The Flint, MI, police department takes a hard stance against drugs, from cocaine and heroin all the way down to marijuana. Any connection to an illegal substance, whether by possession, sale, or manufacturing, comes with harsh penalties, including prison time and possible high fines. However, if you've been charged with a drug crime, all is not lost. With the help of a Flint, MI, drug crime attorney, you can make sure your rights are protected and work toward your best-case scenario in the courtroom.
At Grabel & Associates, our Flint criminal attorneys fight tirelessly for our clients, to clear their good names or get second chance and some help breaking free of a crippling addiction. We have extensive experience defending against drug crimes at all levels, from the most serious felonies to misdemeanor offenses, and are always on the cutting edge of the ever-changing laws.
The Michigan Public Health Code contains a long list of drug offenses, which fall into four major categories:
Although these categories seem clear cut, they are often more complex than they appear. For example, drug possession with intent to sell or deliver is a charge often based solely upon the amount of drug found in your possession – whether there is any real evidence that you intended to sell it or not. Similarly, drug manufacturing can cover everything from cooking meth to putting a label on a package of marijuana, whether you had full knowledge of what you were doing or not.
The penalties for these crimes are further determined by the type of drug and the amount found in your possession or traced back to you. The harder the drug and the more of it found in your possession, the stiffer the penalties will be. Because there hundreds of drugs and more being created every day, instead of prescribing a penalty for each unique drug, the state of Michigan divides all drugs into five schedules with a penalty set for each schedule. If you've been charged with a drug crime in Flint, it's important to know what schedule your drug allegation is in so you can have some idea of the penalties you're facing. If you aren't sure where your drug allegation fits, call Grabel & Associates at 1-800-342-7896 to talk to a drug crimes attorney.
Schedule I: These drugs are the most addictive and have no accepted medical use in the United States. Examples of drugs within this category include heroin and ecstasy.
Schedule II: These drugs, although very addictive, do have some limited medical use within the United States. Cocaine, opium, and methamphetamine (meth) are some of the most common schedule II drugs.
Schedule III: Schedule III drugs can lead to mild or moderate physical addiction, but have the potential to create a very strong psychological addiction. They are, however, useful medical drugs when strictly controlled, such as morphine, Ketamine, and Codeine.
Schedule IV: These drugs are commonly available by prescription and have much less addictive potential. Valium and Rohypnol are two common drugs in this category.
Schedule V: Schedule V drugs are relatively low-risk, but still contain narcotics, such as cough syrups containing codeine or medications with ephedrine.
Marijuana: Although technically a schedule I or II drug, marijuana has a unique set of penalties that distinguishes it from others in its category. Generally, the penalties for this drug are less serious than those for others in the same schedule, but still include jail time or fines.
If you're arrested on drug charges, your case will likely start at the 67th District Court on Saginaw Street here in Flint. Here, you will be arraigned and if the charge is a misdemeanor, your case will be tried here are well. If, however, your charge is a felony, the case will be transferred to the 7th Circuit Court down the street. At Grabel & Associates, our attorneys have extensive experiencing defending both misdemeanor and felony drug charges and can represent you at any court for crimes of any severity.
Sometimes first-offenders who are arrested on drug charges make the mistake of thinking that all is lost since the drugs were found on their person or in their belongings. However, this is not the case – especially with a good attorney. Remember, the police needed to have had probable cause to search your person. If this was not the case, any evidence obtained through the illegal search and seizure has to be thrown out of court. Often, the case is dismissed along with it due to lack of evidence.
Lack of knowledge is another common defense. Even if the drugs were found in your belongings, that doesn't mean that you put them there or that you knew about it. If someone else planted the drugs or if they belonged to a friend or colleague, we will prove it to the court and clear your good name.
The defenses listed above are just a few of the ways in which our experienced attorneys at Grabel & Associates have successfully defended clients against drug charges and either gotten the charges dismissed or secured a reduced or alternative sentence. Drug charges can be serious. But with proper representation, one mistake does not have to ruin the rest of your life. If you've been charged with a drug crime, don't wait. Call us today to talk about your case at 1-800-342-7896 or contact us online now.