Going to Trial on Marijuana Charges

[BOR]

My main questions are as follows: If he was pulling us over because he thought we were drunk, did he have any right to come to the conclusion that we had pot...he didn't even conduct any tests to see if we were drunk.

If he had at least a reasonable suspicion a law was being violated he can seize OR stop the car. His conclusion you had pot, without any smell or odor, based on a prior stop is not material. What is material is the extended extension as I discussed above.

Does the bandanna really constitute as obstruction of view if its not actually blocking the drivers view?

Probably not, but that may be "subjective" in nature.

Were they fully justified in searching the car on the grounds that were stated, as we were not under the influence at the time, there was nothing in view and there was no smell.

You mention the dog searched the car, was it inside first, or an outside sniff first? Once an outside alert was on record, it gave the officer probable cause to then let the K-9 in the vehicle.

Particularly, since I have never been in trouble with the cop before how did he have the right to search my things?

The federal constitution, and no doubt, your state's, permit the search of a passenger's belongings that are capable of hiding contraband, once contraband is found in the vehicle; Wyoming v. Houghton.

Is there any way to argue that we should have been informed of our right to remain silent before they questioned us about our things?

Miranda does not mandate general "on scene" questioning protections, and it's progenies of detained motorists do not either.

You have alot of Q's to be answered, if the charges or any ones are a jailable offense, you generally have a right to appointed counsel, if you can not afford one.

[helloihatecops]

first off i'd like to thank the people that responded to my questions, you've given me a lot of helpful insight. as i stated my trial was yesterday, and when we went in we didnt go through with an actual trial, instead we were both given the option to apply for the drug education program, which involves classes and community service, and if we are accepted and complete the program will wipe this off our records. now the only thing im unsure of is whether this was the better option, or should i have tried to prove that the police didnt have the right to search the car. also, i know that i will be accepted into the program as i have absoloutely no priors. however i was wondering if anyone knew if they will accept my boyfriend or turn him away. he was arrested 3 years ago for having an airsoft gun at his highschool, but used his accelerated rehabilitation which put him on probation for two years. hes been off probation for a year and thus was not on probation when we got arrested. as this is intended to make his record clean now, will they approve him for the drug education program as well?

[kist]

Just when you got the legal freigt train moving you cop a plea. Yes that was the right choice for you. Your boyfriend won't have any problems being accepted.

95% of all criminal cases end with plea bargains. Which means the prosecutors get a conviction at least 95% of the time. Clearly something stinks. That's getting close to Japan's conviction rate, the highest in the modern world (99.7%) but they use torture.

[cdwjava]

95% of all criminal cases end with plea bargains. Which means the prosecutors get a conviction at least 95% of the time.

You are not including all the cases that do not get filed at all. Keep in mind that a filing by the DA is sort of like deciding who you are going to play a game of basketball against ... if you decide to only play 1st graders, you will have a high win:loss ratio - much higher than if you played everyone who asked to play.

That's getting close to Japan's conviction rate, the highest in the modern world (99.7%) but they use torture.

Please, can you provide a citation for either of those claims? Yes, the Japanese system has done away with juries and relies heavily on confessions. And as a result of its bureaucratic process it is very predictable that most cases filed will result in a conviction. But, in spite of that, I can't seem to find support for a 99.7% number or any indication that the high conviction rate is as a result of "torture" ... only that it is a result of the bureaucratic system.

- Carl