Special Sauce

Hi guys this is my first time to post on the forum but i've been reading for about a year now. I have a question that i thought Niteshift would probably be able to answer.
I'll let you guys know the story first. So the drug dog came to my school on a wed. and searched inside the school and didn't come up with anything. Then next day i'm at a sports tourny and the drug dog comes back to the school because of a tip that a parent has givin the principle that weed would be in my car. So the drug dog is brought back to the school and the principle tells the cop to only search my car and 3 others. About 10 to 15 people had sacks of weed in there cars that day i know of. The dog alerts on my car and the coach at the tourny is called and told the situation. When i get back to the school the sheriff is waiting for me to search my car. He asks to search my car and i'm scared ****less so i let him telling him that there is a homeade non-working bong that my friend made in the hatch area. He says ok and begins the search. He comes back and has this little bitty crumb of weed in his hand and says he found it in my console. (this piece of weed would occupy about a 1/4 of the space on a dime, "the coin". It might weigh at .1 grams if that) I say i dont know how it got in there and he says ok. Later when me and my parents go to the police station to look at the "evidence" there is now a small piece of paper around the piece of weed that he found and he is claiming that it was a roach in my console, but i know that it wasn't because i got right up to it and looked at it when he showed it to me. He just claimed that it was a small piece of burnt marijuana. He then finds the homeade bong in my hatch area and says that there is resin on the bowl part without a test or anything and i tell him who it belongs to and they left it in my car without me knowing and he just says ok. He calls me over and asks what is in my ashtray and what i thought was cig. ash he says that it was rolling paper ash. The officer doesn't give me a ticket for possession or paraphenalia or anything else. He tells the school and they say that i was "in possession of marijuana on school property" and i get sent to Alternative Education Program and i'm suspended. My friend then tells them the next day that he made the bong and that he left it in my car and HE THEN gets suspended and sent to "AEP" for what the principle says he was "In possession of drug paraphenalia which tested positive for marijuana residue" yet it was in my car when found and the bowl was never actually tested. It was smelled by the local sheriff.
My questions are, Can the principle single out people like that in the school or does he have to do a complete sweep of the parking lot? Another question is, can i get in this much trouble for that little amount of weed that someone could have dropped in my car? Also can my friend get in the same amount of trouble as me for just admitting that it was his and not actually being caught "in possession" of it? What can i do about the officer putting the piece of paper around the weed, his word against mine?? Really i was just wondering if it was an illegal search or if the principle can single people out and work with the police because from what i heard the principle and the police can not work together??
Any comments or advice would be helpful, Thanks
I'm also from texas if you were wondering about laws......

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It wasn't mine sir.

mindraver

okay, a couple of things i would like to point out before getting to your specific questions. first off, i myself am from texas.

do a search on these boards for "Probable Cause". there are many things you can learn from this alone.

also, it is never, ever, ever a good idea to keep any sort of paraphenalia on you in a public place especially if it is on a schools property. also, please visit http://www.norml.org and check out some facts about what to do and not do if you are asked to be searched. with that said, it is also always advisable to get an attorney as soon as possible and to answer questions at a minimum.

1. Yes, the principal or other authority figures generally have this option if there is "probable cause".

2. In brief, yes. Unfortunately, in Texas, the laws are extremely stiff, especially if you live in certain counties (again, check out the laws on NORMLs website as link above points to).

3. Your friend might not get in trouble at all, or may just receive a citation for paraphenalia. Of course, the school might be able to pick up the charges on this, but it really depends and I am not completely sure.

4. Talk to your lawyer about all of this. I cannot stress how much a relatively inexpensive lawyer will help out. Most will give you a free consultation. I would take your parents along too since you are considered a minor (assuming you are under 18).

5. I have never been aware of any laws pertaining to police not being able to work with principles or vice versa. Wouldnt that be considered obstruction of justice? In most cases (if not all since you are from Texas), if someone tips off the police, they can subsequently get warrants issued to search said vehicles that the source said might contain {supply whatever to search for here}. Now, when you are on public school property, the sky is pretty much the limit to what a law enforcement office can do.



hope that helps. get an attorney if things get really bad and good luck man. please update us on the situation when time permits.

btw, welcome to marijuana.com - please enjoy your stay!

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Cannabis is my anti-drug.
- the mindraver

Niteshift

"Can the principle single out people like that in the school or does he have to do a complete sweep of the parking lot?"

You bet they can single out a car. Completely legal.

"can i get in this much trouble for that little amount of weed that someone could have dropped in my car?"

In most states, the answer is yes. I don't know of any thet really have a minimum amount. The law says possession.......period.

"Also can my friend get in the same amount of trouble as me for just admitting that it was his and not actually being caught "in possession" of it?"

