5 Ways To Defend Against Drug Possession Charges

An arrest for drug possession does not necessarily mean a conviction or even guilt. The evidence against you and the defense you mount play a key role in fighting drug possession charges. Your defense starts with retaining the services of an experienced drug defense attorney at Eisenberg Law Offices. Our criminal defense team will examine your case and the evidence against you to determine which defense approaches have the best possible outcome in your situation.

5 Possible Defense Strategies

There are several ways to defend against drug possession charges. Some strategies focus on the evidence or facts of the case, others focus on the procedures used to collect that evidence. The following are five successful defense strategies that are often used in drug possession cases.

1. Illegal Search and Seizure. The 4^th Amendment to the Constitution protects citizens from unlawful searches and seizures. In practice, this means that law enforcement must obtain your permission or have a search warrant in order to search your home. They must also have probable cause for conducting the search of your vehicle, unless they have a warrant.

If a search is conducted which violates your 4^th Amendment rights, any evidence collected in that search becomes inadmissible and cannot be used against you.

2. The Drugs Don’t Belong to You. Sometimes when people get charged with possession, they had no idea drugs were anywhere near them. If you borrowed a friend’s car, for example, and get pulled over and the search turns up drugs in the car, but you didn’t know they were there, you have a defense. The “lack of possession” defense is similar. Lack of possession can happen when there are several people in the car or house where drugs are found but no way to determine with certainty to whom the drugs belong.
3. Crime Lab Analysis. There are substances that may look like drugs at first glance, but upon analysis in the crime lab, it is discovered that they are not drugs. If this is the case in your situation, the charges are likely to be dropped and the case dismissed.
4. The Drugs are Missing. Believe it or not, evidence gets lost. Evidence is handled and transported many times in a case. From the scene to the police car and then into the department and evidence storage, then the evidence may go to the crime lab for analysis, then back to storage, and finally to the courtroom. There is plenty of opportunity for evidence to be misplaced or mislabeled and lost. Without evidence, the prosecution does not have a case and the drug possession charges may be dropped.
5. Abuse of Power. Abuse of power by law enforcement can and does occur in drug cases. One example of this is unlawful search and seizure; another is the planting of evidence. Entrapment, where an officer or a third party prompts you to commit a crime that you would not have otherwise committed, is a third example of abuse of power. Proving that abuse of power occurred can have a dramatic impact on your case and can result in the case being dismissed.

Explore Your Drug Possession Defense Options With Eisenberg Law

If you are facing drug possession charges in Wisconsin, don’t do it alone. Schedule a free consultation with a drug defense attorney at Eisenberg Law Offices. We represent clients throughout the State of Wisconsin to help them obtain the best possible outcome for their situation.

Call 608-256-8356 or email Info@eisenberglaw.org to schedule your free consultation.