Aggravating Factors In a Distribution Case
In Colorado, the courts care about the kind of drug that is being distributed a lot more than maybe the facts of the case. Marijuana is not often charged as drug distribution anymore. There are still situations with the State Patrol and some of our border communities where there are drug trafficking concerns across state lines. Transporting drugs across state line is a big problem.
In most situations, a distribution case is distinguished based on the amount of drugs, the amount of cash, prior offenses, and weapons. Often, in distribution cases there appears to be a bigger conspiracy.
Constitutional Issues In Drug Distribution Cases
There are often constitutional issues in drug distribution cases. Some of the most common includes Fourth Amendment, search and seizure, Fifth Amendment, Miranda violations, voluntariness to statements and coercion of statements under interrogation, and then a defendant’s right to confront witnesses against them with a confidential informant. Search and seizure concerns are often seen when there are drugs physically on a person, in their cars, and evidence on a cell phone. Law enforcement will use search warrants after an arrest to look at the contents of a cell phone that was seized.
In some situations, there are constitutional issues with the Fifth Amendment and Miranda violations. This is especially true in cases with informants, an attorney will need to investigate the identity of those informants and the reliability of the information. An informant can be an undercover police officer or another co-conspirator. An attorney can investigate the arrest and build a strong defense.
