Legal Question in Criminal Law in Florida

You can tell him, that yes he will definitely be arrested, even if he is not smoking. That doesn't mean he would be convicted of pot possession, necessarily, but it does mean that he would be in violation for getting arrested. He is then facing 15 years in prison. Ask him if hanging around with this friend while he is smoking pot is worth sitting in a Florida state prison until he is 33 years old?

Yes, he would be arrested. Even if he were not arrested on the marijuana charges, it is likely a violation of his probation to be consorting with individuals who are breaking the law. Therefore, it is likely a violation of his probation to even be in the same room as a friend smoking marijuana. If he were arrested, all that the State would have to do is prove he violated his probation (not prove the underlying felony offenses) by a preponderance of the evidence (which is a significantly lower burden than "beyond a reasonable doubt") to a Judge (not a jury.) Moreover, the rules of evidence are much laxer, for example hearsay is admissible in a probation hearing, but not at trial. If they prove his probation violation, which is always easy to do, he is facing the statutory maximum for the underlying offenses, not the penalty for simply possession of marijuana or whatever it is that got him violated. In this case, he could be sentenced to 15 years in state prison.

If you would like more information, or to discuss it further, please feel free to contact me. I would be happy to discuss this case with you free of charge.

Yes, he would likely be arrested. While he may not be in possession of the marijuana, a lot of police will arrest first, ask questions later. The marijuana may be close to him which, while insufficient to support a conviction of possession, will lead the officer to nonetheless effectuate an arrest.

Next, there is a good chance that the marijuana will show up on a drug test. Even though your son is not personally smoking the marijuana, he is likely still breathing in the smoke that is in the room and so he may have some amounts of THC in his system.

Additionally, there is a standard condition of probation that he is to not associate with any criminals or anyone committing a crime. If his probation officer found out that he was in a room with people smoking pot, even if he did not smoke pot, then the probation officer could still file an affidavit of Violation of Probation.

If a VOP is filed your son will be arrested and likely held in jail on no bond. He will stay in jail until he has his VOP hearing in which he can be sent to prison upon conviction.

Your son's "friends" probably don't care because a simple possession of cannabis is just a misdemeanor, but your son is facing substantial prison time if he gets a VOP.