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Building a Chattanooga Drug Possession Defense

When building a Chattanooga drug possession defense, lawyers have to look at all the facts of your case. Often, this means gathering evidence, interviewing witnesses, and requesting the evidence that the prosecution has. Doing so allows a defense team to outline the options that are available to you. To produce a favorable outcome in court, choose to work with an experienced drug possession lawyer today.

How Does a Defense Attorney Build a Drug Possession Defense in Chattanooga?

A drug possession lawyer’s first steps in building a defense against possession charges in Chattanooga involves a complete interview of the alleged offender and understanding the progression of events that led to the arrest. From there, a seasoned attorney orders police reports, body and dash-camera footage, and any other open records to learn what police and investigating officers observed during the arrest. Understanding the officer’s perspective is often key to a constitutional challenge later in the case.

Once evidence is gathered from both the alleged offender and the officer’s perspective, the attorney is able to file a request with the district attorney to obtain additional evidence, such as lab reports or officer training history, to build a complete picture of the case and the surrounding circumstances. If there were witnesses or criminal informants, a lawyer could utilize a private investigator’s ability to enter the community innocuously and report what these other individuals might have observed. Criminal informants in larger drug cases are often unknown until much later in the case and typically cannot be identified without a special filing with the court.

Building a well-rounded investigation using the all data available enables an individual’s lawyer to create the strongest possible defense again drug possession charges in Chattanooga.

Why is it Important to Hire Competent Legal Counsel?

Contacting a drug possession lawyer as early as possible could be the difference between being granted or denied bond in the hours or days following an arrest. Beyond the issue of bond and getting out of jail after an arrest, an experienced drug possession lawyer could efficiently gather facts and evidence as soon as possible. A drug possession lawyer could educate alleged offenders and advise them regarding the steps they need to take and the behavior they need to demonstrate to best protect themselves going forward. If an individual contacts a lawyer and obtains their professional advice early on, it could help ease anxieties and empower them to make sound decisions during a difficult time in their life.

Mistakes to Avoid During a Drug Possession Case

One of the biggest mistakes to avoid in a drug possession case is for an individual to represent themselves without legal assistance. Whether they are assigned a public defender or they hire an experienced criminal defense attorney, they must have legal representation when proceeding through the criminal justice system. Prosecutors have years of experience in successfully obtaining convictions in criminal cases involving narcotics. Individuals without experience are at a significant disadvantage against extensively trained legal professionals.

The other biggest mistake is when an individual gets nervous when they interact with a police officer and try to talk their way out of the situation. Police officers have a job to do and a duty to keep the public safe, which often involves making an arrest for the benefit of public safety. If an individual attempts to negotiate with police to avoid an arrest, they are putting themselves at risk of making admissions or statements against their own interest. These statements could hurt their drug possession case and make it far more difficult for their attorney to establish reasonable doubt or a constitutional defense that could be the difference between a conviction or a dismissal. People should always exercise the right to remain silent.

The Experience of Defense Counsels

A lawyer’s knowledge and years of experience defending narcotics cases could help them determine if police have followed the chain of custody if lab testing has been done correctly, and whether or not they may be able to challenge the chain of custody or accuracy of lab results. Understanding the type of testing necessary to prove that a particular substance is admissible evidence could be the difference between a guilty plea because there is no way out or a dismissal of drug possession charges.

Let an Attorney Help Today

Defense attorneys experienced in building a Chattanooga drug possession defense could be an invaluable resource for you if you are facing a possession charge. What you and many others might not know is that the law provides officers a means to search people suspected of possessing narcotics, but it also outlines how it must be done. Any deviation could mean that your rights were at some point violated. To better your chances in court, talk to an attorney who could help you fight your charge and mitigate the outcome in court.

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