Freaking out! Campus police experience last night

[penkitten]

think of the good jobs that will not hire you because you will have a guilty drug charge and a guilty drug paraphernalia charge.

think of all the apartments that will never rent to you.

 

[Analytic]

Good to hear things are working out for you. I used to smoke with a few people out in the college parking lot all the time before, never even knew that was a bad idea. Nowadays I hate pot like a desease.

 

[Albion10]

Do not call the officer, he does not have the authority to offer any "deals".

Contact a lawyer!!
http://www.norml.com/index.cfm?Group_ID=3445

The money you pay for your lawyer will be money well spent!!

Know the laws in your state
http://www.norml.com/index.cfm?wtm_view=&Group_ID=4516.

If you are going to break the law, always make sure you know the consequences of breaking that law and be prepared to accept them.

Check out NORML, they will get you going in the right direction.

-Al

 

[wayword]

He says, I'm going to give you the same deal I give everyone else; 6 months probation period that I can not get in trouble.

Lol, unless you were a minority, then you'd be locked down now. I swear White folx get away with anything in this country...

 

[Vulpine]

Uh... the way I've understood it, it is against the law for officers to make promises of leniency in exchange for information. It's just so common, that noone realizes that it's not legal, not even the officers.

It is against the law for officers to make promises of leniency in exchange for information.

Why do you think the judge asks you in court:

"Has anyone made any threats, promises, or has intimidated you in any way in order to ... "?

The DA is the one who can amend your charges and give you lesser punishments, as can the judge: not the officer. Notice how the officer didn't say "drop the charges"? Once tickets are written and entered into the system, it's in the DA's/courts hands. Police frequently push the scare tactics too far. They assume you don't know the min/max penalties for the crimes, and use it against you.

Go to your state's website, find a link to legislature, go to the state statutes, and run some searches. I've read it in my state's statutes searching for something else. I just tried to find it again, but I'm at work and I don't have the time.

Before flamers get on here and try to argue, I suggest they search as well.

Do yourself a favor, and this goes for everybody, HIRE A LAWYER! You don't think the stuff will "ever amount to anything".... it does. Traffic, misdomeanor, everything adds up. If you should ever have any trouble later in life, big or small, and that stuff is on your record, the only thing the courts base their judgement on is the writing on the paper in front of them. They don't know you personally, professionaly, or otherwise... they only see your record. Bad record = Bad Guy = No breaks.

HIRE A LAWYER! A lawyer will present options to you that you might not see/didn't know existed. They'll make the court consider your grades, your job, your previous record (if clean), basically they'll make the court actually judge you versus process you and push you through the system.

If you want to say "I can't afford an attourney!" I have news for you: the money you spend now is a good investment in the future. A clean record stays clean, a dirty record gets dirtier.

Case in point: A buddy of mine with a clean driving record was pulled over for doing over 120 mph in a 55. He laughed as he recounted the story of how the officer told him, "now get the hell outta here". He got off with a warning?!!!? If it had been me, with a dirty record, I would be sitting at the station in a cell.

Bottom line: Fight, don't play dead and accept your punishments.

EDIT: Albion beat me to my post, good job, right on.

 

[GirlCrazy]

Nice of Analytic to bump the thread after 7 months, but given that, Albion's and Vulpine's advice is spot on.

Smoking pot is still an old habit for me; not one I'm ready to give up just yet. But ever since almost getting popped in Vegas years ago, and finding out that puffing a joint was a felony there, I'm always aware of the state laws for the state I'm smoking in.

To recap, if you're going to break the law:

1.) Be well informed about what the exact consequences of your actions are.

2.) Practice risk-management.

3.) Be ready to hire a good lawyer when you get caught.

4.) Face those consequences like a man when the time comes.

GC's guide to responsible pot smoking:

1.) If you smoke and drive, don't carry anything on you.
2.) If you're going to carry anything, don't smoke before you carry.
3.) Always buy small amounts that can only be construed as for personal use.
4.) Never carry multiple bags. It makes you look like a dealer.
5.) Never smoke anywhere near public places: your car, bars, parks, etc. In most states the penalties are much higher smoking within 1000 feet of a school.
6.) Always "clean" your pot before carrying it. If you get popped, your possesion charge includes the weight of the stems, seeds, and baggie.
7.) When you're carrying it while driving, keep it on your person and not in the car.
8.) Never do business with folks you wouldn't be happy to invite over to your house for a barbeque.
9.) Never leave anything (including pipes, papers, etc.) in plain view anywhere, especially your car or house.
10.) When you keep your stash in your house, keep it under lock and key.

 

[BrotherAP]

It may just be me...

But if you're going to smoke pot, you're able to allow yourself to do it because you don't hold a moral objection to the practice. Why, then, when some Joe in a uniform beats down your door are you all apologies and teary-eyed when you know he's bringing down the heat for something that you shouldn't be locked up for doing. All this pleading not guilty and snitchin on the dealer to me is the cowards way out of looking the judge in the eye and saying "Yeah, I smoked some weed. Nobody got hurt, and I enjoyed myself. With all due respect, I find it quite irksome that I'm being paraded in front of this court being treated like I killed somebody." If you don't think you're being wrong to smoke, don't act like it is. Stand up for yourself.

 

[Chuck Taylor]

This is a good story i found from 16 years ago.

 

[corrector]

This is a good story i found from 16 years ago.

This is when I joined the board. That makes me feel old now.

 

[Black Widow Void]

Looks like the jokes on me. Haha

I didn’t read the posting date.

I wonder how his life turned out.




Aside from the unethical standpoint of narcing on someone, this will also give you a bad reputation in school of being very uncool.The best response to the officer would be that you and your friends are casual smokers and you don’t smoke enough to really know the channels.

To avoid looking obstinate, do you thank the cop for giving you the opportunity… and it wouldn’t hurt to go further by saying that you have a lot if respect for law enforcement (even if you really don’t).

Look up the term “deferred prosecution”. I’m not sure if this depends on the state or not but if this is your first offense, then deferred prosecution is your best friend. I say this because the charge will be dropped as long as you do not get into any trouble for the six following months.