Charges: DUI, Possession of Less Than 20g of Marijuana, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia
A Gainesville Police Department officer stopped a vehicle which had failed to come to a complete stop at a stop sign. The officer also observed the vehicle drive the wrong way on a one way road. The officer called for a backup officer who took over the investigation. The second officer could smell the strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from the driver’s breath and the driver advised the officer that he consumed too many alcoholic beverages that evening. The driver agreed to perform field sobriety exercises and performed poorly. The driver was placed under arrest and following implied consent agreed to provide breath samples. The driver blew 0.126g/210L and 0.127g/210L.
During the search incident to the arrest, the officer found a clear plastic bag in the driver’s front right pocket. Inside the bag were trace amounts of a green leafy substance which had the appearance and odor of cannabis. The driver freely admitted that the substance was in fact cannabis.
The driver retained Meldon Law and we were able to negotiate a plea arrangement with the State Attorney’s office. The driver pled to the DUI charge and received the minimum penalties associated and the charges for the possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia were dismissed.
After the driver had completed all of his community service, paid the associated fines and court fees, and completed six months of his probation, we filed a motion to terminate the probation. The court granted our motion and terminated the probation for the driver.
