Facing Drug Charges
Criminal charges are nothing to sneeze at. They’re not like a speeding ticket where you can just pay a fine or taking a driving course and watch as the infraction disappears from your record. No, criminal charges are very stuff that can result in very serious jail time. That’s especially true when drug charges are in play. Let’s say you get pulled over and the officer says he wants to search your car. You say no (as is your constitutional right), but a police dog comes out and alerts to the presence of drugs. Then the officer finds a bottle of oxycodone in your backseat, and worse, the prescription is in someone else’s name. If you get arrested and hauled into the county jail for booking, you need to say one thing and one thing only: “I want a lawyer.” Continue to read more here and learn about steps you can take.
Drug Offense Attorneys
Finding an attorney with expertise defending people facing drug charges is absolutely crucial. You don’t need a drunk driving attorney; you need a drug offense attorney. Look for one in your county, or, if your county is rather small, look somewhere in your state. If you’re brought in on drug charges in Trenton, you need a New Jersey law firm with experience defending people like you. You don’t want this to ruin your life, and it can easily do that if you don’t treat your arrest like the life-altering event it is.
One common reason people give for not hiring an attorney? They say they don’t have enough money. That can absolutely be a factor; good legal representation isn’t cheap. But you have to find a way to make it work. Set up a payment plan if possible. Ask family members for help. As a last resort, consider using a credit card. If none of those things is an option, you do have the right to be appointed a public defender. Public defenders are generally skilled, but they have an incredibly high caseload. That means they likely won’t have as much time to devote to your case as a private attorney would.
Getting help
Your first focus should be on getting out of jail and hiring an attorney, and not necessarily in that order. You don’t want to show up to your first hearing without an attorney if you can avoid it. Your second step, however, is to take a step back and figure out what got you here. Do you have a drug problem? Many people arrested for drug offenses are facing a serious addiction issue, and the arrest is the one thing that snaps them out of their delusion and makes them realize what’s really going on. Prescription painkillers like oxycodone are just as much a problem as illegal street drugs. In fact, they can be more of a problem in some cases. Look up some cold, hard facts about oxycodone. You should know how long oxycodone stays in your system and the ways it affects your body. Thousands of people accidentally overdose on opioids like oxycodone every year, and the numbers seem to be getting worse. Don’t let yourself become a statistic.
