Possession of Marijuana PL 221.10 in NYC

My question involves criminal law for the state of: new york

i need help!

i'm 23 years old and was recently arrested for possession of marihuana in manhattan, my first offense. im from florida and came up to the city a couple of weeks ago, and recently got a job. me and a kid i had just met were sitting on a bench, having finished smoking a bowl a minute or two before two plain clothes officers came walked by and smelled the smoke. they flashed their badges and removed the bowl from my hand. there was also less than a gram in my bag. they let the other kid go, he didnt have anything on him and i was holding the bowl.

i was arrested and charged with pl.221.10. they processed me and i was out in 2-3 hours. this is my first time getting arrested, or having any type of contact with law enforcement, save some traffic violations. my court date is in a month and i am in need of advice.

i've been searching my charge on the internet, and have come across ACOD (adjournment in contemplation of dismissal).

I need this resolved and taken off my record, if that is possible. i just took the LSAT and am looking to attend law school in the next few years. my main question is: is ACOD an option for my case?

Please help!

You sparked up in public? With a stranger? Yep, that's a sure way to get caught.

ACOD may well be an option for you. With the help of a competent attorney, you may also be able to get it reduced to a violation, or even dismissed altogether.

Consult with an attorney immediately.

Thanks for the reply, although not the response I was looking for. I know it was a terribly dumb thing to do. Now I need to get it resolved.

I thought with ACOD, after the alloted time the charge is automatically dropped. Why would I also want to hve the charge reduced?

Is there anyway I could do this myself, the officer said I wouldn't need a lawyer and all that would happen is I go in and watch a film about how drugs are bad. He said I probably wouldn't get fined.

I just need this off my record, help.

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I thought with ACOD, after the alloted time the charge is automatically dropped.

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Yes. Assuming you are granted ACOD. Just because it's available, doesn't mean you'll get it.

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Why would I also want to hve the charge reduced?

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Ideally, you want a dismissal. Failing that, if you can get ACOD, it's the next best thing.

If you don't get a dismissal and aren't granted ACOD, wouldn't you want it reduced to a simple violation, instead of leaving it as a criminal offense?

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I just need this off my record, help.

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No one can guarantee you that. Crimes have consequences, and you need an attorney to help you negotiate the best possible outcome.

Or you could try going it alone - but pray hard that the judge isn't a hardass who likes to make examples out of drug offenders.

So what I want is complete dismissal. If I can't get that, ACOD and if that is not an option, reduce misdemeanor to violation?

How likely is it any of these will happen. Will my circumstances help me? (I've never been in trouble before, etc)

what will the process be like, will I be appointed an attorney.

If this was you, what would you do?

As I said before, my arresting officer told me that it would be fine, the officer who released me said the same. Were they right?

Law researcher- thanks for the info and help. I've just talked to an attorney and am meeting him tomorrow. He sys he can probably get my charges dropped and everything should be fine, now I just have to come up with $1,500. I guess it's worth it for a clean record.

They should offer you an acd,unless there some legal ground for the case to be thrown out(which is unlikely). Arrive early,see if you can speak to a legal aid,when they call your case,plead not guilty there should be a legal aide available for you. Hopefully an acd is offered if they seem very strict,I would hire a private lawyer and hope he can get me an acd.

Sometimes the line just to enter the building is very long,then you wait to find out where your court case is,then wait for the case to be heard. It is good to get there maybe 30-45 mins before the court is open,maybe you can also speak to a legal aid before your case is called. Your lucky they didn't charge you with smoking in public because w. 2 charges an acd might not of been offered. The fact nyc is big and they have a lot of cases,yours is minor so an acd should be offered. Nyc has a lot of cops around,they are quick to arrest or issue people a ticket. I was given a ticket for drinking a beer outside,I went to court the line just to enter was insane.

It's always good to have a lawyer,is the 1500 dollar lawyer getting you a straigh out dismal if not then for a minor charge a legal aide is probaly gonna be just as likely to get you an acd. Don't beileve what the cops said,if it's nothing then why even arrest you,a small amt of weed is consdiered a volation but he chosed to charge you with a misdeamanor maybe because you had the pipe and were smoking outside.

One good thing about having a private lawyer is sometimes they speed up the process and get the case called right away. Where with a legal aid you might have to wait a lot the 1st day and come back a 2nd time before something is offered.