An experienced drug defense attorney from any of our six centrally located Northern California offices can explain the defenses available in your case. California criminal laws regarding drugs span a wide spectrum.
Ronald Dinan and Associates offers expert legal counsel with the following drug charges and issues:
- Drug Possession
- Drug Possession for Sale
- Drug Manufacturing/Cultivation
- Paraphernalia
- Proposition 215 Medical Marijuana and Compassionate Use
- Drug DUI's
- Illegal Search and Seizures
- Search Warrants
- No-Jail Resolution
- Drug Diversion
- Rehabilitation
The severity of punishment for violation of drug laws varies depending on the intensity of an individual's involvement and amount of drugs. Drug crimes can include possession for personal use, possession for sale, sales/transportation of drugs, manufacturing or cultivation of drugs, or simply being under the influence of drugs. Drugs covered by the California Health & Safety Code include prescription drugs such as Vicodin (Hydrocondone), Percocet (Oxycondone), Oxycontin, Methadone, etc., and illegal drugs such as cocaine, ecstasy, and heroin. Some drugs are legally possessed under certain circumstances such as smaller amounts of marijuana with a physician's recommendation or a 215 medical card or a much larger amount, such as a marijuana grower who is a legitimate member of a collective.
There are a number of legal defenses available to those who are charged with drug crimes. These defenses are developed and utilized by our experienced and successful drug lawyers to anyone who is a client of our firm in Santa Rosa, San Rafael, Napa, Lakeport, Ukiah and Eureka. Some of the more popular defenses include the affirmative defense of legal ownership (as in marijuana cases), a denial of ownership, entrapment and various search and seizure defenses, such as insufficient legal justification for the police to make contact with an individual, illegally issued search warrants, illegal detentions of individuals and/or their vehicles, etc.
Your drug lawyer at Ronald Dinan & Associates will often be in disagreement with the information provided by the police which they will use to attempt to justify your detention, either by stopping you on the street or pulling your vehicle over. Regarding search warrants, your drug defense attorney will explain to you that just because a search warrant is issued by a judge does not mean it is legal. Often, the information provided by the police and included in the search warrant application to a judge contains incorrect or insufficient information. Once these circumstances are brought to the attention of the court, search warrants can be suppressed. If our defense involves a search and seizure issue, a Motion to Suppress will be filed by our criminal defense attorneys and, if successful, the case will almost always be dismissed.
If we cannot acquire a dismissal of the criminal charges, our next step is to reduce the severity and/or number of charges. As to any remaining charges, an overriding philosophy in our law firm is to treat most drug crimes as a medical problem instead of a legal problem. If addiction or long-term use is involved, it is important to address the underlying issues which can often be addressed with drug treatment and/or rehabilitation that includes Proposition 36, California Drug Court or a Penal Code §1000 deferred entry of judgment. Many clients, if convicted, can spend their time in a drug treatment program either on an out-patient or in-patient basis, rather than in jail.
If you have been charged in a drug case, one of the best decisions you can make is to speak to a drug lawyer or drug defense lawyer. Our practice concentrates in the counties of Sonoma, Marin, Napa, Mendocino, Humboldt and Lake. Our six Bay Area offices are centrally located in the cities in which the courthouses are located, including Santa Rosa, Napa, San Rafael, Lakeport, Ukiah, and Eureka.
We welcome all questions and inquiries and will answer them in a pleasant, courteous and helpful manner. To speak with an attorney, call us today!