Drug conspiracy charges are severe because if arrested, you could be punished separately and equally as harshly for being involved in a conspiracy. It is a separate crime but carries the same penalty as the lead crime. Someone could be convicted of two felonies at the same time if they are charged with conspiracy and drug distribution.
Also, a conspiracy charge makes a case more complex because additional parties will have evidence and arguments of their own to present. The prosecution can use any and all evidence related to the conspiracy against a single person. And after being found guilty, a person charged with conspiracy can be penalized for drugs recovered from co-conspirators as well as themselves. Conspiracy charges significantly increase the possible exposure to penalties.
If you have been charged with drug conspiracy, you should not try to handle the legal aspects of your case alone. A Montgomery County drug conspiracy lawyer could review the facts of the case and collect evidence to help build a defense. Speak to a diligent drug attorney to learn about your legal options.
From the Montgomery County police officer’s side of a drug conspiracy investigation, they will often target and follow several people as conspiracies involve multiple defendants that each need to be linked to the crime and the conspiracy. This might be through executing several search warrants, surveillance on several people, or recording statements of one person to be used against the others. Their investigation aims to gather as much evidence as possible that multiple people possessed the same type of drug, that they all received profits from this conspiracy, and that they are all sharing in the distribution of the same type of drug.
The courts are governed by the Superior and Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in Pennsylvania for what evidence is admissible in court and enough to prove someone guilty of a crime. Some of the things the courts consider are money exchanged between members of the conspiracy, a common drug stash location or use of a common drug house, similar branding and distribution location, coordinated efforts to evade police, statements about intent to work together to complete drug delivery.
Individuals could be charged with drug conspiracy if they assisted, aided, or took a voluntary step to aid in a conspiracy to deliver drugs to other people. It is different from a single person delivering drugs for their own personal benefit. A conspiracy charge will link multiple people together in a criminal enterprise, and this will usually increase the amount of evidence against a person as well as increase the possible penalties.
If a person is charged with possession with intent to deliver as a felony and conspiracy, that will be two separate charges. The conspiracy will also be a felony, and the prosecution can move forward on both charges, finding someone guilty of both charges and punishing them separately for both charges at the same time. This means you can get double the penalty if you are charged with conspiracy and possession with intent to deliver. It is best to speak to a skilled Montgomery County drug conspiracy lawyer to learn about the charges and the potential penalties of a conviction.
They need to prove not only that an intent-to-deliver case is happening but that at least one person had the intent to deliver and others conspired to aid them in that delivery. Not only do they need to prove that drug delivery charge, but they also have to prove that a conspiracy took place at the same time.
That means that they usually need to show an overt action by the defendant to join in the conspiracy. That can be an exchange of money, an attempt to help someone cover up or escape detection by the police, statements offering aid to a primary drug seller, or simple actions that link people together such as passing or using a common stash of drugs.
A drug conspiracy lawyer needs to have good substantive knowledge of both conspiracy and drug laws because there is an added step in not only defending against the drug distribution charge but also defending against the conspiracy charge. If the defense attorney can show you took no overt action to join in a conspiracy or renounced the conspiracy, these might be defenses to the charge of conspiracy to distribute drugs.
A diligent Montgomery County drug conspiracy lawyer could help you build a defense and work to help you get a favorable outcome. Call today to schedule a consultation.