Paraphernalia in Texas

My question involves criminal law for Collin County:

It's my first year in college on a small campus where lots and lots of police have very little to do. Last year, I called for deferred adjudication on a ticket I received May 31 2008. I have had a clear record with one small blemish that shouldn't matter: a noise complaint that was taken back by the police after they failed to turn it in in a timely manner.

Recently I had an attempted robbery on my apartment (even though on college campus, still regular warrant laws apply) and was basically forced to invite police inside to write paperwork involving the failed robbery. Little did me or my roommate realize that in front of us on the table we were writing on was an ashtray filled with roaches from many nights of college life. The police went and searched the two rooms that didn't have inhabitants in them in the apartment and found a bunch of ragtag previously broken but mended together Frankenstein style bongs and included that in the paraphernalia ticket. They attempted to coerce us into giving consent to search our rooms but because we were able to communicate that we were well-to-do students that have fun every now and then, we got off the hook (thankfully) so no possession charges were called.

What I'm wondering is if I can get this ticket deferred if I got the ticket on April 19 2009 and the last day I can appear in court for it is June 2 2009 as I don't understand what exactly the one year rule entails.

If I cannot defer this and will end up having this on my record, would I have enough of a case to get a lawyer and say that the paraphernalia was my room mates (his deferral is already guaranteed so no worries about the legal ramifications on him too right?) or even that they were found on university property that I didn't and wasn't legally supposed to have access to as I didn't have a key?

I realize that this is considered just a traffic ticket and that it's really no big deal, but since I'm a medical student hopeful, I feel having a drug related charge pop up when I'm trying to apply for anything university related might be something harmful. Just for clarification, if I don't get off with a clean record with this, will it harm my chances of becoming a doctor?

I appreciate any and all input.

what were you charged with?

Yes, drug charges may make your application to medical school less palatable to the admissions board.

They believe that people that experiment with illegal drugs may not be the best people to provide a prescription pad to.

Strange that.

The court doesn't care that you're "well-to-do" and like to "have fun". You're expected to have LEGAL fun, no matter how much money your Mama has.

If you're that "well-to-do", you'd do well to get yourself an attorney - you're not just looking at that $500 Class C misdemeanor, you're also looking at the possibility of being kicked out of school for illegal substances on University property.

Most universities will boot you from your residence, and may either suspend you or completely expell you.

As the thread title says, I was only charged with possession of drug paraphernalia, and my scholarship as well as my status in university is of no consequence as this the equivalent of a traffic ticket if I am not mistaken.

I only said "well-to-do" (in reference to my Grades and Major) to illustrate that I am not, in fact, unworthy of the blessings I have been given so as to show how I was able to maneuver around a warrant.

Momma doesn't have to pay a cent. And yes, insults help me very much. I appreciate it.

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Quoting ControlMe?

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As the thread title says, I was only charged with possession of drug paraphernalia, and my scholarship as well as my status in university is of no consequence as this the equivalent of a traffic ticket if I am not mistaken.

I only said "well-to-do" (in reference to my Grades and Major) to illustrate that I am not, in fact, unworthy of the blessings I have been given so as to show how I was able to maneuver around a warrant.

Momma doesn't have to pay a cent. And yes, insults help me very much. I appreciate it.

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I truly dislike repeating myself.

What, exactly, were you charged with? What was the statute number?

We cannot begin to help you until we know with what you are charged...

Sorry, I wasn't aware that was necessary. I'm looking at the ticket and I see a violation and a code #6101. There are different kinds of paraphernalia charges?

Quote:

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Quoting ControlMe?

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As the thread title says, I was only charged with possession of drug paraphernalia, and my scholarship as well as my status in university is of no consequence as this the equivalent of a traffic ticket if I am not mistaken.

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In the state of Texas, possession of paraphernalia - which is illegal - is a class C misdemeanor, punishable by a $500 fine.

If your University has a contraband policy, or if your scholarship has a morals clause, your status may very well be in jeopardy, regardless of the state of Texas' view on the severity of the offense.

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I only said "well-to-do" (in reference to my Grades and Major) to illustrate that I am not, in fact, unworthy of the blessings I have been given so as to show how I was able to maneuver around a warrant.

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Words mean things, kiddo. "I am well-to-do" means "I have money", not "I get good grades."

Frankly, your attitude about liking to "have fun on the weekends" - ignoring that the "fun" you're having is illegal - is going to give you problems. Lose the entitlement attitude before you go up in front of the judge.

I figured since I'm a college student, it's a given I have little to no money. Maybe I should have said Intelligent or smarter than the average kid to seem more conceited for ya.

The university police on my campus have regular talks with the dean of students when drug or alcohol charges come up, however, I've already talked to the dean about other issues and usually they are very prompt to call and schedule a meeting to discuss major problems like this. I don't think they really care about this as much as I do for the sake of being able to help others in the future.

And back to my main question, Do I really need to go in front of a judge to try and get this away from my record? A deferred adjudication on this is out of the question?

You can't get a deferred sentence without going before a judge and being sentenced by the judge. If you can get a deferred sentence on a Class C misdemeanor, and successfully complete the period of deferral, you'll qualify for an expunction. That would be a good thing.

So the way it looks I'm going to need a lot of money fast...I don't like doing that at all. I would rather not have to bend my morals just so I can live the life I have planned.

Does anyone know the rules behind the year after each deferred adjudication
(dates of my tickets in first post)? I don't want to get a lawyer and then find out that all I had to do was go in, pay it off, check a box, and do some defensive driving like last time...