Being found to be in possession of an illicit or illegal substance in Naples is a serious offense. Successfully defending yourself against such a charge is possible, yet becomes more difficult if other charges accompany it. Many of those that we here at The Calderone Law Group, P.A. have worked with in the past have been shocked to discover just how many criminal offenses can emerge from what may seem to be a simple case of possession. One that you may find facing you in such a case could be intent to distribute.
You may have never even harbored such an intent, so why is it that law enforcement officials are able to level such a charge against you? Per Section 893.13 of the Florida State Statutes, many drug offenses will net a felony charge. The penalties you could be facing may be even more severe if it is believed you intended to sell whatever you were alleged to have been possessing. Given the added severity such a charge brings, you certainly will want to know if it is justified.
Law enforcement officers make a determination on whether you might have intended to distribute the substance you were supposedly in possession of based on the circumstances of your arrest. If you were allegedly found with certain paraphernalia along with the controlled substance (e.g., bags, scales, large sums of money), then they may infer from that you were planning on selling the substance to others.
It should be noted, however, that the possession and intent to distribute must be in conjunction with each other to warrant both charges. For example, you cannot be charged with both if you were accused of being found with distribution paraphernalia, but no drugs. More information on disputing drug charges can be found here on our site.