The office of Attorney Marc A. Zeve handles drug offenses of all kinds from simple possession to manufacturing and distribution charges in the Ocean City, MD area. Drug offenses present interesting issues. The first question in any drug offense is how did the police come into contact with you? How did they gain access into your home? How did they stop and search your vehicle? How did they obtain the drugs? And finally, were the chain of custody and the drug analysis rules followed to the tight rubric set forth by the Maryland Rules?
The new case of Arizona vs. Gant, 556 U.S. ____ (2009), is specifically based on stops. A short discussion of that will follow.
In Ocean City District Court and in the Snow Hill District Court, both of Worcester County, first offense marijuana cases are treated as if they are first contacts with the law. Certain Judges view these cases of small amounts of marijuana differently than those in Wicomico County.
The object on a first offense is to obtain a Probation Before Judgment. A Probation Before Judgment allows you to avoid a finding of guilt and becomes an expungeable matter at a later date. They usually just involve a fine and having a lawyer is very important for these cases. However, it is always important to understand how and why the police came into contact with you and what evidence they have. Our firm routinely receives the police reports before we make any decisions. Many times people are arrested for drug offenses with drugs in the house or in their vehicle that are not within their wingspan, lunge, reach or grasp and the police commonly and improperly charge everyone in the home or in the vehicle. Paraphernalia charges are often linked with minor drug offenses, such as possession of marijuana or possession of cocaine or CDS material such as OxyContin, OxyCodone, Vicodin, Xanax, Valium and other types of opiates and pills. All of these drugs are viewed differently and separately by each and every Judge, and that is why it's important to know the Judge you're going to appear in front of. Even though we operate on a flat rate basis, continuances are part of the fee. We do not buzzsaw our clients.
Search and seizure of a person's vehicle or house is not the police officer's right. Most searches start with the police asking whether it is okay if they search your vehicle. The answer should be no! It is important to make the police go and get a warrant in order to do so. If you have consented to a search, that's okay. Most people do. This problem can be fixed.
In the resort area, many people are stopped for minor traffic violations such as not having a seat belt on. Once a ticket is written, you are free to leave. You do not need to give the officer permission to search your vehicle. The question often posed by the police officer is, do you have any weapons or narcotics or drugs in your vehicle? You are not required to answer this question, nor are the police permitted to do so unless a weapon or drugs are in plain view. My advice to my clients is, while it is nice to be cooperative with authorities, it is not necessary. But if you are reading this page, it may be too late. That's okay. The Judges seem to understand this and do not hold it against a person who is cooperative or non-cooperative with the police in finding contraband such as drugs, weapons or other illegal substances.
Contact Marc A. Zeve today at 410-208-4244 for all of your Ocean City, MD criminal law needs. Call 443-497-2072 evenings and weekends. We will respond!
