Maryland Criminal Attorney – Baltimore Criminal Attorney I was hired today to represent a freshman at Towson University who got charged with possession with the intent to distribute marijuana. It is a typical case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time as well as a clear case of overcharging by the police as I have discussed in previous blogs. Although I believe the case will work out favorably in the long run, it will certainly have some short term criminal and administrative consequences.
My client moved into the dorms at Towson University just a few weeks ago. He didn’t have any high school friends who were also attending the university so he signed up to be randomly assigned roommates. He soon learned that his new roommates were marijuana smokers who frequently smoked in the dorm room. This past Saturday that careless habit came back to haunt them because one of the RA’s apparently smelled the smoke coming from their room and called the police.
The Towson University Police soon arrived and knocked on the door. The officer asked if they had any marijuana at which point my client’s roommate produce eight small bags each containing approximately 1 gram of marijuana. The officer arrested them both and charged them both with felony possession with the intent to distribute marijuana. As I said it is a typical case of overcharging by a police officer. The felony charge is a stretch against the roommate and is laughable against my client.
Having said that he is, at least for now, charged with a felony. In addition to the criminal implications of a felony charge, he is now facing eviction from the dorm or even expulsion from school. I advised him that I was very confident that the felony charge would never stick and that I could probably get it dismissed at the preliminary hearing. The administrative hearing may be somewhat more problematic though because it will take minimum 30 days to get the felony dismissed assuming I am able to do so. Moreover, unless the University has changed its procedures for disciplinary hearings, I will be allowed to atttend and advise but will not be allowed to speak of his behalf. If we are unable to convince the disciplinary board that the felony charge is going to be dismissed, it will almost certainly result in his eviction from the dorm and may result in his expulsion from the school and the forfeiture of his tuition. A very steep price for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.