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Minnesota men face drug charges after routine traffic stop

On Behalf of | Jun 19, 2014 | Drug Charges

Being convicted of a drug crime can result in long-term consequences for the accused, including jail time, fines, reputation damage and limited employment options. You don’t want this to happen to you. In any drug-related case, the state must meet the burden of proof in order to convict, and those accused of drug crimes should speak with a criminal defense attorney about challenging the prosecution’s evidence.

Consider the recent arrests of three Minnesota men who were travelling on Interstate 94 in Wisconsin. A local deputy pulled over the vehicle occupied by the men, allegedly because numerous traffic violations had occurred. However, a news report doesn’t say exactly what violations the deputy saw.

The report also doesn’t say what prompted the deputy to call a drug-sniffing dog to the scene. Police must have probable cause to pull over your vehicle and to search you or your property.

At any rate, a search ensued. Authorities claim to have found cocaine and heroin inside the vehicle after the K-9 alerted to the presence of drugs. In particular, about 61 grams of cocaine and 43 grams of heroin were allegedly uncovered in the search.

The drugs were said to have an estimated street value of $12,600.

The three men in the vehicle are from Minneapolis, St. Paul and Duluth, respectively. They were arrested and now stand charged with possession of heroin with intent to deliver. Authorities claim the men were en route to Chicago.

What remains to be seen is whether authorities had probable cause to pull over the vehicle and to conduct a search and seizure. Sometimes police fail to prove that they had probable cause, and any evidence seized in a traffic stop can be suppressed.

If you are facing drug charges after a traffic stop, then you should explore these and other options for protecting your rights.

Source: KARE 11, “3 Minn. men arrested on drug charges in Wis.,” Scott Beedy, June 10, 2014

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