A New York Drug Lawyer Discusses Criminal Cocaine Possession.

New York State vigorously enforces the Laws on Illegal Possession of a controlled substance. Cocaine happens to be one of the most frequently possessed drugs. New York State has some of the toughest laws in the United States to combat the drug epidemic. For starters, possession of a controlled substance of any amount of cocaine or crack is at minimum an A Misdemeanor. Conviction of an A misdemeanor, in addition to the conviction, can carry us to 1 year in jail, fines plus probation. If the amount of the drug (in this case cocaine or crack) exceeds 500mg then the criminal charge is a D Felony. By definition a felony is any crime that carries a prison sentence over a year in jail.

If the weight of the cocaine is 1/8 of an ounce or greater then the criminal charge to the possessor of the drug will be a C Felony. As the weight continues to rise the felony does as well. More than 2 ounces of cocaine or crack is an A II Felony and any weight over 4 ounces is an A I Felony.

There are many issues a New York Drug Lawyer can help you overcome. First the District Attorney must prove you had possession of the cocaine or crack. For example, these types of questions need to be answered: Was the drug found in a car? Whose car was it? How many other people were in the car? Was there a proper search and can the search be suppressed? After the arrest, what is the chain of custody of the alleged drugs? Could they have been mislabeled or not secured after the arrest?

These are the type of questions a good New York Drug Possession Lawyer raises to create a reasonable doubt. When you have a case in which the lab comes back with a positive report for both the drug and the weight the District Attorney must prove the chain of custody was secure. Moreover, in Possession With Intent To Distribute cases, The District Attorney must not only prove that you possessed the drug but that the drug was to be distributed and not something for your personal use. The New York Criminal Defense Lawyers at Stephen Bilkis & Associates are skilled in handling cocaine drug crimes as well as other possession of a controlled substance cases. We offer those charged with a possession of a controlled substance a free consultation with one of our Drug Possession Lawyers at one of our convenient location throughout the New York Metropolitan area including New York, NY, Queens, Brooklyn, The Bronx, Nassau County and Suffolk County. So call us at 1-800-NY-NY-LAW if you have been charged with a possession of a controlled substance and take advantage of our free consultation.