Depending on the evidence in your drug case, a variety of defenses may be available to defend your drug charges. Evidence in your drug case should always include a police report of some sort. Other evidence may include written, audio-recorded, or video-recorded witness interviews; body-worn camera (BWC) footage; as well as drug lab reports and what we discover throughout our investigation of your case.

Your defenses may include the following:

• Fourth Amendment search and seizure violations, which may result in suppressing evidence discovered or obtained through the unlawful search or seizure.
• You may be charged with possession, possession with intent to distribute / PWID, or trafficking drugs based on “constructive possession.” Constructive possession cases require the prosecutor to prove:

1) that you had “dominion and control” over the area where the drugs were found, and 

2) that you knew the drugs were there. “Mere presence” at the scene of a crime by itself is not enough for a conviction. Moreover, “Mere knowledge” that a crime is being committed, with nothing more, is not enough evidence for a conviction.

Sometimes, you may be charged with possession with intent to distribute drugs / PWID drugs when the more legally appropriate charge should be simple possession of drugs due to the drug weight being lighter in a “lab weight” than “field weight.” Even if the “lab weight” of drugs found leads to a possession with intent to distribute / PWID charge, if you did not intend to distribute drugs, you are not guilty of PWID.

You may be charged along with more than one person for the same drugs. It is legal to convict two people for possessing the same drugs. However, if one person claims the drugs as theirs and theirs alone,  prosecutors may pursue charges against that person and dismiss or reduce charges against the other. 

If there are errors or issues regarding the chain of custody of drugs or other evidence as they are handled by the police, those mistakes may lead to excluding drugs or drug lab results at trial.

If you were being interrogated while in police custody, and the police did not advise you of your Miranda rights beforehand, you may be able to have those statements suppressed at trial.

PTI, Conditional Discharge, and Diversion Programs

If you have been charged with certain drug possession charges, pretrial diversion programs may be available. If you complete the obligations set under these programs, the official record of your charge may be expunged. These include:

• Conditional Discharge
• Pre-trial Intervention / PTI
  

Drug Crimes Defense Attorney in Greenville, SC

If you, a family member, or someone you know has been charged with drug possession, drug distribution, or drug trafficking in the Greenville, SC area, call the lawyers at Watson Fowler NOW at (864) 467-0380 or fill out our online contact form to schedule a free consultation.