2 Drug Citations

[anonym]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Texas
Howdy,
I'm from Texas and recently I went to Oklahoma for a music festival. I got pulled over for speeding while in Caddo county. My car didn't smell like weed, I've never smoked in my car before, and I was completely sober when he pulled me over. The officer said he was some drug-something cop (I can't remember the wording he used), and he searched my car. I gave him consent to search because I was overwhelmed and intimidated, and I've never been in trouble with the law before. He found the small amount of weed I brought with me and my pipe, and he let me off with a citation for speeding, possession of marijuana, and possession of drug paraphernalia. He also said that I could show up on my court date and ask for a deferment. This whole situation is making me worried for my future. What is the likelihood of the judge granting deferment? And if he doesnt, is my criminal record going to show a misdemeanor for possession, or just a citation for possession? I'm 19, enrolled in college, have great grades and everything, but I'm worried that this will make finding a job impossible. I'm also trying to handle this on my own without my parents, so hiring a lawyer is not the most affordable option for me. I'd appreciate any kind of advice or insight possible.
Thanks.

 

[HighwayMan]

My car didn't smell like weed...

So you think. You may be so used to having it around that you do not notice the odor.

If you are that concerned for your future you should stay away from illegal substances.

You may want to look into hiring an attorney to represent you in court.

 

[Just Blue]

So you think. You may be so used to having it around that you do not notice the odor.

If you are that concerned for your future you should stay away from illegal substances.

You may want to look into hiring an attorney to represent you in court.

Agree.

OP might want to NOT speed with said illegal stuff in his car. That is just really dumb.

 

[CavemanLawyer]

I'm guessing the officer said he was a drug recognition expert, or DRE for short. That is someone certified to investigate the effects of drugs on the body.

The speeding and drug paraphernalia charges are class C fine only offenses. They are the least of your concerns but you may want an attorney for those anyway. The possession of marihuana charge however is going to be a Class B misdemeanor which you could theoretically go to jail for. While that is unlikely given you situation a conviction is permanent for life and can also restrict you from obtaining certain government education loans. Even if you do get deferred adjudication (this may or may not be what the officer meant by deferment) that is still something that will require you to come back and file a petition to have sealed later, and it will always still be visible on your criminal history to law enforcement. By deferment the officer might have meant some sort of pre-trial diversion program that would allow you to be on an informal probation and then have the charges never be formally filed. Pre-trial diversion programs vary by county to county, and may not even be an option in some counties.

I good resolution on your case would be if you could get them to reduce your marihuana charge down to a Class C offense, or to have it dismissed as part of a plea to the other charges. Note that depending on how this county is set up the two class C charges might be filed in a different court than your marihuana charge. There is no harm in going to court and seeing what they will offer you. Before you accept ANY plea bargain however you should at least consult an attorney and I'd strongly advise hiring one since a conviction is permanent in Texas.