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What you should know about having a drug trafficking charge

On Behalf of | Sep 15, 2017 | Drug Trafficking

Under Florida law, anyone caught with a certain amount of illegal narcotics in her or his possession can be charged with drug trafficking. If you are facing a drug trafficking charge, you could end up in jail for quite a long time. A drug trafficking charge is a serious federal offense, even for first-time offenders. Because it can have a major impact on your life, you should consider the following information about drug trafficking charges. 

You could end up with a trafficking charge, even if you intended to use it for yourself. Sometimes, people who have drug trafficking charges were really just caught with possession of a controlled substance. Regardless of the circumstances leading up to your arrest, you should consider hiring an attorney. 

All who are charged may not be guilty 

There are cases in which innocent people suffer. For example, you may not use drugs, but if you are in someone’s vehicle who has a lot of narcotics like cocaine, heroin or other controlled substance in it and she or he says it is someone else’s, both of you can end up with a trafficking charge. 

Because drug charges carry heavy penalties, such as multi-year incarceration sentences, hefty fines and restitution, you may want to avoid self-representation. Usually, when law enforcement charges people with drug possession and the intent to sell and/or distribute, there is evidence and other charges involved. The evidence may or may not be enough to support a conviction for drug trafficking. An attorney can help build a strong defense to get a trafficking charge reduced to possession or dismissed. 

It is important for you to take immediate action to defend yourself against the accusation. Even if you think you cannot afford an attorney, you should speak to one anyway to gain a better understanding of your situation, the consequences and ways you can resolve it.

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