Florida residents may be interested to learn about a case where three people were taken into custody during a pool party that took place at College Club Townhomes in Tallahassee. The officers belonged to a group called the Community Oriented Policing and Problem Solving Squad that was there to ensure public safety during the event. During the party, officers noticed that three men were wearing suspicious clothing. A K-9 sniffed the outside of the Ford Explorer that they drove to the event.
The dog alerted officers to the odor of narcotics coming from the vehicle. A search of the vehicle found a variety of firearms, including an AK-47 and an AR-15 in addition to drugs, ski masks and gloves. Officers took the men into custody and booked them into Leon County Jail. They all face charges of possessing less than 20 grams of cannabis as well as possession of drug paraphernalia.
Individuals who are charged with drug crimes may benefit from talking with an attorney as soon as they are charged. The sooner a person talks with an attorney, the less likely it may be that he or she says or does anything incriminating. Legal counsel may be able to advise an individual that there is no obligation to talk with police or other authority figures. An attorney may also be able to create a defense against the charge.
For instance, an attorney may argue that a defendant was never read his or her rights. It may also be possible to argue that evidence was obtained illegally and should be suppressed at trial. Witness testimony may also be suppressed or disregarded if it seems that a witness was coerced into talking or refuses to cooperate at all. This may provide leverage for a plea deal or enable an attorney to move to have the case dismissed completely.
