Learn what happens if you smoke marijuana and own a gun, and the possible consequences. Unfortunately, you could face federal felony charges if you own a gun and regularly smoke pot.

Legalization of Marijuana in Michigan

Michigan is fairly progressive when it comes to marijuana. The use of cannabis for medical reasons was made legal in 2008 and for recreational use in 2018.

Since 2019, dispensaries across MI have been selling marijuana. This helped destigmatize a pervasive habit and significantly boosted the state’s economy. But, legalization has had a ripple effect on other rights, including gun ownership.

Federal vs. State Law

On a federal level, marijuana is still illegal. Because of that, it’s against the law to smoke marijuana and buy or own a firearm. This is a felony offense that could land you up to ten years in prison.

Many marijuana users are still not aware of this. They don’t know that the act of owning a gun while being a habitual user of marijuana could land them in serious legal trouble.

It’s Illegal to Own a Gun & Use Marijuana

This issue has been revisited multiple times since states started legalizing marijuana, with many arguing that it doesn’t make sense to keep this law on the books. However, as of 2016, the U.S. Court of Appeals has upheld the federal ban on gun ownership for marijuana users.

Some users may become aware of this when they buy a gun from a legal seller. They must answer a question that asks if they are a user of marijuana or any other controlled substance. Form 4473 states explicitly that the use of marijuana is still against federal law even if it has been legalized in your state.

If you lie on that form and state that you are not an unlawful user of marijuana, you could get up to ten years in prison.

What is an “Unlawful User?”

This is a fairly vague term. However, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Detroit has said that one-time use of marijuana does not make someone an unlawful user. Regular use of marijuana or another controlled substance does.

Will You Be Prosecuted?

Some people choose to risk it and keep or purchase guns while still using marijuana. Across the board, the likelihood of prosecution for this crime is relatively low. One source stated that these charges are usually brought up when someone is being investigated for more serious crimes.

That doesn’t mean that the risk isn’t there. As long as you own or buy a gun and use marijuana, you are at risk of facing federal charges. With social media being such a prominent part of most people’s lives now, it is easy for investigators and prosecutors to secure the evidence they need for a quick conviction.

While many prosecutors may be uninterested in pursuing charges for a crime that technically hurts no one, a prosecutor who runs on a heavily anti-drug platform may seek charges because they are quick and easy cases that improve their record.

Protect Yourself—Call Drias Law Group

If you’ve been arrested for owning or buying a gun and using marijuana, your future is at stake. This isn’t the time to talk your way out of trouble or hope for good luck.

It’s time to speak to an attorney committed to protecting your rights and your future. Talk to Drias Law Group by calling (313) 944-0236 or contact us online.

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Attorney Martin Drias convinced the St. John’s, MI judge to keep the offense completely off his client’s record, and applied for HYTA (Holmes Youthful Trainee Act) on the client’s behalf. This way, if the young man applied for further education or a job in the future, the offense wouldn’t show up on his record. Initially, the prosecutor fought against this. After attorney Davis wrote a brief and submitted a petition, however, the court agreed. As such, HYTA was granted.

The outcome of an individual case depends on a variety of factors unique to that case. Case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result in any similar or future case.

The post Out-of-State Case Falls Under HYTA appeared first on Drias Law Group, PLLC.

If you have been charged with a weapons crime, contact Drias Law Group today at (313) 944-0236 to find out how we can help you.

Felony Weapon Possession

According to Michigan Penal Code section 750.227b, it’s a felony to possess a firearm while committing or attempting to commit any felony – with some exceptions. You may not face felony weapons charges if the underlying offense is:

• Illegally selling firearms or ammunition (section 750.223)
• Carrying a concealed weapon (750.227)
• Unlawful possession of pistol (750.227a)
• Altering or removing a firearm’s serial number (750.730)

If you get charged with committing any other felony while you allegedly had a weapon in your possession, you may receive the following penalties (with no possibility of parole, probation, or a sentence suspension) in addition to the sentence that you would face for the underlying offense:

• First offense – Up to two years in prison
• Second offense – Up to five years in prison
• Third offense – Up to 10 years in prison

The weapon doesn’t actually have to be in your hand or in your pocket for a felony weapons offense to apply. Under the doctrine of “constructive possession,” a court of law will assume that you possessed the weapon if it was under your control, such as in your bag, your vehicle’s glove box, or any other place where you could access it immediately.

