Earlier this month, four people were arrested and charged with various offenses relating to the alleged smuggling of 85 pounds of marijuana. According to one local Pennsylvania news source, the four had a complex plan to transport the marijuana from Santa Rosa back to western Pennsylvania, where it would be broken down for retail sale.

Evidently, one of the four rented a car in western Pennsylvania and drove it to Santa Rosa, where it was packed up with 85 pounds of marijuana. From there, the driver picked up another friend and started their trek back across the country, heading for western Pennsylvania. However, in Kansas the couple were caught by police.

It isn’t exactly clear from the article, but it appears that the two who were caught gave statements to the police inculpating two others who remained back in western Pennsylvania, one of whom is alleged to be the man behind the plan. In exchange for her role in picking up the marijuana and driving it back, the woman driving the car at the time was to receive $2,000.

Each of the four defendants faces various drug-related charges, including conspiracy, possession with the intent to deliver, and criminal use of a communications facility. All are felony charges in Pennsylvania.

Santa Rosa Drug Crimes

Although the marijuana in the above case came from the Santa Rosa area, the people allegedly involved were caught in Kansas on their way to Pennsylvania and will be charged under the state laws of Pennsylvania. However, since they were traveling with such a large amount of marijuana, even if they had been caught here in California, where the marijuana laws are more lax, they still would have been in violation of the law.

Challenging Drug Seizures in California Courts

Even when a case seems cut and dry, that isn’t necessarily the case. There are often multiple ways that a dedicated criminal defense attorney can protect the interests of her client, including:

• Filing a motion to suppress physical evidence of a drug crime, based on an illegal search under the Fourth Amendment of the United States Constitution;
• Filing a motion to suppress a verbal statement given by the client or a co-defendant, based on an illegal seizure of that person; and
• Severing a client’s case from a co-defendant’s case when the client would be prejudiced if the cases were tried together.

Have You Been Charged with a California Drug Offense?

If you have recently been charged with any type of California drug offense, there are numerous ways that you can challenge the charges against you, ranging from motions to suppress to questioning the credibility of the witnesses against you. To learn more about how to defend against drug cases in California, contact attorney Amy Chapman. She has years of experience successfully defending her clients against all types of drug crimes. To set up a free consultation to discuss your case with Amy Chapman, call (707) 636-3207 today.

Photo courtesy of https://wendymccormick.com/

Earlier last year in December, a California appellate court reversed a lower court’s decision holding that concentrated cannabis was not considered “marijuana” under the Compassionate Use Act of 1996. According to one local news source out of Sacramento, the appellate court determined that “marijuana” under the Act included all parts of the cannabis plant, including oils derived thereof.

The facts that gave rise to the case are as follows: A man’s probation was revoked after he was found to be in possession of concentrated cannabis in the form of “honey oil” and “dabs.” While the probation officer revoked the man’s probation, he did so under a very general term, concluding that the man “failed to obey all laws.” The man attempted to make a defense based on the Compassionate Use Act, but the judge prevented him from doing so, holding that concentrated cannabis was not covered under the Act.

The judge revoked the man’s sentence of probation and ordered him to start a new sentence of probation, effectively extending the amount of time he was to be supervised by two years. The man appealed, and the judge suspended his sentence until the conclusion of the appeal.

The Case on Appeal

The appellate court disagreed with the lower court and reversed its decision. The court noted that the man was legally prescribed to possess and use marijuana for migraine headaches and acid reflux. The court then narrowed the issue down to whether the concentrated cannabis the man possessed was covered under the Compassionate Use Act.

The court determined that it was, noting that the Act does not explicitly define what is to be included in the term “marijuana.” Therefore, the court had to look elsewhere for a definition under California law, and it found one defining marijuana as “all parts of the plant Cannabis sativa L.,whether growing or not; the seeds thereof; the resin extracted from any part of the plant; and every compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of the plant, its seeds or resin.”

The appellate court then reversed the decision of the lower court and ordered that the case be heard again under its interpretation of the statute. The likely result is that the man will not be found to have been in violation of his probation sentence.

Have You Been Charged with a Marijuana Offense?

If you have recently been charged with a marijuana offense in Sonoma County, you should seek the counsel of a dedicated marijuana defense attorney to help you fight the charges. Attorney Amy Chapman has years of experience litigating, researching, and successfully defending against all different kinds of marijuana cases, ranging from mere possession to large-scale distribution. To speak with her about your case, call 707-636-3207 to set up a free initial consultation to discuss your case and what you can do to defend against the charges you are facing.