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Marijuana Possession

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Casperi69

Junior Member
I live in michigan. My friend and I were pulled over for speeding, he was driving. The officer found one bag of weed(3 grams) which was his, and a container of weed(1 gram) which was mine. We both ended up with possession charges, paid $100 each for bond, and went on our way. Neither of us have any prior offenses.

Should we get an appointed attorney, or dress nice, act humble, and pray for good fortune?

Would getting an attorney raise court costs and by how much?

What could we expect?

Does the ability to pay fines on the court date help define judgement?

How long will this stay on our record, and should we ask to be put in a drug program that lets the charge drop upon completion, what are such programs?

We are just looking for the best path to pursue and need some advice.

Thanks!
Sincerely, Concerned
 


outonbail

Senior Member
If you know what court/division and what Judge you will be facing on the date your scheduled appear, It might be in your best interest to take the opportunity to attend a general criminal/traffic court session or two in the same courtroom (prior to the date of your case) and observe the proceedings. Chances are, your not the only person who couldn't successfully conceal a gram of weed from the keen sense of sight / smell that the fine members of Michigan's law enforcement agencies are blessed with. Hence, you may see, first hand, someone in a very similar situation as yourself and get an idea as to how kindly, or (gulp) how unkindly the Judge takes to the weed smoking members of his community. If he believes in giving a first time offender a second chance before he tarnishes their record, he may give them a good tongue lashing, small fine, slap their PeePees and send them on their way hoping the big warning will keep them in line. If this were the case, handing another chunk of change over for the benefit of professional representation, may not be necessary. That's assuming of course, that you are accepting responsibility and pleading guilty in exchange for a first time slap to your PeePee. You also need to consider if a guilty plea can result in additional negative repricussions, like losing eligibility status for a job or scholorship etc. or,,, you may face a Judge who believes that a stiff penalty is the best way for you to learn your lesson and serve as an example of where drugs will get you, in which case, it's probably best to have the benifit of a professional law education going to bat for you. So do a little homework and you'll arrive at your own best answers to your questions. Then, if you find it in your best interest to seek council, keep your eyes open, because you stand a good chance of spotting some worthy legal representation in the same court room your observing and gaining experience in. However, my personal experience has convinced me that worthy legal representation, is not an accurate description of what you'll receive from the public defenders office. My Motto: if you can get through your case just fine with a public defender, you can get through it just fine without one.
But you'll probably get a good idea of what's best for you if you are able to sit in the court ahead of time and observe what fines and penalties the Judge hands down, what diversion programs may be available and the cost. Even if you were to completesome program. I'd expect the charge to remain on your record until after your off probation, most likely two to three years of informal probation. But, I can't see a gram of weed haunting you for too darn long. I'd be more concerned with how you could have allowed yourself to get caught with it? Oh well, it was probably better copping to the weed than explaining that body in the trunk huh?
So check and see if court is in session prior to your appearence, if nothing else, you'll at least know how to get to the court house, where to park and how much time you have to give yourself so you don't arrive late on the big day. Covering these small details ahead of time can make that whole first PeePee slapping experience seem less painful. Not to mention, your friend won't have to speed so you get there on time, which will avoid his being pulled over, which may relieve you of another gram of weed in container, maybe three in bag, which regardless of size, the police always want to confiscate, along with another $100.00 ea...... your getting the picture here right?

So Good Luck with your case and try to remember, if your planning on pleading not guilty to a possession of Marijuana charge, don't wear a T shirt with a big hemp leaf design, cover up the ZigZag tatoo, use the Visine before you enter the court room and avoid phrases like, "It's Cool", "I'm Chillin", or "What a bummer, man" and address the man/woman who's wearing the long black robe as "Your Honor", not Dude............
 

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