VA Couple Arrested in PA on Drug Charges

Few details were available after Somerset County law enforcement officers arrested a Virginia couple and charged them with drug possession.

A 45-year-old man and 44-year-old woman, from Beaverdam, Virginia, allegedly gave inconsistent stories about why they were traveling through the area. They gave Somerset police consent to search their vehicle, Somerset County District Attorney Molly Metzgar said.

The ensuing search yielded approximately three pounds of suspected marijuana, a substance suspected to be cocaine and packaged THC candies. They now face felony charges of possession with intent to deliver.

Special Issues in Just Passin’ Through Cases

A significant number of Northern Virginia residents are legislators, legislative support staff, college students, and other temporary residents. Criminal cases have special issues in these cases.

The advent of video conference technology has minimized these issues. But a Zoom meeting with a lawyer is a poor substitute for a personal meeting with a Leesburg drug crime lawyer.

While we’re on this point, we should touch on the dangers of Zoom meetings. If someone else is in the room, prosecutors could argue the defendant didn’t have a reasonable expectation of privacy, and therefore the meeting wasn’t confidential. The same issue arises if lawyers meet clients in public places or even speak with them over the phone. So, when lawyers decline to make such contacts, they aren’t being difficult. They’re being careful.

We mentioned college students above. Technically, criminal cases don’t torpedo student aid eligibility, However, a criminal case could adversely affect eligibility. Additionally, criminal cases often trigger disciplinary matters. A Leesburg criminal defense lawyer can make a big difference in these matters.

Undocumented immigrants are the ultime just-passin’-through criminal defendants. A misdemeanor conviction could affect immigration status, unless the petty crime exception applies. A felony conviction almost always adversely affects status, especially if the offense is in the constantly-changing violent crime category.

This adverse effect could be an immediate deportation proceeding or a black mark that most likely inhibits a future status adjustment application.

Incidentally, a deferred disposition resolution is a conviction for immigration purposes, even though it’s not a conviction for most other purposes.

Verifying Illegal Substances

Once upon a time, verifying that illegal drugs were illegal drugs was a mere formality. Now, this identification is a common issue.

A substance always “field tests” positive as illegal drugs. An unscientific field test is basically a visual inspection. Recently, subsequent chemical tests conclusively proved that “cocaine” was gypsum (chalk dust) and “heroin” was laundry detergent. If a field test was blatantly unreliable, the arrest might be illegal.

Increasingly, drug dealers sell impure substances, like heroin mixed with Sudafed. In these cases, the drugs may be so impure that they don’t qualify as illegal substances.

Smoked marijuana joints often present a similar issue. Frequently, officers arrest people with mostly-smoked marijuana joints that don’t have enough marijuana to be illegal. These defendants may be guilty of something, like possession of drug paraphernalia. But they probably aren’t guilty of drug possession.

On a related note, marijuana is only legal in Virginia in very limited circumstances. Adults can legally possess and share up to one ounce of cannabis and cultivate up to four cannabis plants at their primary residences. On another related note, Virginia lawmakers have expressly outlawed the go-to “I smelled marijuana” police officer search and seizure pretext.

Connect With a Thorough Loudoun County Lawyer

There’s a big difference between an arrest and a conviction in criminal law. For a confidential consultation with an experienced criminal defense attorney in Leesburg, contact Simms Showers, LLP, Attorneys at Law. Virtual, home, and jail visits are available.

Source:

tribdem.com/news/crime/virginia-pair-face-drug-charges-from-somerset-gas-station-stop/article_500674ba-54fd-11ef-8312-cf834d509e32.html