Many people do not realize that just because an individual has been charged with or arrested on suspicion of committing a crime, it is not necessarily the case that they have committed it. In fact, everyone has the right to convey their side of the story in a courtroom and one of the steps criminal defense attorneys take is to challenge the elements of the prosecution’s case to prove the innocence of their client. When it comes to drug possession charges, one of the tactics could be to challenge the very reason the drugs were discovered in the first place.
This might be the strategy to consider for Ohio residents who have been charged with multiple charges relating to drug crimes. Police officers pulled over a 37-year-old woman after a random vehicle registration check led to the discovery that there was an active warrant out for the person’s arrest. The woman was the owner of the vehicle and police suspected she had a baggie of suspected crack cocaine tucked into her shirt.
There was a 44-year-old passenger in the vehicle at the time, and the report alleges that a search of him uncovered a clear pipe with black residue and the remnants of Choreboy, something that is commonly used to smoke crack. There was also a baggie of clear pipes in the car at the time, according to the police. According to the police, there was an outstanding arrest on the passenger as well, as discovered at a later time. Drugs also fell from their pockets as they were being processed. They are facing a number of charges, including drug possession and having drug paraphernalia.
When police stop someone and seize property from their person or vehicle, there needs to be a credible reason for the stop and seizure, otherwise the evidence can be thrown out of court. There are also a number of other constitutional protections that should be afforded to an arrested person and, if they are violated, it might lead to a dismissal of charges.
