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Category: Drug Possession

If you have been arrested and charged with a crime such as drug possession, vandalism, or DUI, it can be a worry-filled experience; especially if you have never been arrested before.  You may be filled with questions about how you are going to defend yourself from the charges against you.  You may also be wondering about how to go about finding an experienced lawyer to represent you in that defense.  So like many people in this digital age, you turn to the internet.  But there are still many factors that you should consider when meeting with and making the decision to hire criminal defense representation: (more…)

The New Jersey State Department of Health announced Monday that it had granted permission to the state’s first medical marijuana dispensary to open whenever it is ready to do so.  The center, named Greenleaf Compassion Center, is set to open in Montclair, NJ.  It was the first dispensary in the state to be granted a license to distribute medical marijuana.  The law allowing medical application of the drug was passed and signed in 2010.  There were holdups at every point – in the state deciding how best to regulate the prescriptions, to towns not wanting to allow dispensaries in their municipalities. (more…)

There was an article that came out today citing the fact that police officers wrote 531 traffic tickets in 78 days on a small stretch of Route  534 in South Jersey.  The five cities included Glouchester Township, Lindenwold, Clementon, Berlin, and Pine Hill.  56 drivers were ticketed for driving with a suspended license and 53 drivers were given tickets for driving an unregistered vehicle.  Nine arrests were made for drug possession and other criminal traffic charges.  In addition, 109 drivers were let go with verbal warnings. (more…)

A traffic stop on the Atlantic City Expressway led to the search and seizure of 15k in cash and 10 lbs. of marijuana.  William Bumpass was driving east on the Expressway in Hamilton when he was stopped.  He was stopped because of another driver’s call that he was driving erratically.  When New Jersey State Trooper Michael Pistone stopped the car, he claims that when he walked up to the window to speak to Bumpass, he smelled the odor of burning marijuana emanating from the the vehicle.  At that point, the trooper asked Bumpass to exit the vehicle while the trooper searched him.  At that point, the trooper found a scale and the 15k in cash in Bumpass’ pocket.  When the trooper pressed Bumpass, he allegedly admitted that there were drugs in the car.  The car was then towed to a State Police Barracks where a search warrant was issued, allowing police to do a full search.  During the search police allegedly found eight one gallon freezer bags filled with marijuana.   At this point, Bumpass was arrested and charged with possession of drugs, intent to distribute, and possession of drug paraphernalia.  He is being held at the Atlantic County jail.  Possession of 5-25 pounds of marijuana with an intent to distribute is a second-degree crime punishable by up to 10 years in prison and a fine of $150,000. (more…)

Last week, the Cumberland County Dept. of Corrections held a press conference to tout the success of its program for releasing rehabilitated inmates back into the public.  The program is called the ‘Last Chance Recidivism Reduction Program”.  If that title sounds overly technical, it refers to a Cumberland County program which was set up to reduce the rate at which individuals who have served their sentences and have been released from relapsing into repeat offending or homelessness.  The program helps certain inmates with the transition back into society through health, economic, and social services.  These services include education, counseling, and being assigned a case worker. (more…)

According to the New Jersey State Dept. of Health, beginning today, physicians in New Jersey can begin registering patients for the medical marijuana program.  The patient registry system (which went live at 8 AM this morning)  allows doctors to electronically sign patients up for the program.   According to articles on NJ.com, the first dispensary, located in Montclair, is set to open next month, in September. (more…)

The recession may have caused another victim (although in this case, there might be a chicken or the egg argument to be made). You read that right, the Mayor of Camden announced Tuesday that the City would be dismantling its police force.  The city, which was has been designated as one of the Nation’s “most dangerous’ every year since 1998, will reportedly lay off more than 250 police officers.  That force had already been halved last year due to budget limitations. Criminal defense lawyers pay attention, a real story is brewing here.  (more…)

New Jersey’s State Supreme Court just set some guidelines as to how Judges can decide whether to erase someone’s criminal record.  Essentially, it’s now up to the individual with the criminal convictions on their record to prove that erasing their criminal record serves a public interest. Criminal record expungement attorney Joseph Lombardo explains the updates and what they mean for you.

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Among the flurry of bills which were passed by the New Jersey State Senate Thursday was a bill which allowed for alternative sentencing for non-violent offenders who are convicted of drug possession.  The bill would open up the possibility of individuals facing sentencing in non-violent drug related crimes to be sentenced to treatment programs rather than prison.  The alternative sentencing would include what state officials call a ‘rigorous’ five year treatment program followed by supervised release.  Governor Christie had already set aside funds in his 2013 state budget for expansion of New Jersey’s drug court program.  The drug court oversees the cases of low-level, non-violent offenders who often have been arrested numerous times for drug possession and have documented substance abuse problems.  Currently the drug court program is voluntary.  Under the new bill, and at the request of Christie, the drug court program would become mandatory. (more…)

It was reported by the New Jersey State Police today that William ‘El Wingador’ Simmons had been arrested and charged with 1st-degree cocaine distribution after police pulled him over and found $8,000 worth of cocaine and $4,000 in cash in his car (which was wrapped in a self-promotional ‘El Wingador’ advertisement).  ‘El Wingador’ has previously won the popular Philadelphia-based chicken wing eating contest, The Wing Bowl. (more…)

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