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  1. #1

    Default Pot Garden in the House I Live In

    My question involves criminal law for the state of: Florida

    I live in my fathers house with my wife and kids. My father also lives here. We rent the top portion of the two story house from him and he lives in the bottom portion.

    I am charged with posession with intent to distribute after the police department responded to an emergency at my house. There was allegedly a marijuana plant in my back yard (not visible from the front yard) that was discovered by the police. They came in to my house and basically intimidated us to sign permission to "look around" We all signed the sheet and they immediately brought in a drug dog. There was a garden found growing downstairs in my dads part of the house and also a few plants in the back yard. All three of us were charged with possesion with intent to distribute and possesion of drug equipment (I assume this charge came from the light and such). My dad and my wife have no prior criminal record and pled out. They recieved probation and my dad was convicted of the crime. My wife had her adjudication withheld. I chose not to plea and instead got my case continued so my legal help and I could go over the evidence. I have a plea date tomorrow and am considering a not guilty plea. Heres why:

    There was no drugs or money found in any of the three room I rent from my father for myself and my kids. All of the contraband, less a couple of pipes, was found downstairs near my dads room. When we were separated and questioned by the detectives both my wife and myself stated that the plants belonged to my dad and my dad did not give a statement at all. Our stories matched that everything was his. He did not confirm or deny this fact on this day we were questioned. My dad is willing to testify that everything that was found belonged to him and we just rent the top part of the house from him. I had no contraband on my person at the time of the search.

    It seems to me, and I am no expert, that the evidence they have against me is all circumstancial and does not prove that I was in possesion of any drugs much less intending to distribute. Also my public defender is filing a motion to supperess the eveidence citing that my 4th ammendment right was violated when the officers entered my back yard without permission, which caused the whole fiasco to begin with.

    I was offered a plea deal by the state but the conditions of that deal involve me ending up with a felony conviction and probation for quite some time. I dont think that is fair considering the owner of the house has already been convicted of the crime and is willing to testify to it.

    My question is: Do I have a pretty good chance of this case being judged in my favor? Or is there something I am missing here?
    I dont want to take the deal unless there is no way we are going to win this case. Please tell me what you think. I dont think I deserve to be a convicted felon after my dad has already been convicted of it.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    Behind a Desk
    Posts
    98,846

    Default Re: Pot Garden in the House I Live In

    When you say "My dad and my wife have no prior criminal record", presumably we are to infer that you have a criminal record? Of drug offenses? Similar drug offenses? Such that you would have unquestionably recognized that marijuana was growing in the back yard, and that the items around the house that you state were your father's were drug paraphernalia?

    If you prevail in the motion to suppress, the matter would likely end there. If not, it may be difficult to convince a jury that you knew that your dad was growing marijuana but that you were completely uninvolved in the operation. If you have priors for manufacture, I would expect the prosecutor to try to get them into evidence to show a pattern or lack of mistake. You and your lawyer know the facts much better than we do, so you should be discussing your chances at trial with your lawyer.

  3. #3

    Default Re: Pot Garden in the House I Live In

    Yes, you are correct in that I do have a criminal history but for simple possesion. There is no manufacture charge on my record. I have a simple possesion charge from back in 2003 but that was my first and only drug offense. I went to plea date yesterday and the state had an offer there. My lawyer insisted that I not take the deal since he was really confident about this case. I just am not sure if he is being to aggressive. this is why I asked for outside opinions.

    As it stands right now thet charge I am looking at is "possesion with intent to distribute" My limited knowledge makes me assume that the state would have a hard time proving intent. Nobody (officers at the scene) witnessed me caring for, or tending to this alleged clandestine garden. Also I had nothing on my person at the time of arrest. They tore my room apart looking for contraband but left the rest of the home inact. This makes me feel like they were trying really hard to find something in the room that I rent but did not. Matter of fact they found absolutely no marijuana at all outside of the plants and a baggie with cigar tobacco and some stems in it. I am not denying being a marijuana smoker or a fan. My thing is the charge of possesion with intent when I was not actually in possesion of anything at all. They took a poster off of my wall that had a pot leaf on it and a book collection that showcases different marijuana from around the world (Cannabible Vol 1-3). I just dont see how this is evidence to anything more than I too like pot as my father and wife do and nothing more.

    I dont know. Like I said I am a Land Surveyor by trade so my knowledge of the law is in a completely different area than this. I really have no idea about anything more than what I have wrote. So I am grateful for your replies. I am hoping for the best in this. The thing that pisses me off the most about this is that the officers initially arrived as emergency responders and once they determined that it was a false alarm they should have called it a wrap. But that is in a perfect world I guess.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Michigan
    Posts
    28,906

    Default Re: Pot Garden in the House I Live In

    Intent can often be inferred from quantity.

  5. #5

    Smile Re: Pot Garden in the House I Live In

    Aaron, you are correct. Here in Florida a Marijuana plant is considered a kilogram or 2.2 lbs. Anything over 20 grams is possession with intent to distribute. So natually they are trying to stick it to me even though my dad used that garden for personal stash.

    This is just the most stressful thing I have ever dealt with. I am trying to get opinions from as many different angle as I can as to form one of my own using the knowledge I extract.

    As I said before my lawyer was not happy to hear that I was considering taking the plea deal. The only thing he kept repeating was that we have a motion hearing to supress in two days. I am trying to figure out if he has my best interests in mind or is he thinking of his own career here. Hopefully I get to play the hand I was dealt and if for some reason the judge denies this motion I still may have a few cards to play.

    My dad is going to testify on my behalf now. If anything his testimony that everything was his should cast reasonable doubt that I had involvement in this. In a perfect world I would not have to prove my innocence and that burden would be on the state, but we all know that is a fantasy.

    I welcome everybody to chime in on this. Your replies are very valuable to me.

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