Medical Marijuana: It Really Is A Healing Herb

As a criminal law attorney in Fort Lauderdale, I have many friends who ask me, “Can the police arrest me if I am driving in a vehicle that contains marijuana?” Although you need to by no means ride in a automobile that carries marijuana, you could lessen your probabilities of being arrested via expertise the importance of the prison idea “positive possession.” The Fourth D.C.A. Of Florida these days wrote an first-rate analysis on constructive ownership in Brinkley v. State, 12 So.3d 311 (Fla. 4th D.C.A., 2009).

To be convicted underneath Florida Statute 893.13 (Possession of a Controlled Substance), the State should prove past an inexpensive doubt that you possessed and had know-how of the marijuana. To own means to have private price of or workout the right of possession, control, or manipulate over the element possessed. Possession may be actual or constructive. Actual ownership is a easy concept – in your hand, in a container on your hand, for your person, or within ready reach and in your manage. If a person has one of a kind possession of a managed substance, knowledge is inferred. Issues of constructive possession are more complex, but.

To establish positive ownership of marijuana, the State must show that you had (1) dominion and manage over the marijuana, (2) expertise that the marijuana changed into within your presence, and (3) know-how of the illicit nature of the marijuana. The most commonplace difficulty in competition is whether or not you had dominion and control over the marijuana. If the car in which the marijuana is found is in joint (no pun meant), as opposed to your distinct possession (i.E. You are the passenger in a automobile), know-how of the presence of the managed substance in the vehicle and your potential to preserve manipulate over the managed substance will no longer be inferred.

In laymen’s terms, in case you were silly enough to be stuck driving in a automobile wherein a bag of marijuana was positioned in undeniable view within the center console, the State would nevertheless must prove that you had “manipulate” over the marijuana, and now not virtually “knowledge” of the marijuana. Although no longer specifically defined, manage is the capability to take, use, own, (or smoke) the marijuana without receiving permission from a person else. Mere proximity to the marijuana isn’t enough to establish manage when the marijuana is not in your unique control. Possession may be joint ( or extra people may additionally exercising control of the hashish) but handiest if both individuals have control over the marijuana.

To show dominion and control, the police will must look at you possessing, concealing, or inhaling the marijuana or if you make any incriminating statements admitting possession of the marijuana. Notwithstanding the aforementioned reasons, cbd hanfol the police cannot impute the ownership of the marijuana to you clearly due to the fact you’re in a car that consists of marijuana. Therefore, never make any incriminating statements to the police as regards to ownership of the marijuana. No count number what the police promise you (i.E. We won’t arrest you if you admit ownership), do not admit possession of the marijuana. Also, try and stay calm – do now not make any furtive or quick actions that could lead the police which you are anxious or looking to cover the marijuana. Also, do now not smoke the marijuana within the vehicle. It is oftentimes tough to disclaim possession when you and the automobile reek of marijuana.

On an apart, within the event you still select to trip in a automobile which contains marijuana, make certain the marijuana is hidden (outside of plain view), ideally within the trunk or locked compartment. At a minimal, do not go away the marijuana in simple view in the middle console or ashtray. Additionally, do now not keep any paraphernalia (pipe, rolling papers, and many others.) to your man or woman.

Finally, even though the police should not arrest you for possession of a managed substance if they can’t show real or constructive possession, it does not mean that the police might not arrest you anyways. The police routinely arrest vehicle masses of college students wherein marijuana is positioned within a vehicle, even if they can not pinpoint who exhibited dominion and manipulate. At that point, it’s miles vital to touch an experience criminal protection attorney to investigate the precise information of your case and document the suitable Motions. Possession of even 1 gram of marijuana is punishable via up to twelve months in prison and/or one year probation and a possible year driver’s license suspension. Do now not plea out your case with out speaking to an experienced criminal protection lawyer.

The statistics in this text web site changed into developed by Lyons, Snyder & Collin, P.A. For informational purposes best and should now not be taken into consideration legal advice. The transmission and receipt of facts from this newsletter does no longer shape or constitute an legal professional-purchaser courting with Lyons, Snyder & Collin. Persons receiving the information from this text need to no longer act upon the data furnished without seeking career criminal suggest.