Interstate drug trafficking is the illegal import of unlawful controlled substances– such as marijuana, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and other drugs– through the interstate system. Interstates have frequently been significant for the crime of drug trafficking, as criminals play a dangerous game of cat and mouse with law enforcement. What is dangerous for interstate drug traffickers is the countless reasons they can be pulled over: minor traffic violations, including speeding, driving too slow, driving with a crack in the windshield, or a taillight out. Law enforcement has also been identified for employing illegal approaches like racial and out- of-state profiling, making interstate drug trafficking all the more treacherous.
Once a law enforcement officer has you pulled over, if the motor vehicle seems to be tampered with (the alteration of panels, screws, or interior parts) for smuggling reasons, they will generally request for a better look at your car. If you do not understand your civil rights and concede, then a drug bust may be underway, and before you know it, another law enforcement team member is on site with a drug-sniffing canine. Certainly, you deserve privacy and disapprove consent, and anybody stopped under these pretenses should just present their driver’s license and registration details. You do not need to reply to their concerns if you don’t want to.
Interstate Drug Trafficking Penalties
Interstate drug trafficking charges following a conviction for a felony state or federal drug trafficking charge will likely result in severe complications, like a huge fine or a mandatory prison sentence. If you are in possession of even a trace amount of drugs like ecstasy, cocaine, or methamphetamine, you could encounter a prison term of up to 4 years and a fine of $300,000. A larger amount and former convictions can carry as much as 17 years or a life sentence and fines up to $500,000. If prosecutors can validate you intended to distribute a controlled substance, your punishments could be more severe.
Interstate Drug Trafficking Defense
Interstate drug trafficking defense lawyers can question the issuance and execution of search warrants to fight unfairly taken in evidence, and can contest illegal search warrants and reveal police mistakes made during the process. When the evidence is matched against you, attorneys can delve into sentencing options and essentially reach a deal with the prosecution. In federal drug trafficking cases, where sentences are far more severe, there may be the possibility to enter into a substance abuse program for the defendant in order to set avoid conviction and sentencing.
Interstate Drug Trafficking Lawyer
The pre-file stage of an interstate drug trafficking case is among the most detrimental to the accused. It is essential that you call and work with a lawyer quickly after your arrest because police and prosecutors will move quickly and their inspection will be unrelenting in getting you to incriminate yourself so they can easily put you behind bars. Contact a professional criminal defense attorney who can look at all possible results of the case and speak shrewdly on your behalf, to assure you are not taken advantage of and your civil rights stepped on.
