In a recent case ruling the Arizona Court of Appeals upheld a woman’s conviction for possession for sale of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia. The central issue in the Appeal was whether or not a K-9 drug search of her vehicle was within the scope of a voluntary consent to search she agreed upon. Case Facts…
In a recent Arizona Supreme Court drug case, a man convicted of 11 drug-related crimes was sentenced to concurrent, consecutive presumptive terms of imprisonment. The defendant appealed, challenging five convictions related to violations of A.R.S. § 13-3417(A) to facilitate or conspire to commit felony drug crimes. In this article we…
Overview of AZ HB 2489: Combatting Heroin Overdoses A bill we have been following closely, AZ HB 2489 was passed on April 10, 2015. The expected effective date is July 3, 2015. Arizona now joins 26 other US states that have passed similar legislation. First responder’s administration of opiate reversal…
The Arizona Supreme Court provided a unanimous decision in a recent Marijuana DUI ruling. The court took a closer look at how the AMMA impacts prosecution. The Supreme Court ruled that Medical Marijuana card holders are not immune from prosecution under the state’s DUI law, which prohibits drivers from having…
Police cannot prolong stop’s duration beyond its initial purpose, without reasonable suspicion. The United States Supreme Court recently decided an important case that tilted in favor of 4th Amendment protections against unlawful detention, search and seizures. The case arose when a K-9 police officer pulled over the defendant for moving…
This is Part 2 of our Case Study on a recent Arizona Court of Appeals ruling involving Marijuana Trafficking charges. If you’re just joining us, here’s a quick summary of the case: Recently, an Arizona Superior Court granted suppression of the Marijuana evidence that led to the State’s dismissal of…
In a case decided earlier this month, an Arizona Appeals Court ruled that an officer had enough “reasonable suspicion” to detain a suspect 40 minutes while awaiting the drug K-9 unit. The court considered the “Totality of Circumstances” or “the whole picture”, to conclude that the detention was not unreasonable.…
Determining who will prosecute; Differences between Arizona, Federal laws and penalties. A Phoenix AZ man was recently sentenced to 25 years in prison for charges of methamphetamine possession with intent to distribute; and prohibited possession of a firearm. The suspected was prohibited from possessing a firearm because of a prior…
Drug, and Liquor Law Violations Top the List Arizona State University recently released its crime statistics for 2012. The university has four campuses: Tempe, West campus, Polytechnic Campus, downtown Phoenix and ASU Colleges at Lake Havasu City. The report shows crime statistics for 2010, 2011, and 2012. According to the…
A conviction could send a person to prison for the rest of their lives. The West Desert task force is a joint task force for the U.S. Border Patrol, U.S. Immigration and Custom Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the sheriff’s department. It aims to fight drug and human smuggling in…