Legal Question in Criminal Law in Michigan

Re: drug possesion

So long as the crime has a statute of limitations (some, such as murder don't), so long as the prosecutor charges you within that time frame, it's valid.

You can, however, have a defense if the evidence grows too stale for effective use in prosecution, but that's pretty unusual.

Re: drug possesion

The general statute of limitations for charging crimes is 6 years after the offense date ... but there are some exceptions to allow for longer timeframes.

In drug cases, the delay may be due to the prosecutor wanting lab results back that prove that the substance is a certain drug, or shows an amount/weight. The cops' "field test" of the substance provides probable cause evidence, but many prosecutors want lab results ... and the back logs at the State Police Crime Lab can be severa months.