At What Point Does The Prosecutor Offer A Plea Deal In A Drug Case?
The prosecutor can offer a plea deal in a drug case at the pre-hearing conference which is typically the second court date. The prosecutor will offer a plea deal which can relate to the complexity of the case and the number of codefendants. The prosecutor will take into consideration their level of proof, prior drug convictions, overall criminal history, and the amount of illegal substances. If the charges are possession for sales offenses with the more criminal history of priors, the offer will be higher.
Typically, the defense needs time to work up the case and obtain the discovery so a couple of court dates are needed before fruitful case negotiations begin. If you have a co-defendant case and all are out of custody, there can potentially be many court appearances. If the clients are in custody, the case is going to go procedurally faster.
Can My Drug Offense Be Reduced To a Lesser Charge?
More often than not, the prosecutors first formulate offers without digging too deep into the case. They may not know their cases too well. They might glance at the police report and look at the lab report to determine the amount. There’s a lot of chipping away and work to put in to get the DA to come down on their offers. They will also base their evaluation of the case on how well they trust the credibility of the officer’s involved.
There is also the level of proof and the client’s culpability within the case, which is what they believe they can prove, and the client’s record. And as previously mentioned, the amount of illegal substance involved affects whether a lesser charge may ever be offered.
Another factor that happens more in federal cases is whether the client is going to cooperate in terms of testifying against a charged codefendant or giving information that will help law enforcement investigate more culpable suspects. Whether the client wants to do that or not is an entirely different issue.
For more information on Plea Deals Offered In Drug-Related Cases, an initial consultation is your next best step. Get the information and legal answers you are seeking by calling (415) 484-0906 today.
