Legal Question in Criminal Law in Pennsylvania

My seventeen year old son was eating at Wendys and a cop came to his car and smelled marijuana, he told him and his friend of sixteen to get out of the car and searched the car and found a roach in the ashtray. They were then handcuffed roughly enough to leave welts on their wrists and detained for over an hour in the police car and read their miranda rights. My husband and I got a text message from a friend who saw my sons car surrounded by cop cars and we went to the scene and were told we could not speak to him and to get in our f'n car and back away. after another half hour to forty five minutes when other cops arrived he was finally released to us. They told us they had no intention on calling us and they were going to take him down to jail and strip search him and than process him and than call. He apparently is being charged with possession and also possession of drug paraphenalia because the roach was rolled in paper nothing else was found. He has never been in trouble before just being a stupid teenager. Has is rights been violated because I thought they werent allowed to talk to him or detain him because he is a minor. Please advise


Asked on 2/20/12, 7:26 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Ellis Klein Young, Klein & Associates

The police are allowed to speak with a minor but not permitted to interrogate him. If this was done, then a Motion to Suppress can be filed to have the statement thrown out of court. The case does not get thrown out, just the statement.

If this is a first offense, hopefully your son can get a first time program so this is not on his record. You should retain an experience local attorney to represent him.

If you would like a free consult, please call me at 215-639-5297.

Ellis B. Klein, Esquire

YOUNG, KLEIN and ASSOCIATES

137 N. 5th Street Allentown PA

www.ykacrim.com

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Answered on 2/20/12, 8:58 am


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