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posession of marijuana

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virgi40

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? michigan
18 year old daughter got caught with 3 other friends, in her friends car smoking a joint, they had one other joint in car. They were all charged with misdemeanor, have to go back for pretrial hearing. They said she could get a court appointed atty as we can't afford to hire one. What will her punishment be? Would an atty that you pay for do a better job at getting this off her record?
 


seniorjudge

Senior Member
Q: What will her punishment be?

A: What is the statute number she is charged under? We can only tell you the range of punishment; we don't know what will happen.


Q: Would an atty that you pay for do a better job at getting this off her record?

A: We don't know what will happen.
 

virgi40

Junior Member
I don't know the statute, but I believe she did not have pot on her person, nor was she holding or smoking when they were pulled over, so how can they charge her? They can't prove she was smoking.
 

seniorjudge

Senior Member
I don't know the statute, but I believe she did not have pot on her person, nor was she holding or smoking when they were pulled over, so how can they charge her? They can't prove she was smoking.
She was (I am willing to bet) charged with possession and NOT smoking or ownership.

The statute is on the charging papers.

They're either on the kitchen table or under the ash tray next to the computer.

Post back when you find the statute number.

Thanks.
 

quincy

Senior Member
Marijuana use, any amount, can lead to 90 days in jail and up to a $100 fine. Possession of marijuana can lead to 1 year in jail and up to a $2000 fine. First offenders can opt for probation rather than a trial, and after successful completion of probation, the charge is dismissed and the criminal record does not reflect any marijuana charge.
 

oops!

Junior Member
I live in North Carolina so I'm not too sure if this can happen in your state, but I have seen similar cases to this. Even if your daughter didn't smoke, she will be charged because she was there and knew what was going on. Again this is what we do up here, if this is her first offense you should look into what is called a 90-96. She will have to plead guilty to recieve this but the charge will show up on her record as a dismissed charge in exchange for a fee and community service. If she is under 18 then I believe that the charge will be removed from her record when she turns 18. Every time I have seen this done it has been without a lawyer, but one never hurts. Charges like this come down to how nice the judge is. Tell the judge it was kids being dumb and experimenting and include your daughters education and college plans. There is a possibility that the judge will dismiss it right there, leaving you to just pay the court fees. Best of luck.
 
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quincy

Senior Member
Virgi40 -

What I had quoted above was Michigan's law for marijuana use and possession. Lapeer's ordinance, covered under Chapter 19, section 29, has penalties of up to 90 days in jail and/or fines up to $500 for possession of marijuana.

Having an attorney can be wise whenever one faces the possibility of jail time. Either way, your daughter will probably, if this is her first offense, be offered a diversion program, which will come with community service, a fine, possible drug education classes or treatment and, if she completes all of the requirements satisfactorially, the charge will be dismissed and there will be no public record that would need to be reported on any college or job application forms.

When appearing in court, she should dress nicely (a suit if possible); she should be polite and contrite; she should not argue with the judge; she should not chew gum.



(I can't PM seniorjudge, either :()
 

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