How Can a Detroit Weapon Possession Lawyer Help?

If you get charged with felony assault after allegedly threatening someone with a weapon, you will also face felony weapon possession charges under 750.227b. This means facing two serious felony charges at the same time. If you get convicted, your life will never be the same. Fortunately, a skilled Detroit firearms defense attorney can help you deal with felony charges.

Depending on the facts specific to your case, your lawyer may be able to have the charges dismissed if they are sustained by illegal evidence – such as the results of a warrantless search or an unlawful traffic stop. It may also be possible to refute the prosecutor’s case at trial. Finally, in some cases it may be beneficial to work with the prosecutor to negotiate a beneficial plea agreement under which you might receive the guarantee of a lenient sentence or a conviction for a lesser offense.

Whatever you do, it not advisable to plead guilty to your charges before talking with a lawyer. There may be one or even several defense strategies available to you. To find out what options might be open to you, call Drias Law Group today at (313) 944-0236 for a free and confidential consultation of your case.

The post Possession of Firearms Increase Penalties of Felony Charges appeared first on Drias Law Group, PLLC.

Attorney Martin Drias saw this was an isolated incident and he worked quickly to help his client deal with these uncharacteristic charges. Attorney Davis discussed the charges with the prosecution and by illustrating his client’s good standing in the community and sincere regret, he achieved a complete dismissal of the charges. Therefore, this client was excused from further concern and was grateful to put this incident in the past.

The outcome of an individual case depends on a variety of factors unique to that case. Case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result in any similar or future case.

The post Reckless Discharge Of Firearm Charge Dismissed For Man In Detroit appeared first on Drias Law Group, PLLC.

A mistake you make as a young adult shouldn’t ruin the rest of your life. For this reason, you should retain the services of a skilled and experienced Michigan criminal defense attorney if you’re a college student who has been charged with a crime. At Drias Law Group, a knowledgeable Michigan criminal defense lawyer will defend your rights and help you fight your criminal charges so you can stay in school.

An Arrest—Even if You Don’t Get Charged—Could Get You Kicked Out

Each college has a student handbook outlining policies, regulations, and a code of conduct. Generally, these rules provide academic probation or suspension for students who commit certain criminal acts, such as assault, theft, drug possession, or drunk driving. What can be confusing is that the college disciplinary process is independent of any criminal proceedings brought against you by the state.

For example, if you get arrested for assault, your university will almost certainly be informed and the Dean of Student Affairs will likely open proceedings against you. If the state prosecutor decides to not pursue criminal charges, you may still have to justify your actions during a disciplinary hearing at your university, according to its own rules. You may end up getting suspended or put on probation merely for getting arrested.

A Conviction for Drug Use or Sexual Assault Can Affect Your Student Aid

To apply for student aid, such as grants, loans, or work-study, you need to complete the Free Application For Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for each academic year during which you wish to receive the aid. The FAFSA application requires you to admit whether you received any drug convictions during the period in which you were receiving aid. If the answer is yes, you will need to fill out a worksheet that will help you determine if you are still eligible for financial aid.

In case you are no longer eligible, you may be able to regain your eligibility for federal student aid by completing an approved drug rehabilitation program or by successfully passing two random drug tests administered by an approved facility. Sometimes, students lose their eligibility after the aid has been issued. This means that they will have to refund the aid they received before they can become eligible again.

Finally, if you’ve been convicted of a forcible or non-forcible sexual offense, and were subject to involuntary civil commitment after your jail time, you will not be eligible to receive a Federal Pell Grant.

Your Criminal History Could Affect Your College Application

Many colleges started to collect information regarding applicants’ criminal history when questions about criminal convictions were added to the Common Application in 2006. In some cases, applicants who answer yes to the criminal conviction question will be asked to provide a copy of their official rap sheet, which may unfortunately contain juvenile offenses that were supposed to be sealed by the court.

When the admissions department looks at your criminal records, there’s no telling how they may interpret them. What is certain is that they are not legal authorities, and that they may not be able to understand the relative gravity of the crimes of which you were convicted. They may also make a decision based on portions of your criminal history that were sealed—meaning they were never supposed to be made public.

