Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

Refileing

drug charges they could never produce labs on granular amount.went back and fourth to court over 6 months.case was dismissed.2 months later the cop that assrested me showes up at my house and informs my boyfriend thahe has found the evidence in a different bag in a differant room..ihave a 13 year pior strike which i served time for and paid all restition 1400 dollars in full and did a live in prog for a year and also compleated..and still they made me go to court and ple gulit to my pior strike..i was also told that if i get prop36 and messed up at all i would get 6 years at 85%The judge said in court he was dropping tyhe dime on the asserting agience bottom line he said he wants to know where the dope went.now almost 8 montyhs lATER he in being the cop that made the assrest has found it .My public Defender never filed a motion to surpress evidence and that left the door open for them to refile...IS THERE ANYTHING I CAN DO TO FIGHT THIS....THANKS


Asked on 2/10/06, 3:28 am

2 Answers from Attorneys
Edward Hoffman Law Offices of Edward A. Hoffman

Re: Refileing

Your question isn't written as clearly as it might have been, and as a result Mr. Stone and I read it differently. He believes you mean that the police found the evidence in your house 8 months later and seized it then, while I think you mean that they misplaced the evidence *after* seizing it and only found it 8 months later.

If that is what happened there is no apparent basis for a motion to suppress. Evidence is suppressed when it was obtained illegally, not when it was handled badly. Your lawyer can challenge the authenticity of the evidence; if it was misplaced for 8 months that could be a very strong argument. In other words, you can argue that the evidence isn't believable but you probably can't keep it out altogether.

If there was no basis for a motion to suppress, then your PD's decision not to file one was correct.

There is nothing improper about charges which were dismissed being re-filed later, provided that the statutory limitation period hasn't expired in the meantime. Since your case did not get to trial you were never in legal jeopardy, so putting you on trial now won't be double jeopardy.

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Answered on 2/10/06, 2:36 pm
Michael Stone Law Offices of Michael B. Stone Toll Free 1-855-USE-MIKE

Re: Refileing

DON'T PLEAD. Go to jury trial. Who the hell is going to believe that the cop found the dope from your house 8 months later. Write a letter to the head PD with a copy to the State Bar of California.

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Answered on 2/10/06, 3:37 am


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