Every person who plants, cultivates, harvests, dries or processes any marijuana or any part thereof is guilty of a felony offense in California, which is punishable by sixteen months or two or three years in the state prison, unless one can prevail at a Williamson hearing, showing that the cultivation was for personal use, which may entitle the individual to diversion instead. Because the penalties can be severe for an individual convicted of this offense, it is critical that the accused contacts a skilled California drug attorney immediately upon his or her arrest who can begin building an aggressive defense.
“Cultivating” means fostering the growth of the marijuana. Cultivating marijuana is considered a continuing offense, in that it continues at least during the period of cultivation, so one need not be physically present at the site of cultivation to be guilty of this offense. “Harvesting” means gathering the crops of the marijuana. “Processing” means changing the form of the marijuana plant to make it useful for smoking or other narcotic purposes. If it is proven that an individual participated in one of these activities (or that he or she planted or dried marijuana) and that he or she knew it was a marijuana plant or some part of a marijuana plant, he or she may be convicted of this offense.
There are a number of defenses that apply to this crime that an experienced criminal defense lawyer is familiar with and knows how to effectively convey to a judge and jury. The outstanding attorneys at The Kavinoky Law Firm have mastered this area of the law and know how to meticulously review a case to spot these defenses as well as the other issues that may raise concerns about the legitimacy of their client’s arrest.
Some of the most common defenses to cultivating marijuana include lack of knowledge, a medical marijuana exemption and illegal search and seizure. These are only a sample of some of the defenses that are applicable to this charge – a seasoned criminal attorney will know a variety of additional defenses that he or she may choose to employ based on the facts of each individual’s case.
Lack of knowledge might come into play if the marijuana plants were growing outside or were tucked away in an otherwise unused part of the property and the accused was unaware of the plant’s presence or species. This may be the case where an individual is renting a property, unaware of what a previous tenant was growing or may apply to a family member who was growing the drug without the knowledge of others who also resided on the property. Once again, this is just an example of when this defense might apply – a savvy attorney will know if this defense will work when he or she reviews one’s specific case. It should be noted that an owner of land may be charged as an aider and abettor for marijuana cultivation if he or she had knowledge of the plant’s presence.
A medical marijuana defense may be argued in situations where a patient or a patient’s caregiver has received a recommendation from a doctor stating that marijuana use would benefit the patient’s health. Using, cultivating and transporting marijuana are permitted under these circumstances, as long as the individual participating in these activities abides by the laws that regulate such uses.
A practiced criminal attorney will always scrutinize a case for any illegal search and seizure issues, as this type of defense is the most successful in having one’s case dismissed. Whether the police had a warrant, whether the warrant was based on legitimate information and whether there was sufficient probable cause to support the search are all issues that the defense attorney will consider when building a defense.
The exceptional attorneys at The Kavinoky Law Firm are here to help. They specialize in California’s drug laws and the defenses that apply to these laws and know what it takes to win. Contact them today for a free case evaluation and for unparalleled representation.