will face more serious legal penalties as a result of a possession charge; if, for example, he or she is caught using marijuana in a way that a police officer deems to be “in public view” he or she can be found guilty of a Class B misdemeanor offense and face up to 90 days in jail. The possession of large amounts of marijuana can carry more serious charges still, with the possessor facing up to 2.5 years in prison if he or she is found to be carrying more than 16 ounces of the substance... And up to an astounding 25 years in prison if he or she is found to be guilty of trafficking marijuana.
Naturally, then, if you are charged with marijuana possession, the first thing you need to do is get in touch with an excellent defense lawyer. Your lawyer will understand that in order to prove you are guilty of the Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance offense, the prosecution must:
- Prove the presence of a controlled substance;
- Prove that the defendant was the one possessing the substance;
- Prove that the defendant was aware that he or she was
possessing the substance;
- Prove that the possession was indeed unlawful.
Because criminal defense lawyers have such an in-depth understanding of the many idiosyncrasies
of the law, they can often locate legal loopholes which allow them to
effectively attack the above arguments. Your lawyer will sit down with you and
get to know the situation surrounding your possession charge in detail and then
fight on your behalf so that the prosecution cannot prove one or all of the
points outlined above. If even one of these points cannot be proven
beyond a reasonable doubt, your case should be dismissed. The end result of
such a dismissal will be that you are found “not guilty” of possessing
marijuana and you will therefore be able to move on with your life with a clean
criminal record.
Author Bio:
Max Smelyansky is a lawyer focusing on personal injury, family law and traffic ticket defense in the New York Capital Region. He is a partner at Melita & Smelyansky, PC and the owner of trafficcourtanswers.com.
