Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Re: marijuana dealing

A sad reality of modern life is that anybody can be criminally charged with anything, and unless you have the money to hire a good lawyer you'll find yourself under extreme pressure to plead guilty to something.

Probably if the police were to go after a marijuana dealer with housemates, at best they would threaten the housemates with arrest if they did not agree to testify or otherwise help them. Of course, you are a smart person and you know better than to say one word to the police other than "Can I call my lawyer?"; you would never consent to a search; and you would never plead guilty to something you didn't do, no matter what. Go to YouTube and look up "Don't Talk TO Cops."

More to the point, if your housemate's behavior aggrieves you, you need to find alternative housing arrangements before the inevitable happens. All that has to happen is for one of your housemate's customers to get busted and scared into becoming state's evidence. Remember than anybody who comes into your house to make a buy could be an undercover officer or informant wearing a wire, and that your landline and cell phones could well be bugged and your mail xeroxed. Everybody who makes or receives phone calls from your number could find themselves under suspicion.

The amount of paranoia you need depends on your locality (92101=very high); the quantity of weed being moved (baggies v. boxcars); whether there are other drugs, large amounts of money, or weapons involved; and whether you have kids at home (exit the scene before the DCS shows up).

Your own use and possession of marijuana, if any, is legal only if you have a medical condition for which marijuana provides relief, and you have a pre-existing oral or written recommmendation from a physician.

Re: marijuana dealing

Duh. Ever heard of the term 'co-conspirators'?

Re: marijuana dealing

Some questions I have would be:

1) Where was the marijuana located in the house?

2) Did you have dominion or control over the areas being used for housing the marijuana? (Was it only in his bedroom? Or was it out in the open? etc.)

I would definately consult an attorney as soon as you hear about any charges, if any, made against you or any of your housemates.

If you would like to discuss the case more feel free to contact me. Best of luck.

Re: marijuana dealing

Unfortunately, pretty much anyone associated with a marijuana dealer can be arrested on suspicion of conspiring with him/her or aiding and abetting. This includes housemates. Most of the time the mere fact of living together in the same house will not result in a conviction but it is up to the wrongly accused housemate to defend himself or herself. If that is your situation, get yourself a good lawyer.

Feel free to contact my office for a non-binding consultation.

Jacek W. Lentz, Esq.

310.273.1361

www.lentzlawfirm.com