[Sho Sho Shaggy]

Originally Posted by nekropsie

So I was walking down the street to pick up my daily pack of smokes as usual. So as me and a buddy of mine are returning from the store, on foot mind you. A fucking cop pulls up and looks at us, well as he drove off he suddenly pulled over and waited for us to get to his car. Well as we did we were greeted by this facist fuck and his little rookie partner. So as 30 fucking Mins of my life were fucking wasted I was sent on my way with a nice little ticket from the Burbank police dept. Anyway I told the cop I was a patient showed him my paperwork and the stupid fuxk still took my meds. This is my first time dealing with this and any help or advice would be greatly appriciated.

keep your head up. They cant keep a good man down! :-)

[cllindner]

Originally Posted by nekropsie

So I was walking down the street to pick up my daily pack of smokes as usual. So as me and a buddy of mine are returning from the store, on foot mind you. A fucking cop pulls up and looks at us, well as he drove off he suddenly pulled over and waited for us to get to his car. Well as we did we were greeted by this facist fuck and his little rookie partner. So as 30 fucking Mins of my life were fucking wasted I was sent on my way with a nice little ticket from the Burbank police dept. Anyway I told the cop I was a patient showed him my paperwork and the stupid fuxk still took my meds. This is my first time dealing with this and any help or advice would be greatly appriciated.

Make sure you show up to court on the date set on your citation. Bring 3 photocopies of your Physician's Recommendation. Go to the California Medical Board website for finding a physician's status, put in the name of the doctor who gave you your Recommendation. Assuming he/she is in "good standing", print out 3 copies of his license status (contains his license #). You then bring the Physician's Recommendation and Physician license status to court, give one copy of each to the proseuctor, and give one copy to the judge (through the bailiff) when your case is called. Then note and follow the advice below if the judge is unwilling to immediately dismiss your case.

Section 11357(b) Prohibits possession of less than 1 ounce of marijuana. If you are charged under section 11357(b), you are entitled to a trial by jury, an attorney, and if you are indigent, to the services of a public defender. The maximum penalty is a fine of $100, plus 170% of the fine as a "penalty assessment", or roughly a total of $270. Normally, for any offense that does not have the potential of jail time (e.g., tickets), you are not entitled to either a jury trial or a free lawyer. Former California Assembly Speaker Willie Brown specifically created the less-than-an-ounce statute as a misdemeanor (as opposed to infractions, i.e., tickets) so that it would be difficult to convict someone for simple possession. Reason: the average trial in a criminal courtroom costs the taxpayers roughly $10,000 per day. Assuming your marijuana trial takes two days, the State will spend $20,000 to convict you of a crime for which the maximum penalty is $270. (Do the math…). Eventually, the prosecution will dismiss the case or offer you an infraction (my personal favorite being "parking on the grass") to avoid a jury trial. You cannot be placed on probation for possessing less than an ounce of marijuana even after a jury trial. Do not plead guilty or no contest. Ask for a public defender. If the judge tells you that you are not entitled, tell him that Sec. 11357(b) is a MISDEMEANOR. Do not accept any plea bargain unless it is to an infraction, and then do not accept a "415" (disturbing the peace) infraction, because that looks worse than the marijuana.

Ultimately, your M.D. letter should work. Email me if you have any questions.

Chuck Lindner
Attorney at Law
Santa Monica
cllindner@yahoo.com

[StickeyFontaine]

I don't understand the reason for the officers searching you, did something happen, what was the reason for them stopping you in the first place ? The police do not have the right to just stop someone and search them. There have been people who have been illegally searched and found dead bodies on the trunk of a car. But when it went to court, the whole case was thrown out because they found the bodies illegally.
This should not be an issue at all for you. You will need to see the judge once, let him know exactly what happened and make sure your words are very direct and do a minimum. Present him with your original doctor referral and that should be the end of that, you should even be able to get your meds back!