Drug Offenses Bowling Green, Ohio Lawyer

Drug charges can include possession, trafficking and providing drugs to others. Some drug offenses – even minor ones – such as possession of marijuana – carry the possibility of a driver license suspension. While possession of a very small amount of marijuana may not count as a “criminal” conviction, the advice of a skilled lawyer is well-advised in court. An employer may see any of your charges or convictions when running a record check prior to hiring you. Do you want any drug charges showing up on your record?

In some cases, it is possible to get drug charges dismissed. Through prosecutor’s diversion programs, or intervention in lieu of conviction, misdemeanor drug offenses and low-level felony offenses can be dismissed if the client takes certain steps, including counseling. Without an attorney’s advice, how will you know whether or not your charge would qualify for intervention?

Even the smallest amount of marijuana – if convicted – can lead to a driver license suspension. In the past, a driver license suspension used to be mandatory for every drug conviction. Now, it is not mandatory for minor misdemeanor marijuana possession, but the court could still impose a license suspension. Is that a risk worth taking by going to court on your own? Probably not.

Another important issue is how the police found out that you had drugs at all. Did you consent to a search? Was a search warrant obtained? While the Fourth Amendment to United States Constitution and similar provisions in the Ohio Constitution prevent illegal searches, there are many exceptions: a search incident to a lawful arrest; consent signifying waiver of constitutional rights; the stop-and-frisk doctrine; hot pursuit; probable cause to search and the presence of exigent circumstances; plain view doctrine; and some administrative searches. Without the advice and counsel of a an attorney who is familiar with these issues, it is difficult to determine whether any of the exceptions apply to you.

Did you know that if the police ask you for consent to search, you have the right to refuse. If stopped for a traffic violation, the police cannot search your car if you do not consent, unless you are arrested, the odor of drugs is detected, or a drug detection dog alerts on your car. You can be detained for only a short period of time for the police to get a drug dog on scene. A traffic stop cannot become a fishing expedition into a drug investigation without some indication that drugs would be present. An officer’s mere “hunch” is not enough.