If you are charged with or are being investigated for a drug-related crime, what you do or do not do can have a huge effect on how things pan out for you. Because of this, there are some mistakes that you should avoid so that things do not turn out much worse than they otherwise might have.
Consenting to a Search
Never consent to a search of your person, vehicle, or home if you are under investigation for drug-related crimes. Doing so eliminates any chance your lawyer has to argue that the search was illegal if you are charged with a crime.
Admitting to Possession
Many people think that if they just tell the truth, the police might let them off with a warning or things will turn out better. Never admit you are in possession of drugs or know that there are drugs anywhere near you. This way, you can argue the drugs do not belong to you, but admitting they are there removes this possibility completely.
Not Having an Attorney by Your Side
When you are arrested for drug-related charges, you should never talk to the police without having an attorney present. When the police say that anything you say can be used against you, they mean it. Every question they ask is designed to confuse you and the answers you provide or anything else you say can be used to further incriminate you.
Instead, ask for your lawyer as soon as you are arrested. Ideally, you want an experienced criminal defense lawyer who has experience beating drug possession or sale charges. Josh Johnson, Attorneys at Law come to mind because they have extensive experience fighting drug-related charges. They will stop you from saying something incriminating, sometimes even things the police themselves might not know.
Talking to Anyone About the Investigation or the Charges
If you have been arrested and then released, avoid talking to anyone about the investigation or potential charges. The police can turn well-meaning friends and family into witnesses. The main problem with this is that people rarely recall the events as you told them, but rather how they remember them. So, even if they don’t know they are not saying exactly what you said, they can still land you in trouble. Remember, the police and the prosecuting attorney are always looking for any discrepancies in what you say and what a witness says and they can twist it however they want.
Doing Nothing
You might be surprised by the number of people who think that if they do nothing, the police will not press charges for a small amount of drugs, or the complaining party will drop the charges. This is a huge mistake because you have no control over what the prosecuting attorney will do and cannot know if they have the real facts of the case.
The best thing to do in this case is to get your attorney to get the state to avoid filing charges or to drop the case because once the charging document is filed, there is nothing else you can do to avoid going to court.
If the police suspect you have committed a crime, they have to investigate and then charge you. The worst thing you can do is unknowingly help them in their investigation. So, avoid talking to the police or to any potential witness and let your lawyer handle things on your behalf.