Drug Crime Lawyers

Authorities have made drug offenses one of their top priorities and devote an enormous amount of their resources to prosecuting such cases. In all drug charges you face a jail or prison term, fine, probation, subjection to drug testing, drug education classes, drug treatment programs, loss of your driver’s or business license and the possibility of the forfeiture of some of your assets. A criminal record for a drug crime conviction also carries a negative stigma that can affect your employment opportunities and require you to fulfill certain legal obligations even after you have served any sentence imposed upon you.

Why Hire a Criminal Defense Lawyer?

Keep in mind that even if you have been arrested that does not automatically mean that you will be charged or convicted of a crime. An experienced attorney can possible get the charged dismissed or lessened depending on the circumstances of your case. For example, it may be possible to prove that police violated the law by conducting what is known as an “illegal search and seizure,” which means that they did not have a required search warrant or other legitimate reason to seize the drugs that may be involved in your case. There may have been an improper link in what is called “the chain of custody” involving the evidence. There is also the possibility – given the circumstances of your case – that you may be eligible for a drug diversion program, in which charges could be suspended and eventually dismissed upon successful completion of certain legal requirements

What Will My Lawyer Do?

The following are the duties your attorney may be called upon to do on your behalf:

• Conduct additional investigation of the case, including evidence that not have been uncovered or considered by the authorities.
• Determine whether you may be eligible for drug diversion programs.
• Accompany and represent you should you be requested to undergo any questioning by police, investigators or prosecutors.
• Contact police or prosecutors with circumstances favorable to your case that might cause them to decide to not file charges.
• Make court filings that might affect the evidence in your case in favor of a dismissal.
• Conduct negotiations with prosecutors for plea-bargains in return for reduced charges and penalties.
• Represent you at all court hearings, including bail reviews, motion hearings, preliminary hearings, trials and sentencing hearings, in the event of a conviction.

There are many legal tools that Lawyers can muster on your behalf in aggressively defending you against drug crime charges. There are, for instance, legal considerations known as mitigating factors that can come into play in attempting to prevent charges from being filed, reducing the severity of the charges or in trying to convince a judge to levy a less severe punishment. They include:

• Whether you have a prior record of a criminal offense.
• Whether your prior record involves a drug crime.
• Whether you were on probation or parole at the time of the drug crime.
• Your age.
• Your health.
• Your standing in the community be it through your employment or involvement in community affairs.
• Your involvement in voluntary activities be they through social, athletic or religious organizations.
• Whether you were in a position of trust in connection with the drug crime.
• The actual or potential harm to the community of your crime.
• Your completion of drug diversion, education or treatment programs.
• Your cooperation with authorities.
• The amount or type of drugs with which you were involved.
• Whether you gained a financial benefit from the drugs with which you were involved.
• Whether your drug crime involved personal use or larger involvement.
• Whether minors were involved with your drug use or sales.
• Whether there are victims in the case.
• Whether there was violence involved in the drug crime.
• Whether a weapon was involved in the drug crime.
• Whether other crimes were committed in connection with the drug crime.