San Francisco Drug Crime Defense: What You Need to Know

San Francisco Drug Crime Defense: What You Need to Know

Getting charged with a drug crime in San Francisco can be scary. The penalties can be severe, and a conviction can haunt you for life. But with an experienced defense attorney on your side, you have a fighting chance. This article will walk you through everything you need to know about defending against drug charges in San Francisco.

Common Drug Charges in San Francisco

San Francisco, like everywhere else in California, criminalizes a wide range of drug-related activities. Here are some of the most common drug charges:

• Drug possession: It is illegal to possess controlled substances like heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, and prescription drugs without a valid prescription. Possession charges range from misdemeanors to felonies depending on the type and amount of drug.
• Drug sales/distribution: Selling or distributing illegal drugs is a felony. Charges become more severe if you sell drugs to a minor or near a school or park.
• Drug manufacturing: Making illegal drugs like meth or concentrated cannabis is a felony. Charges increase if hazardous chemicals and lab equipment are involved.
• Drug transportation: Transporting illegal drugs into or within California – also known as drug trafficking – brings hefty felony charges.
• Drug paraphernalia: It is illegal to possess items used for taking or making drugs like pipes, bongs, scales, syringes, etc. This is a misdemeanor.

The penalties for drug crimes vary but commonly include fines, probation, and incarceration. Felony convictions can also mean losing civil rights like voting, serving on a jury, and owning a gun.

Finding the Right Drug Crime Lawyer

Not all defense attorneys have the skills and experience to win drug cases. When facing drug charges, it’s crucial to have an attorney who specializes in drug crime defense specifically. Here’s how to find the best one:

• Search online for “drug crime defense attorney San Francisco”. Look for lawyers with websites emphasizing drug charge defense.
• Check lawyer directories and ratings sites like Avvo. Focus on criminal defense lawyers with high client ratings and many drug crime case reviews.
• Ask friends and family if they know any standout drug crime lawyers. Personal referrals can help find great attorneys.
• Contact the San Francisco Public Defender’s office. The dedicated public defenders there have deep expertise in defending drug charges.
• Look for former prosecutors. Ex-prosecutors understand how the prosecution builds drug cases and can predict their strategies.
• Find a lawyer experienced with drug diversion programs. Diversion is often the best way to avoid conviction and jail time.
• Consider boutique law firms that concentrate specifically on drug cases and have support teams of investigators, paralegals, and expert witnesses.
• Schedule consultations and gauge which lawyers you feel most confident in. Make sure they have successfully defended cases similar to yours.

The stakes are high, so take time to make the smartest choice possible. Vet each attorney thoroughly.

Common Defense Strategies

Skilled drug crime lawyers use time-tested strategies to get charges reduced or dismissed. Here are some go-to defenses they may deploy:

• File motions to suppress evidence from illegal searches, faulty drug tests, improper interrogations, and other constitutional violations.
• Attack sloppy police work like mishandling evidence and making biased assumptions.
• Challenge the chain of custody of drug evidence to raise doubts about tampering and contamination.
• Leverage prosecutorial overcharging to get charges lowered when the DA’s case is weak.
• Argue “mere presence” – just being near drugs doesn’t prove possession or intent to sell.
• Dispute drug weight calculations – tiny margins of error can mean the difference between felonies and misdemeanors.
• Argue sentencing entrapment if undercover cops bought larger quantities to trigger stiffer charges.
• For medical marijuana cases, prove the defendant had a legitimate medical need.
• Negotiate diversion programs requiring rehab and community service instead of jail time.
• Highlight mitigating factors like no prior record, positive work history, and family obligations to sway sentencing.
• Develop evidence of illegal searches, faulty drug tests, and dishonest informants using private investigators.
• Hire expert witnesses to challenge the prosecution’s evidence and testimony.
• Uncover if witnesses who identified the defendant have credibility issues or were improperly influenced.
• Contest the legality of wiretaps, stings, informants, surveillance, and other police tactics.
• Argue “sentencing manipulation” if police elongated an investigation to make the charges more severe.
• File appeals if errors in legal procedure, evidence rules, or constitutional rights occurred during trial.

This is just a sample of the defenses great lawyers employ. Each case has unique weaknesses to leverage.