Whats gonna happen depends entirely on where you were busted. Some states it's a slap on the wrists, some states they'll bury you so deep they'll have to pump in sunlight to ya. But no matter WHERE it happened, get a lawyer. A PAID lawyer, NOT a public defender.
Just an opinion, jump in for comments. I grow, but did not go to any Horticultural School, therefore, I cannot testify that the Stem is in fact Weed. The Officer is not a certified plant expert either. A lab test would have to be done to certify the stem as actual Weed. The burden of proof is on them. If you pulled a baggie out of your back pocket at Court, with a "LIKE" stem in it, is that weed also? Is there any documented proof that the stem is Pot. Either expert testimony, or a documentation. Anything else is hearsay. What I'm saying, they wouldn't spend the money to get it certified, but will try to slip that fact past you.
This is true. Make 'em pay to convict you. Actually, they are supposed to test the substance and be absolutely certain that it's cannabis BEFORE they arrest or charge you. A field test is generally sufficient for probable cause to arrest.
If your younger like under 25 WITH A CLEAN RECORD.they will most likly give you a choice to plead not guilty and fight ur case.i which point if found guilty they will sentence the max for makin it go to court.the judge will be an ASS if found guilty.they will most like give you the choice to pleade guilty and they will have some deal like diversion and community service and like 250$ or an 8 hour class and some money . but it will be exponged from your record after completion of whatever program they want.well good luck with that.
The very threat of "either take the plea, or get the max if you make us take this to trial and prove our case" is automatic grounds for appeal. We call that coercion. You (or your lawyer) will have to at least show that the threat was made, and followed thru with. I knew a guy who got popped for possession and the judge point blank told him (on the court record) that if he ever appeared in that judges courtroom again (for anything) he'd get the book thrown at him. A few years later, he was busted again for possession and went before the same judge who did exactly what he promised. Dudes lawyer produced the transcripts where the judge had "pre-disposed" the case, and the upshot is the Judge was recused, and the charges were eventually dropped. The key word here is
EVENTUALLY.
Where they have us by the short hairs is that nobody wants to
win on an appeal. Shit, nobody wants to go to jail in the first place, even tho we all knew the possible consequences of engaging in illegal activities.
Every time someone "takes the plea", or pays a fine to avoid the high cost of a trial, it's a "win" for the government. Many an unpopular (and unconstitutional) law has been upheld and given legitimacy by our reluctance to fight the charge, and the law itself. It's out of the financial realm of most people to financially weather a drawn out court case, and the state knows this. They KNOW that the likelihood of you copping a plea is better than 90%, even tho you might be innocent. The threat of doing hard time (and lots of it) can do strange things to your head.
Remember, you have a
RIGHT to a trial by a jury of your peers. Enhancing penalties, or handing down a sentence that would be a radical departure from the sentencing guidelines, just because you exercised your right to trial, is automatic grounds for appeal.
The only way to be completely safe from prosecution is to completely avoid what
THEY consider criminal behavior. But if you DO engage in this type of behavior, you should be prepared to go the mile and finish the race. Make them PROVE their case, don't convict yourself for them. They sure as hell aint gonna share their paycheck with you for doing their job for them. At the end of the day, you'll be going to jail, they'll be going home.
