[wes916]

I was pulled over due to the officer saying my license plate light was out, and it turned out it was working fine. I do have my 215 card and did have roughly 6 pounds of medical marijuana. They charged me with simple possession, however I was on federal property.. (national forest). They did not arrest me and seized my marijuana and let me go citing me for federal court. Considering that half of the marijuana was unprocessed and the other half was not dry, and the reason for pulling over to begin with was b.s. what is going to happen in my situation? What type of sentence am I looking at and is there any way of getting it dismissed due to lack of probable cause? Thanks for any info..

[JudyKayTee]

Without an Attorney you have some serious problems.

What were you thinking carrying onto Federal property?

Let your Attorney argue unlawful stop and anything else.

What State (although it doesn't matter much)?

[wes916]

Was just traveling back home. I'm in California

[JudyKayTee]

Read the part that you didn't like about retaining an Attorney. Then try reading the rules of AMHD - your "disagree" was out of line.

Here's the specific info:

"Federal marijuana laws are very serious, and punishment for people found guilty is frequently very steep. Federal law still considers marijuana a dangerous illegal drug with no acceptable medicinal value. In several federal cases, judges have ruled that medical marijuana cannot be used as a defense, though defense attorneys should attempt to raise the issue whenever possible during trial. Federal law applies throughout California and the United States, not just on federal property. The key to federal property is that they are more likely than non-federal property to have federal officials monitoring it who will bust medical marijuana patients. Most likely, even if a patient is arrested and charged with a minor possession offense, he will be referred to the state authorities where he can assert a medical marijuana defense.

There are two types of federal sentencing laws: sentencing guidelines, enacted by the United States Sentencing Commission, and mandatory sentencing laws, enacted by Congress. The Sentencing Commission was created in 1987 to combat sentencing disparities across jurisdictions. The current mandatory minimum sentences were enacted in a 1986 drug bill.

Federal sentencing guidelines take into account not only the amount of marijuana but also past convictions. Not all marijuana convictions require jail time under federal sentencing guidelines, but all are eligible for imprisonment. If convicted and sentenced to jail, a minimum of 85% of that sentence must be served. The higher the marijuana amount, the more likely one is to be sentenced to jail time, as opposed to probation or alternative sentencing. Low-level offenses, even with multiple prior convictions, may end up with probation for the entire sentence of one to twelve months, and no jail time required. Possession of over 1 kg of marijuana with no prior convictions carries a sentence of six to twelve months with a possibility of probation and alternative sentencing. Over 2.5 kg with no criminal record carries a sentence of at least six months in jail; with multiple prior convictions, a sentence might be up to two years to three years in jail with no chance for probation."

ASA : Federal Marijuana Law

Bring a toothbrush to your hearing. Oh, by the way, I'm a former Fed and this is NOT simply possession.

[wes916]

Bring a toothbrush? That kind of rubbed me the wrong way.. thanks for the info and go screw yourself pig...

[JudyKayTee]

Hard to believe an upstanding, calm guy like you is going to go to Federal prison.

Your whole thread rubbed me the wrong way so we're even.

As far as the pig part - I have learned not to argue with pigs. You both get dirty... and they enjoy it. I trust that's the case with you.

[Fr_Chuck]

Sorry but this is far from simple possession.
So how much are you allowed to have in possession under your card ?

And you will never prove the "BS STOP" since they will just say you got it fixed, there is no real way to get out of the stop. And if not the light, it could have been a 100 other things used to stop suspect cars. You were either turned in by someone or profiled by someone.

But yes, it could be a long jail sentence. And yes you serious do need a very good attorney

[JudyKayTee]

Another one of these "I was minding my own business and then the big bad Police ..."

Funny - I drive through Federal land all the time and nobody fakes a broken tail light in order to stop me.

[ITstudent2006]

I'm sorry for restating the obvious but "simple" possession? That it too funny, I don't know when 6lbs became simple, damn things have changed and I'm only 23 :).

Rick


P.S. JudyKayTee- you were really a prior Fed? Intrigueing!!

[excon]

I was pulled over due to the officer saying my license plate light was out, and it turned out it was working fine. I do have my 215 card and did have roughly 6 pounds of medical marijuana.

Hello w:

A LOT of things happened in between the time the cop walked up to your car and the time he found the pot. THOSE things can make the difference between a legal and an ILLEGAL search. Just off the top, the cop is NOT allowed to search your car, EVEN if your license plate was out... What kind of evidence could he find INSIDE your car that would bolster THAT charge?? None would be the answer to that question...

So, assuming you DIDN'T give the cop permission to search, the search was illegal... You DIDN'T give him permission to search, did you?? Nah, you didn't.

excon