Legal Question in Criminal Law in Maryland

can all people be charged with drug posession if one person claims it?

I was in a car that got pulled over for speeding. The cop brough a drug dog and said the dog signed for drugs in the car. The officer searched and found a bag of pot that one person claimed was all his. All of us were charged with posession even though one person claimed it. They then arrested us and taken us into custody without any miranda rights read. They then confiscated all our cash on us. Is all this right? One person claimed the pot so how could all of us get charged?


Asked on 6/18/06, 9:14 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys
Jay Hochberg

Re: can all people be charged with drug posession if one person claims it?

The police commonly act like this. They arrest everyone under the theory of criminal conspiracy - essentially, if you know about someone else's drugs and you do anything in furtherance of that person possessing drugs, you are guilty. You should immediately begin looking for a criminal defense attorney to get you out of this. As for the money the police took from you, you can file a motion for return of property. I would recommend you have an attorney do this as well, unless the money in question is under five hundred dollars, in which case it doesn't make sense to pay someone.

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Answered on 6/19/06, 8:49 am
Marc V. Taiani AAAL - Allegheny Attorneys At Law

Re: can all people be charged with drug posession if one person claims it?

You should be receiving your summons for your preliminary hearing shortly, you should retain legal counsel before this hearing. Failure to do so will make your current situation worse. If you have any questions in regards to this matter or are in need of legal counsel contact my office at 412.731.0865.

Sincerely,

Marc V. Taiani, Esquire

AAAL - Allegheny Attorneys At Law, PC

412.731.0865

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Answered on 6/19/06, 12:52 pm


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