In theory, yes, but I'm not sure why he'd admit it unless it would get you off the hook, which legally speaking, it would not.

"What can i do about the officer putting the piece of paper around the weed, his word against mine??"

Nothing. You weren't charged with a crime and the school is punishing you for possession. It doesn't matter if it was in a rolling paper, in a baggie or in your hand. So that's a battle that you shouldn't even fight, because even if you "win", you gain nothing.

"Really i was just wondering if it was an illegal search or if the principle can single people out and work with the police because from what i heard the principle and the police can not work together??"

They absolutely can work together. No legal problem there. What you might be thinking of is this: The police can't direct the principal to take an action that they can't take in order to circumvent the law.

For example, if I wanted to look in your locker, I'd need a warrant. If I didn't have probable cause, I couldn't get a warrant. What I can NOT do is go to the rincipal and say "I need you to do a locker search today of Special Sauces locker". At that point, the principal is acting as my agent and he has to follow the same rules I do.

On the other hand, if he decides to do locker searches and asks me to observe in case he finds drugs, weapons etc, then I can come along and observe. Then if I observe the offense, I can take action.

Subtle, but important difference.

Also, drug dog sniffs are not legally considered searches, since the dog is actually sampling air around the location. The air is considered to be a free space. The only requirement I really have to fulfill is that I be in a place that I am legally allowed to be. That means if the mall asks me to, I can run a dog through the mall parking lot. If the dog alerts, I have probable cause and do not need a warrant for vehicles. I've done completely legal searches with a dog in hotel corridors, truck stops, rest stops, grocery store parking lots, you name it.

The short answer: Everything sounds pretty legal. You might not feel like it, but you did get a little lucky when they decided to foget about any criminal charges.

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A burning desire for social justice is never a substitute for knowing what you're talking about. -Thomas Sowell

Sometimes the light at the end of the tunnel is muzzle flash.

weedzinger

This is a little off-topic but lets say you get pulled out of class for selling drugs. Its the Principal and the Vice Principal and they take me to there office. They search me and do all the normal yelling and screaming (its a wonder the other people in the office didnt hear) trying to get me to confess.
All I really care about is can they (the principal) search a minor without being in the Police Station.
Niteshift, you said that if you want to search my locker, you need a warrant. Is that the same with the principal? BTW, I didnt have anything on me. I wouldnt mind if the cops searched me, I just didnt want my evil Principal to do it (who is a preacher).

This happened a long time ago. But Im still a little confused.

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Half of the people can be part right all of the time,
Some of the people can be all right part of the time.
But all of the people cant be right all of the time.

HotLunch

Thank goodness the principle don't hassle me anymore!

You will feel better after you get out of school.

Special Sauce

Thanks a lot to those who replied....info helped a lot. Yes i've already spoken to a lawyer and he said some of the same things but i wasnt sure if he knew what he was talking about. (steven m. williams)
Well we appeal the decision today in front of the school board. I live in a small town so maybe i'll get lucky. The only point I really have is that a coaches daughter and some other girls got caught taking alcohol on a field trip and they just got 5 days iss. Alcohol and marijuana are listed under the same offense so my punishment is a little rough.
thanks and i'll tell ya how it comes out...

Conine

Niteshift, you said that if you want to search my locker, you need a warrant. Is that the same with the principal?

Oh, oh, I know.... NO. The principal can likely search your locker any time they feel like it. It's probably even outlined in your student handbook. Forget ANY privacy in school, which is why I always say bringing weed to school is a very bad idea - because your rights while in school are JACK.

What Niteshift said was that the police can't force the principal to exercise his ability to just search at will just because the police want a way around the fact that they can't.. The principal can search and ask the police to be there, but the police can't come to school and mandate that the lockers get searched. Well, not without probable cause.

Your rights while in school are considerably diminished.

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Niteshift

Conine gets a gold star

To use a non-search illustration:

Say something was stolen at you school and the principal questioned you about it. You confessed and produced the stolen item. He could turn it over to me and you'd get charged and that stolen item would be admissable (and in many cases, your statement to him).

But if I'm working on the case and run out of leads, I can't tell the principal to interrogate you for me. At that point, he's acting as my agent so he's bound by the same rules (miranda).


And, Conine is right in pointing out that school staff have such broad authority when it comes to searches etc. that you have vitually no privacy at all.

weedzinger

I knew most of that but why do they have to be so mean. Theres no point in calling me all these things because I go to a rich school. The reason Im asking is my friends girlfriend recently was busted at school. When I got busted it was a long time ago. She got in trouble for pot and I did not.

HotLunch

....for going to rich school?

P.S.-----what is a rich school?