How a Michigan Criminal Defense Lawyer Can Help You

Owing to the consequences of having a criminal conviction as a college student or applicant, it’s important to seek quality legal representation if you’re a young adult who has been charged with a crime. Not only can a good lawyer help you fight the charges, he or she may be able to help you clean up your record before applying to school. For more information on how we can help, call Michigan criminal defense lawyer Martin Drias with Drias Law Group today at (313) 944-0236 for a free and confidential consultation.

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Some pundits believe that stiffer sentences for gun crimes would protect Detroit’s citizens by putting dangerous criminals behind bars and deterring others from committing similar crimes. But this is an old-fashioned and overly simplistic approach to the problem of violence, which most experts agree does not stem from flawed individuals, but social and economic catalysts.

Additional Prison Time Does Not Reduce Crime Rates

In Detroit, around 70 percent of murders go unsolved. From a practical perspective, increasing penalties for such violent crimes might be futile seeing that in most cases the perpetrator is never even brought before the courts.

A paper from University of Michigan economics professor Michael Mueller-Smith gives interesting insight into the effects of incarceration. Based on data collected in Harris County, Texas from 1980 to 2009, the paper concludes that every year a prisoner spent in prison increased that prisoner’s likelihood of reoffending by over 5 percent. This held true for nonviolent offenders and violent offenders alike. In fact, people jailed for non-serious offenses tended to commit more serious offenses upon their release the longer they spent in jail.

While jail pushes prisoners to committing more crimes upon their release, it also diminishes their earning potential. This in turn may encourage some ex-cons to resort to crime to make a living. For each year in jail, the inmates that Mueller-Smith studied saw their odds of pose-release employment reduced by 24 percent.

What all of this tells us is that prison hardens criminals and makes them more likely to re-offend in the future. And when these criminals are released, they are unable to make a living legitimately, and are often forced back into the criminal underworld. What the paper doesn’t tell us is what we can all see on the streets of Detroit’s — that mass incarceration breaks up families and the very social fabric of our city.

Addressing Social and Economic Issues in Detroit is the Key

Instead of handing out extra punishment for criminals, a better policy might be to address the social and economic factors that contribute to criminality. According to a 2007 analysis, Detroit officials noted that about 65 to 70 percent of homicides in the city were drug-related. This means that the drug trade is a major contributor to the frequency of violent crime.

Why do people engage in the drug trade? Because they may be ex-convicts who can’t apply for a job — or maybe there just aren’t enough jobs left in Detroit. In some cases, kids grow up in environments in which they simply aren’t exposed to a healthy alternative to the gangster life. When fathers, uncles, mothers, and brothers are locked away in prison — who can provide guidance for these children?

From the perspective of a Detroit resident and Michigan criminal defense attorney, it seems that what we need is a program to revitalize our city, create economic opportunities for adults, and help youngsters steer away from a life of crime. While it may be easier to simply increase penalties for violent criminals, we should understand that solving a big problem is never that easy. It will take insight, resolve, and courage on the part of Detroit’s citizens and officials to solve the problem of violent crime.

Contact a Michigan Criminal Defense Attorney

Martin Drias is a Michigan criminal defense attorney based in Detroit who serves people charged with crimes throughout the state. You can call the Drias Law Group today at (313) 944-0236 to get a free and confidential consultation about your legal issues.

The post Will Harsher Sentences Reduce Detroit Gun Crimes? appeared first on Drias Law Group, PLLC.

In 2001, there were 58,000 people with handgun permits in Michigan. Today, that number has swelled to half a million and in light of the recent law change, that number will probably keep growing.

Michigan Will Become a “Shall Issue” State

The new law means that county clerks must issue handgun permits to people who meet the minimum requirements of gun ownership in Michigan:

• No proven history of mental illness
• Not subject of a restraining order
• Completed safety training
• Not a convicted felon

Under the old law, the county boards could still deny licenses to people who met these requirements. The boards, composed of a county prosecutor, sheriff, and a state police representative, denied licenses to around 350 out of over 2,000 applicants in 2013.

Although handgun license applicants must disclose whether they’ve been diagnosed with a mental illness, federal law prohibits Michigan state police from accessing people’s health records. They will only be able to see whether a court has judged an applicant to be mentally ill.

