What are some Potential Defenses in a Drug Possession Case?
If you have been arrested or charged for drug possession in Austin, Texas, there are ways in which a defense attorney can help limit your consequences or even get your case dismissed entirely. Some very important tools that an experienced drug possession defense lawyer will use are called “legal defenses.” The following is a brief guide to some of the legal defenses that may apply in drug possession cases.
The drugs were not yours. At times, drug possession charges may arise based on constructive possession, which means you did not actively possess the drugs on your person, but instead are believed to have access to control or possess the drugs. Such cases often involve drugs that are found under the seat of a car, in an apartment, in a locker, or other location to which you had access. Many times, those drugs belonged to someone else who was in your car, home, or other location, and you had no knowledge that the drugs were even there. An experienced defense lawyer will cast doubt on the prosecutor’s accusation that the drugs were actually yours.
There was a 4th Amendment violation. The 4th Amendment protects you from unreasonable search or seizure, which means police cannot search your person, home, or car whenever they feel like it. Instead, the police must have a search warrant, or must be able to assert that exceptional circumstances allowed them to perform a search. If an attorney discovers a 4th Amendment violation occurred, he will try to keep the drug evidence out of court, which is usually the main evidence against you.
The prosecutor cannot prove the “drugs” were actually a controlled substance. In order to convict you of drug possession, the prosecutor must prove that: 1) there were actually drugs, and 2) the drugs were a controlled substance. Sometimes a prosecutor may somehow lose track of the seized drugs and cannot produce them at court. Other times, the forensic lab cannot produce results that show the so-called drugs are a controlled substance. For example, a white powder may look like cocaine, but may be baking soda or talcum powder.
Contact an Austin drug possession defense attorney for help today
Identifying the defenses that are applicable to your case is complicated and based on numerous factors. An experienced drug possession defense lawyer will listen to all the details of your case, conduct a thorough investigation, and will build an aggressive defense and stand up for your rights by using every legal defense possible. Attorney Kevin Bennett fully evaluates each case in order to work for the best outcome possible for every client, so call the Law Office of Kevin Bennett at (512) 476-4626 today to schedule a free consultation.
