19 May 22
Committing a drug-related offense often results in several outcomes for persons found guilty of the alleged charge. Notably, you may face harsh imprisonment sentences or pay expensive fines. Therefore, you want to raise strong defenses to support your case and avoid facing incarceration or other serious case outcomes. You will need to partner with a reliable criminal defense attorney who understands the value of conducting sufficient research and due diligence on your case. With Leah Legal, you will receive the best criminal defense services aimed at helping you avoid incarceration for concealing drugs in a false compartment. After reaching out to us, you will receive assistance round the clock to ensure you have a credible defense that matches up with the prosecutor’s case.
Understanding the Nature of the Offense
In California, the Health and Safety Code serves as the primary statutory provision for drug-related offenses. Thus, the information in the statute regarding concealing drugs under pretenses will be the prosecutor’s main source of information.
Understanding the definition of the crime is therefore essential. Section 11366.8 of the Health and Safety Code provides an in-depth definition of the offense and its elements. This way, you can better understand applying the regulations in formulating a proper defense for your benefit.
With an attorney’s help, you will also be better positioned to pre-empt the prosecutor’s advances and identify any shortcomings in their argument, which is useful in increasing the chances of a successful case outcome.
Elements of Crime for Concealing Drugs in a False Compartment
Criminal cases proceed based on the type of evidence presented and its quality. Therefore, criminal procedure guidelines place a lot of emphasis on producing highly credible evidence by the prosecutor. This is because the proof is heavily relied on to determine whether or not to convict you, which yields a lot of negative consequences.
Hence, the prosecutor carries the burden of proof to show that you are guilty of concealing drugs in a false compartment by relying on the elements of crime linked to the offense. This way, they will ensure that the standard of proof is sustained beyond a reasonable doubt, in line with the criminal law directives.
Learning about the various elements of the crime is helpful for you, too, because it serves as a guide map to determine the applicable arguments in your case. Your criminal defense attorney will be keen to identify any arising issues and develop counterarguments that align with your defenses.
The elements of the crime for concealing drugs in a false compartment range, depending on the Health and Safety Code relied upon. They are:
You Used, Controlled, or Possessed a False Compartment
Section 11366.8(a) of the Health and Safety Code provides that anyone found using, controlling, or possessing a false compartment may be suspected of the offense. Based on this, the provision forms the first element of crime related to having the false compartment within your control.
A false compartment includes any item that can contain or hold drugs for a reasonable time by enclosing it to prevent external factors from destroying the drugs. With this in mind, a false compartment may include a container, small to mid-sized space, or any box that can serve the purpose.
The prosecutor will rely on various elements of crime, depending on the case circumstances in question. For example, if you face accusations of possessing a false compartment, their evidence will show that you had the item within your person.
Alternatively, the prosecutor may have to prove that your possession consisted of exercising reasonable control of the false compartment, even if you did not have it on you. For example, having the item in your car at the time of arrest may also be sufficient to prove possession.
Secondly, where a case involves using a false compartment, the prosecutor’s evidence should be geared towards showing you the specific act. Using the false compartment means having drugs stored inside to conceal them from probable detection. Therefore, the case should take on a direction to show your effort to conceal the drugs using the item in question.
For example, video footage can form a primary evidential source if it is relevant to show you using the false compartment. Alternatively, any witness present as you tried to conceal the drugs may also testify against you to present details on the element.
Having control over the false compartment often goes hand in hand with possession, so the prosecutor may choose to combine both elements into one, depending on the facts. Nevertheless, due regard must still be paid to the different rules of evidence to ensure that the prosecution is fair.
You Intended to Smuggle, Store Transport, or Conceal Drugs
Secondly, the prosecutor should prove that you intended to move or hide the drugs in the false compartment for the offense to attract legal repercussions. Proving criminal intent is important in criminal cases, as intention distinguishes criminal acts from accidental or good faith actions. Therefore, you can expect the prosecutor to focus on establishing the factors in question adequately as they try to establish the fact in court.
If your case involved smuggling, the prosecutor would need to show the specific intentions you were involved in to ensure the offense succeeded. Smuggling involves trying to move with illegal items in unrestricted areas, meaning that if you were caught with the item, you would face repercussions. Hence, your actions should have shown that you tried to hide the drugs in question by using the false compartment as the main item to conceal them.
Evidence of you smuggling the drugs may also be available for use to your detriment in court. For example, if you tried to gain access to a plane with a small box of drugs, the prosecutor will rely on the proof sourced to show your intention.
Lastly, you should note that proving intention even where your actions were unsuccessful is acceptable in court. This is because the presiding judge is mostly interested in the criminal element of your intention to break the law. Hence, you cannot rely on the defense of not having moved the drugs, provided the prosecutor has shown that you intended to.
Similar factors like the intention to store, transport, and conceal the drugs also follow the same consideration pattern discussed above, depending on the case circumstances. For example, proving an intent to transport the drugs requires the prosecutor to show that you made plans to move them from one point to another. Alternatively, the prosecution team can show that you moved the drugs but were apprehended midway.
