Maryland Drug Conspiracy Lawyer

Conspiracy is an agreement between two or more individuals to engage in a particular illegal activity. It is also considered an inchoate crime. An inchoate crime is a crime that has not been completed; an easy example is attempted murder. There was no murder but a person tried to do it, so they will face charges for even the attempt.

Someone can be charged and prosecuted just by virtue of an agreement. Unlike a lot of other crimes in Maryland, a person could both be charged with conspiracy and having committed the crime itself so they can have the conspiracy to possess or to do something and they could also have a charge separately of possession, and they could be convicted, prosecuted, and sentenced to jail separately for both of the offenses. Because of the severity of these charges, it is essential, if you have been charged with drug conspiracy in Maryland, that you consult with an experienced drug lawyer as soon as possible. A Maryland drug conspiracy lawyer is essential in building your defense and fighting for your rights.

Possible Penalties

Drug conspiracy is a very serious charge in Maryland. In fact, it carries the same potential penalty as the underlying crime itself. Someone be charged with both conspiracy and the separate underlying offense, even if never committed.

If it is a possession charge, it can be 4 years. If it is the conspiracy to possess, it is also 4 years. If it is possession with intent, it is 20 years, and if conspiracy to commit possession with intent, it is also 20 years.

Proving Drug Conspiracies

A person has to prove an agreement and the actual intent with the intent to carry it out; it cannot be where they are having a conversation about possibilities. There has to be an intent to carry out the purpose of the agreement. Wire taps, surveillance, interviews, are the usual police methods that are employed in Maryland drug conspiracy cases.

Investigation Techniques

Frequently, because it is an agreement, how does one prove an agreement? There has to be some kind of communication. It can be texts, voicemails, emails or spoken conversations that have either been recorded or in which one of the individuals comes forward and testifies against the other.

Evidence

The intent in a Maryland drug conspiracy case could be established by the statement of the individual or it could be the circumstances under which drugs were found. It could be the nature of how it was packaged, the amount, what else was found with it such as money or extra packaging materials, cell phone messages of people trying drug transactions, these all show intent.

Contacting an Attorney

Just like any criminal charge, the individual is best suited to find an experienced Maryland drug conspiracy attorney who is skilled in those very same types of charges.

As much information as they can have to the attorney. Sometimes, the person has all the paperwork, the summaries, the warrants, everything. Other times, all they know is the police are looking at them and know very little but the more information attorney has, the better they will be able to understand the facts and start exploring defenses immediately.