Manhattan Drug Crime Lawyer

In the United States, drugs come under two classifications; legal and illegal. Examples of illegal drugs include marijuana, cocaine, heroin, LSD and ecstasy. However, prescription drugs can also be illegal if a person is selling their drugs to someone else. According to our Manhattan Drug Crime Lawyer staff at Stephen Bilkis & Associates, PLLC, there are state and federal laws that prohibit the manufacture, sale and transport of illegal drugs and controlled substances. A person who is found to be in violation of these laws will likely be charged with a drug crime. People convicted of drug crimes are often sentenced with prison time since drug crimes are felony crimes. If you've been charged with possession of drugs, trafficking drugs or any other drug offense, it's vital that you discuss your case with our Manhattan Drug Crime Lawyer team as soon as possible.

Because most drug crimes are can result in a criminal record, being charged is a very serious matter. A conviction mayl result in life-altering consequences such as having a felony conviction on your permanent criminal record. Now that most employers perform background checks, this can make finding a decent job extremely difficult.

While there are a variety of drug crimes the most often committed seems to be the crime of distribution or possession with the intent to sell. Drug possession is basically having some quantity of an illegal drug or controlled substance while possession with intent to distribute means that you have what the law considers to be a larger than personal amount of drugs and you intend to sell them. While these are both very serious crimes, they can be made worse if it is determined that you are drug selling to minors or near a school.

When a person is punished for a drug-related crime, the court will usually take into account several factors including whether the person has a past criminal record, the type and amount of drugs involved and whether any minors were involved. A person convicted of a drug crime can face a number of sentences including imprisonment, financial penalties, court-ordered drug rehab, probation, mandatory random drug tests and community service. At Stephen Bilkis & Associates, PLLC, our Manhattan Drug Crime Lawyer team is experienced in defending clients accused of drug crimes. Because of the serious nature of drug crimes, and the punishments involved, it's important to speak to a New York Criminal attorney who has experience in handling drug crime cases.

Our attorneys work with clients who are accused of a variety of drug-related crimes including:

• Marijuana possession, cocaine or other illegal drugs
• Possession of methamphetamine
• Date rape involving drugs
• Selling prescription drugs
• Enterprise Corruption (Conspiracy)

While possession of drugs is a serious offense, dealing can lead to much harsher sentences. A judge might go easy on someone who is caught with an ounce of marijuana, but if they have several bags, regardless of whether it's for personal use or not, the law may look at that person as a distributor and the individual may face a harsher sentence.

In addition, law enforcement will also look to see whether a person has drug paraphernalia when deciding whether to press for a drug trafficking charge. Drug paraphernalia can be items like scales used for weighing drugs, plastic bags, envelopes and large amounts of cash. It's not uncommon for a person who has a larger than normal supply of drugs for personal use to be charged with trafficking in addition to possession. That's why it's so important to have our experienced Manhattan Drug Crime Lawyer staff defending you if you are arrested for such a crime.

Contact our Manhattan Drug Crime Lawyer team at Stephen Bilkis & Associates, PLLC at 800.696.9529 for a free consultation. Or contact one of our New York City offices serving Manhattan, Staten Island, Queens, the Bronx or Brooklyn, or in Westchester County or one of our Long Island offices in Nassau County or Suffolk County.