Possession of illegal drugs can lead to serious penalties, including fines and imprisonment, depending on the severity of the infraction, the drugs involved, the previous record of the offender, and other key circumstances in the case. Criminal drug possession may count as either a misdemeanor or a felony under North Carolina law.
If you find yourself charged with possession of a controlled substance in North Carolina, you need to understand what kind of charge you face, your legal defense options, and strategies for obtaining an optimal outcome. Start by considering the following frequently asked questions regarding drug possession charges.
How Does North Carolina Law Classify Different Controlled Substances?
Police officers are supposed to protect and serve the public, but everyone makes mistakes, including the most professional officers. These mistakes can often be used to help reduce your charges or even get your case thrown out entirely. If you would like to know more, check out these four common mistakes made by police.
1. Illegal Stops
An officer can’t just pull you over for no reason; they need reasonable suspicion. Therefore, if you are following all the laws of the road, an officer can’t just pull you over for no reason. However, if you are swerving, speeding, etc., they now have reasonable suspicion to pull you over. For example, just because an officer sees you leaving a bar, they can’t pull you over to see if you’re driving drunk. They would need to see signs of drunk driving first like swerving to lawfully stop you.
Speeding is one of the most common ways to get a traffic ticket. The best way to avoid a speeding ticket is to drive safely and obey speed limits. However, not everyone who speeds has the same risk of a speeding ticket. Below are seven things that increase your risk of getting a speeding ticket.
1. Extreme Speeding
Breaking the speed limit is bad. However, you face a high risk of a speeding ticket if you exceed the speed limit by a wide margin. Most police officers won’t ticket you for going a few miles per hour over the posted limit. For example, ticket risk is low if you drive at 65 mph in a 60 mph zone.
If you’ve been arrested and charged with a DWI, but you feel the charges are unfair, there are many defense options you can consider to help win your case or reduce your punishment if found guilty. If you would like to know more, check out these four defense options for your DWI charges.
1. No Probable Cause
An officer needs probable cause to pull you over and accuse you of driving while under the influence. Probable cause includes swerving, driving under the speed, speeding, judgment problems, etc. Once you’ve pulled over, the officer can continue looking for probable cause, including alcohol on your breath, slurring speech, difficulty rolling down window/getting out a license, slow response time, and much more.
If you have a criminal case, you should know that the court won’t just accept any evidence during your trial. The court can reject evidence from both the prosecution and defense. Below are some legal grounds that might make evidence inadmissible.
Hearsay
Hearsay refers to out of court statements repeated in court. The statements can be oral or written. Courts typically reject hearsay evidence since they amount to nothing more than gossip. Consider a case where you face criminal charges, and a friend alleges that they heard a mutual acquaintance declare your innocence. The court is likely to reject the testimony as hearsay.
The Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution gives criminal defendants the right to a public trial. Although this right has numerous benefits, there are also several cases in which it doesn’t apply.
Driving while under the influence or driving while intoxicated (DWI) charges are one legal battle that no one ever wants to be faced with. If you have never been charged with a DWI before and suddenly find yourself in this situation, you are likely feeling overwhelmed about the best way to proceed. Here are four tips for those facing a first-time DWI offense so you can be sure you are doing the most to get your life back on track.
When you’re convicted of driving while intoxicated (DWI) in the state of North Carolina, you automatically lose your license for a minimum of 12 months. Although the state laws treat DWI as a very serious offense, they also make it possible to reinstate your driving privileges if you take the right steps.
To get your license back as fast as possible, your DWI attorney can help you with all of the following.
When you’re charged with a misdemeanor in Cumberland County, you always want to fight it. Don’t assume that a misdemeanor can’t come with damaging penalties because it’s not a felony. Here’s what you need to know about misdemeanors in Cumberland County, and why you should always fight them.
If you’re a motorist in North Carolina, it’s important to know the traffic offenses that could lead to a ticket. Traffic tickets, including those issued due to infractions, can result in higher insurance rates, revocation or indefinite suspension of your license, and possibly a misdemeanor or felony charges. Here are the top four offenses that could net you a traffic ticket.
Police officers are supposed to protect and serve the public, but everyone makes mistakes, including the most professional officers. These mistakes can often be used to help reduce your charges or even get your case thrown out entirely. If you would like to know more, check out these four common mistakes made by police.
Speeding is one of the most common ways to get a traffic ticket. The best way to avoid a speeding ticket is to drive safely and obey speed limits. However, not everyone who speeds has the same risk of a speeding ticket. Below are seven things that increase your risk of getting a speeding ticket.
If you’ve been arrested and charged with a DWI, but you feel the charges are unfair, there are many defense options you can consider to help win your case or reduce your punishment if found guilty. If you would like to know more, check out these four defense options for your DWI charges.
If you have a criminal case, you should know that the court won’t just accept any evidence during your trial. The court can reject evidence from both the prosecution and defense. Below are some legal grounds that might make evidence inadmissible.
