In Alabama, a drug conspiracy is simply a conspiracy with the underlying crime being any drug offense, such as trafficking, distribution, and possession. At its simplest form, drug conspiracy means that a person with the intent of committing a drug crime such as trafficking, distribution, or possession agrees with another person to engage or cause the performance of some type of conduct and that anyone of those persons within the agreement does an overt act to effect the outcome of the agreement.
The difference in a conspiracy and a regular drug-related offense is that, in a conspiracy, a person can be prosecuted when a person has never even seen, touched, or possessed any type of controlled substance. In Alabama, a person could be charged both with conspiracy drug offense and the underlying offense.
If you are facing drug conspiracy charges, contact an Alabama drug conspiracy lawyer for assistance in building a defense that best suits your best possible outcome.
PenaltiesDrug conspiracy charges in Alabama are taken very seriously. They are punished the same as the underlying crime that the prosecution is alleging was conspired to be committed, meaning that if an individual is alleged to be in possession under the conspiracy, it would be a Class C Felony. If it were a distribution or conspiracy to commit drug distribution or trafficking, it would be Class B Felony.
In Alabama, the possible penalties for drug conspiracy range with what the underlying drug offense. These can include fines and imprisonment as well as substance abuse programs and long periods of probation. Due to the severe penalties associated, it is vital to contact a drug conspiracy attorney in Alabama.
Necessary ProofIn Alabama, to prosecute a drug conspiracy case the prosecution must prove:
Typically, the evidence is found by developing a confidential informant. An informant is generally found when the government stumbles upon someone in possession or committing a distribution in trafficking offense and interviews them to find that there are more responsible parties involved and they developed that person as an informant to move the prosecution to the higher levels.
Drug conspiracy investigations in Alabama are done by talking to a confidential informant that is a member of the group allegedly conspiring to commit a drug offense, such as trafficking or distribution. The government uses the information that the confidential informant gathers to put their case together as well.
The prosecution’s use of a confidential informant with a questionable criminal history can be used for the Alabama drug conspiracy defense lawyer’s defense strategy.
Investigative TechniquesIn Alabama, a typical investigative technique that law enforcement uses when building a drug conspiracy case is what is called climbing the ladder. This means that a lot of times they will come into it with low-level participants in the conspiracy, someone thought to be in possession or have some type of information, then they turn that person into an informant to get to the next row of the ladder and eventually they work toward the root of who is charged with the ultimate conspiracy.
EvidenceIn Alabama, courts accept any circumstantial evidence that points towards intent in drug conspiracy cases, a simple agreement or benign act can be used to prove that a person was involved in a drug conspiracy simply by showing up at a location, making a telephone call, or delivering a package.
In Alabama, courts accept as evidence any fact that goes towards the intent of a person in a drug conspiracy case, these could include things in and of themselves that would not be illegal but in the context of a drug conspiracy case they go towards the person effectuating the agreement of the conspiracy. Such things as delivering a package, accepting money, showing up in a location at a certain time, or making phone calls are just a few of the many examples that a court can look at as evidence of intent in a drug conspiracy case.
Important Qualities of an AttorneyWhen contacting a drug conspiracy lawyer in Alabama to discuss a drug conspiracy charge, a meticulous recap of the drug conspiracy should be outlined. So, when speaking to the attorney, the attorney can help evaluate and diagnose all the different players in the conspiracy and therefore better help a person in mitigating and defending the charge.
In Alabama, defendants when choosing a drug conspiracy attorney should look for experience. Experience matters and drug conspiracy cases are very complex and typically have codefendants and an experienced lawyer can help navigate the complexities of these types of prosecutions.
In Alabama, it should be different in looking for a lawyer to defend a drug conspiracy case rather than a lawyer to represent someone on the general criminal charge, the reason is that drug conspiracy cases are very complex and tend to have multiple codefendants and multiple layers of law enforcement. Therefore an experienced lawyer that has defended drug conspiracy cases should be sought rather than a general practitioner.