The new law also reduces the cost of applying for a license from $105 to $100. By 2018, license holders should be able to renew online and the fees will increase from $105 to $155. Applicants will also have to pay a fingerprinting fee.

Will Looser Restrictions Result in More Dangerous People Having Handguns?

Supporters of the old law say that the additional screening, which sometimes involved a face-to-face interview with the board, kept some mentally ill or criminally inclined people from getting handgun licenses.

Since the board was composed of local officials, they were relatively well placed to judge which citizens were unfit to carry firearms. In some cases, they would refuse a license to someone whom the police had observed behaving violently or erratically—even if such behavior never led to the kind of conviction that would bar that person from gun ownership under the new law.

In his testimony against the law change, Jerry Walden of the Physicians for the Prevention of Gun Violence, defended the board’s discretion to deny applicants who were not felons:

“Examples of those denied licenses include juveniles with serious records, domestic abusers with misdemeanors or no felonies because their victim would not go to court, serious alcoholics and drug abusers – who will all be free to obtain a CPL under this new law.”

How Can States Limit Second Amendment Rights?

In a recent Supreme Court decision interpreting the second amendment, Justice Scalia wrote that states have the authority to make laws that:

• Prohibit the carrying of concealed weapons
• Rule out gun possession for felons or the mentally ill
• Make it illegal to carry firearms in sensitive places such as schools and government buildings
• Impose conditions and qualifications on the commercial sale of arms
• Prohibit dangerous and unusual weapons
• Regulate firearm storage to prevent accidents

Michigan defense attorney Martin Drias is a criminal defense lawyer whose practice is focused on defending the rights of the citizens of Detroit and its surrounding communities. If you’re facing criminal charges and want to speak with an experienced Michigan criminal defense attorney, call Drias Law Group today at (313) 944-0236 for a free and confidential consultation.

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Our client’s breath test indicated a .03 BAC, significantly under the legal Michigan limit of .08. Nevertheless, officers argued that this seemingly low alcohol level still impaired his driving skills. Police officers proceeded to charge him with the Michigan OWVI. The man was also carrying a firearm with a BAC of over .02, an illegal act in the state of Michigan.

The man had a prior OWVI and was looking at a license suspension, but was in no way prepared to lose his driving privileges with a newborn at home. Davis responded by filing a motion to suppress the evidence of his BAC results, producing a dismissal of the drunk driving charge. Our client pled to a reduced infraction and walked away with a minimal fine, avoiding a license suspension.

The outcome of an individual case depends on a variety of factors unique to that case. Case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result in any similar or future case.

The post Man Charged With Michigan OWVI Avoids License Suspension appeared first on Drias Law Group, PLLC.

The construction worker was the sole provider for his family and was caring for his 15-year-old sister and sick mother at the time of his offense. He was looking at a serious felony that would result in a five-year sentence if convicted. Under no position to go to jail and leave his family, the man feared the worst. Davis responded in a quick, dedicated manner and represented the man with a strong defense. Using his extensive knowledge, he was able to successfully negotiate his felony charge down to a misdemeanor. His client was free of all jail time and only saw a few hours of community service and probation. The man does not have a felony firearm charge on his record.

The outcome of an individual case depends on a variety of factors unique to that case. Case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result in any similar or future case.

The post Felony Firearm Charge Reduced For Detroit Man appeared first on Drias Law Group, PLLC.

Prior to his arrest, our client had no prior criminal record. He had been spending time with a group of individuals who had been involved in criminal activity. There were several co-defendants involved in the alleged offense, and multiple victims were willing to be witnesses to testify against our client.

Concerned about his future, our client sought out the help of the Michigan criminal defense team at Drias Law Group PLLC. He was especially concerned about the two years of mandatory prison time he would be facing if convicted of these firearms charges.

Attorney Martin Drias was able to successfully negotiate the dismissal of five charges against our client. Ultimately, our client plead guilty to one count of armed robbery, which entailed zero mandatory prison time.
The outcome of an individual case depends on a variety of factors unique to that case. Case results do not guarantee or predict a similar result in any similar or future case.

The post 6 Felony Firearms Charges Reduced to 1 appeared first on Drias Law Group, PLLC.