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if i am charged with the wrong drug, can i beat the case?

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nativeamerican

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
This occured in Texas, in a very small town.

I was pulled over for not having my headlights on (at 7oclock)(with the sun still shining and my sunglasses still on).....
the officer (a K9 unit officer that was patrolling without his dog in the car) asked for my id, i gave him the id.
first....he just asked what i would say if asked if he could search my vehicle....
i said that there was no reason for him to search the vehicle, and explained i would not consent to a search.... he then claimed that since he was a drug dog carrier, he could run the dog by the car and if the dog ''hit'' or ''alerted'' to my vehicle, he would then perform a search.... i expressed that i felt this was wrong and under no circumstances could he search my vehicle ( i felt very much like i was being profiled and that my rights were being violated)....
the officer called for backup, then left the scene to retrieve his drug dog. the dog supposedely alerted to my vehicle. the police then started seearching the vehicle all together (3 of them at this point).... after finding a cigarrette butt from a bugler (cowboy, roll your own cig) they cuffed me and put me in the back of the car, explaining they had found marijuana. (after i begged them to make sure it was marijuana and not just a cigarrette butt they realized it was just tobacco).
the search continues....
they found a piece of notebook paper that contained a powdered substance that they claimed tested positive for LSD. it was not LSD.

i bailed out on a $10,000 bond, under the charge of possession of a controlled substance , penalty group 1a , less than a gram...which is specifically LSD. the substance as i stated above, was not LSD.

after thorough tests are done on the substance, and it is shown to not be LSD, can i beat this case??? i havent been indicted yet, just arrested and bailed out.

the police told me the powder tested positive for LSD, and i am POSITIVE it is not.
 


CavemanLawyer

Senior Member
If the substance is an illegal substance then it doesn't matter what the police suspect it is on the scene. Officers use a field test device which is not considered scientifically reliable (enough for presentation in court) and which is not specific to a particular controlled substance. The field test tests for a series of drugs and it tests presumptively. So either LSD, meth, or cocaine, or even certain soaps might all return a positive result and the officers charge based on what it appears to be. After the substance is tested in a lab the DA's office will amend their charge accordingly, or dismiss if it tests negative for a controlled substance. Depending on the county, they may actually wait until they get the lab results before even presenting the case to grand jury.

As for the rest of your account of what happened, there are certainly a number of things that could be attacked on a motion to suppress but your attorney would need to see the offense report first. An officer cannot just drag their K9 out to sniff a car, they have to have reasonable suspicion that they will find something, or the search has to be in furtherance of something else that they are already investigating.
 

nativeamerican

Junior Member
the officer claimed that whether he had probable casuse or not, he could bring the dog into the picture. he later claimed after detaining me that he smelled marijuana.
 

asiny

Senior Member
the officer claimed that whether he had probable casuse or not, he could bring the dog into the picture. he later claimed after detaining me that he smelled marijuana.
Yes. An officer does not have to have probable cause to have a dog sniff around the outside of the car.
The probable cause for the full search became once the dog alerted to 'a drug'.

And, as has been answered, if it was not LSD- but an illegal drug- once the drug was confirmed through testing.. it does not matter. An illegal drug, is an illegal drug, is an illegal drug- regardless of whether the officer assumed it was LSD on the scene... he is not a testing facility.
 

OHRoadwarrior

Senior Member
So you are saying it is illegal for a police officer to let his dog walk on state/county/city property, just because it happens to be near a car!!! I think you need to rethink that. The dog is specially trained to hit on the smell of certain drugs. It hit. TaDa probable cause to search. TaDa a substance that tests positive as a drug. Imagine that a dog trained to smell drugs, smelled them. Get a lawyer and clean up your act OP. I think you are in a heap of trouble boy!!! Don't Mess With Texas.
 

HighwayMan

Super Secret Senior Member
Yes. An officer does not have to have probable cause to have a dog sniff around the outside of the car.
The probable cause for the full search became once the dog alerted to 'a drug'.
One issue is the length of the detention. If the dog is right there that's one thing - the stop is not prolonged any longer than it would have been for you to get the ticket for the headlights.

Holding you for no reason while the dog is brought in from somewhere is certainly something for your attorney to question.
 

asiny

Senior Member
One issue is the length of the detention. If the dog is right there that's one thing - the stop is not prolonged any longer than it would have been for you to get the ticket for the headlights.

Holding you for no reason while the dog is brought in from somewhere is certainly something for your attorney to question.
Excellent thought. Perhaps the OP can post the timeframe between the backup being called and the return of the dog search officer.
 

nativeamerican

Junior Member
So you are saying it is illegal for a police officer to let his dog walk on state/county/city property, just because it happens to be near a car!!! I think you need to rethink that. ''

no. i am not saying its illegal. i am posting this because im nervous of the outcome, just trying to state all i can.
 

nativeamerican

Junior Member
So you are saying it is illegal for a police officer to let his dog walk on state/county/city property, just because it happens to be near a car!!! I think you need to rethink that. The dog is specially trained to hit on the smell of certain drugs. It hit. TaDa probable cause to search. TaDa a substance that tests positive as a drug. Imagine that a dog trained to smell drugs, smelled them. Get a lawyer and clean up your act OP. I think you are in a heap of trouble boy!!! Don't Mess With Texas.
and what drug did they find?????????????????/
 
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