Drug Crimes

21
Jul

Marijuana: No Hard-in-Fact Test Required to Establish Probable Cause for Trial

Drug Crimes
Are hemp and other products such as delta-8-tetrahydrocannabinol (Delta-8) actually legal in Minnesota? In short, yes. But the newly released opinion in Minnesota Court of Appeals State v. Nixon allows the State to charge an individual with criminal…
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28
Apr

Marijuana DUI - Actual Impairment Required

Drug Crimes, DWI
With 4/20 having come and gone recently, we thought it’d be an appropriate time to discuss the marijuana DUI laws in Minnesota. Certainly, with the likely legalization of marijuana in the not-too-distant future, marijuana DUI’s will becom…
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8
Apr

Controlled Substance Crimes Sentencing - How to Get a Reduction in Prison Time

Drug Crimes, Felonies
Minnesota’s sentencing laws used to be more penal than just, particularly in the everlasting ‘war on drugs.’ Sentencing reform in 2016 provided some help in stopping the law from being overly punitive toward controlled substance cri…
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6
Sep

Drug Detection Dog Search in a Secured Apartment Building - Get a Warrant!

Case Law Updates, Constitutional Rights, Drug Crimes
This week, the Minnesota Court of Appeals issued an important decision, pulling back the expanding usage of drug detection dogs for searches of controlled substances. In State v. Edstrom, the Court of Appeals held that law enforcement must get a warr…
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10
Feb

Entrapment Defense

Drug Crimes, Sex Crimes/Child Pornography Crimes
The entrapment defense is an affirmative defense that may defeat charges against a defendant. It can apply to many kinds of charges, including drug crimes and solicitation of a prostitute. An entrapment defense exists when law enforcement lures a def…
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1
Aug

Drug Crime Sentencing - New Laws Effective Today

Drug Crimes, Felonies
Effective today – Aug. 1 – Minnesota’s drug laws received a much needed update for drug crime sentencing. An antiquated system more in tune with the failed “War on Drugs” from previous decades is finally abolished in fav…
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27
Feb

City of Minneapolis Marijuana Laws Will Now Match State Laws

Drug Crimes
The City of Minneapolis – never one to hold back in pursuing criminal “justice” – is correcting a ridiculous inconsistency between its own laws and those of this State. The City Council voted unanimously on Friday to reduce po…
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12
Feb

Expungement of Drug Charges in Minnesota

Case Law Updates, Drug Crimes, Expungement
One of the grounds for a statutory expungement is for certain drug charges. Pursuant to Minn. Stat. 609A.02, subd. 1, a person may seek an expungement of a drug charges in which the person received a statutory stay of adjudication for 4th or 5th degr…
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18
Jan

Confidential Informant's Identity May Be Disclosed

Drug Crimes, Evidence, Felonies
Often, the State relies upon snitches (or, more politically correct – a confidential informant (“CI”)) to prove their case against a defendant. You see this often in drug cases. The State values this ‘insider’ informatio…
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8
Nov

Subsequent Drug Crime Convictions in Minnesota

Drug Crimes, Felonies
EDITOR’S NOTE: The law has changed since this post. Here is a link about the law change on this topic: https://www.northstarcriminaldefense.com/drug-crime-sentencing-new-laws-effective-today/ For possession or sale drug crimes, the penalties im…
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