Students could face significant consequences if caught on campus with drugs or narcotics. They could face sanctions on campus as well as criminal penalties. Fortunately, students do not need to handle their case alone. Justie and Jenn are here to help!
A knowledgeable campus drug offense lawyer could ensure that a student’s rights are protected and help them fight the charges. With the help of a skilled attorney, they may be able to avoid or mitigate any Greenwood Village campus drug consequences.
Drug-Related Investigations
Students are transporting drugs by bringing narcotics onto campus, so they are looking at both on-campus charges with the university as well as charges by authorities in the criminal court. Transporting drugs from off-campus onto campus is not a separate class of offense in the State of Colorado. It is only a problem if they are going across state lines.
The police do not need to be involved earlier than they might in other on-campus offenses. When and how a school reports narcotics offenses is entirely up to the university involved. It is done on a case-by-case basis behind closed doors without any input from anyone else.
More serious cases get reported faster, and victim cases get reported faster by universities. If someone is harmed by the drug offense, such as someone overdosing from narcotics, they can bet that the police will be involved from the very beginning. The policy on when and how to involve outside law enforcement is still a mystery. Colleges and universities vary their police involvement depending on their own policies and code of ethics.
Consequences of a Substance-Related Charge on Campus
The Greenwood Village campus drug consequences may include drug and alcohol classes, a DUI, and DMV restrictions on their license. If they live on campus, they may have a reduced expectation of privacy. Also, they may have to consent to searches of their dorm room at a random time by an RA. If they are on probation in the community for a criminal charge that is related to drugs, their probation officer can also search their house if they are found guilty.
The consequences are more treatment-oriented than punitive, especially on campus. In Colorado, many jurisdictions do have a drug court as well for serious or repetitive cases. Drug courts are meant to deal with the underlying problem, and those courts have extra accountability built in to help motivate getting clean.
Students often self-medicate with medications, marijuana, or prescription drugs. Self-medicating is a sign of underlying additional problems, such as undiagnosed mental health problems. Often, folks with anxiety, depression, and bipolar disorders will self-medicate and do more harm. The courts try to make sure they are getting to the root of the problem, as do universities. Mental health court, veterans court, drug court, and other specialty courts are becoming more common in Colorado to help with this substance abuse and mental health diagnoses.