You Built, Designed, Installed, Altered, or Attached the False Compartment into a Car
Section 11366.8(b) of the Health and Safety Code further provides for additional offenses associated with concealing drugs in a false compartment, including building, designing, or attaching the compartment to a car. Parties found guilty of this are answerable because of the unlawful nature of attaching the false compartment in the vehicle. The act aims to help the accused party transport the drugs or hide them away from public scrutiny.
Subsequently, the evidential sources presented by the prosecutor should focus on showing the specific actions you undertook to complete the action. For example, if you face accusations of building a false compartment into the vehicle, the prosecution team should present evidence of the activity. They may do this by securely retrieving tools or devices to attach the compartment to your car. These include drills, screws, or even tape.
Altering your vehicle to make a provision for the false compartment also amounts to an offense, as you will have created a provision to hold the controlled substances. As a result, the investigating officers assigned to your case may have searched your car to determine whether the false compartment came about due to deliberate efforts to change its appearance. If so, you will be answerable to the charges.
Photographic exhibits are common evidential sources as the prosecutor presents this element of the crime. They are often an easier option than presenting the entire vehicle for inspection. Hence, you will receive copies of the photographs during the discovery period. To avoid facing charges unfairly, you want to ensure that the images were taken from your vehicle and not a similar-looking one.
You Built or Designed the False Compartment Intending to Smuggle Transport or Hide Drugs
Lastly, the prosecutor will also need to show that you undertook the building, attaching, or designing with a criminal intention. As mentioned, showing this element of the crime is essential to establish an accused person’s wrongdoings, and failure to do so may result in your acquittal.
Due to this, the prosecutor will rely on several factors to establish that criminal intent was present. For example, any prior purchases on tools used to fix, repair or build materials can be helpful information in helping establish your wrongdoing.
Thus, the investigation officers will try to retrieve any traces of your expenditures by tracking your card usage, receipts, and surveillance footage in stores you visited. Further, witness statements from any persons present while you made your purchase will also be factored in to determine intent.
Notably, establishing intent highly depends on the circumstantial evidence available in each case. Therefore, your attorney will advise you not to be surprised if the prosecutor develops a case based on actions that seem unrelated to the main issue in question. Instead, you can work with your criminal defense attorney to ensure your defenses align with the matter for adequate delivery of your counterargument.
Defenses Applicable for Concealing Drugs in a False Compartment
After the prosecutor finalizes presenting their case, you will have a chance to raise relevant defenses. This trial stage is essential in establishing the overall case development, as your defenses may introduce crucial points of consideration. Subsequently, you want to go through the crucial pointers with your attorney before appearing in court to help you establish the best arguments to introduce.
You should also note that not all defenses apply to your case, so you do not expect to use all in your case. Hence, making a detailed comparison between the points, you intend to put across, and the accusations you face is vital to developing a credible defense.
Some applicable defenses to your case include:
You Lacked the Intent to Conceal the Drugs
Having emphasized the importance of proving intention in any criminal case, you can rely on this defense to cast reasonable doubt on the prosecutor’s presentation. This would involve showing that the actions you are accused of are inaccurate based on their unintended nature. As a result, your criminal defense attorney can rely on several argument approaches to disprove the prosecutor, including labeling your actions as accidental.
Noteworthy, proving intention requires indicating the legal rules against what the accused is about to do, coupled with acts of impunity towards the regulations. Hence, your defense should show that you did not intend to conceal drugs or knowingly do it.
For example, if you were used as a mule to transport the controlled substances, you can explain your situation’s circumstances to help you prove your innocence. If so, you also need to identify the potential suspects of your actions, particularly those who lured you into performing the illegal activity on their behalf.
You Made a Confession After Coercion
Secondly, you can use the defense of coercion to show that you did not play a role in the offense, yet you were forced to admit to it. This counterargument is ideal where you have a strong alibi that proves you were utterly uninvolved in the alleged concealing of drugs in a false compartment.
For example, if you strongly believe that the investigation officers used false information to force you into admitting fault, you can inform your defense attorney, who will then help you raise the defense. Supporting your counterargument with evidential proof is always advisable, as it allows you to build credibility. Therefore, you can provide information on how the officers involved in the case forced you to give a false confession.
Even where you were actively involved in concealing drugs, investigating officers should not coerce you into making a false confession. Doing so violates criminal procedure rules that encourage a fair trial and holding an accused person innocent until proven guilty. Thus, the judge is likely to side with your version of events, provided you present sufficient evidence to support it.
Your Case Involved Entrapment
Some accused persons may face unfair criminal procedures if their case is built on entrapment. The process often involves tricking the arrested person into providing self-incriminating information at the expense of risking conviction. Consequently, you may face strict penalties based on the illegally obtained information, resulting in an impediment to justice.
When presenting on this defense, you want to be specific about the specific type of entrapment you suffered. Doing so will help eliminate possible avenues for the prosecutor to challenge your credibility during cross-examination. For example, if the entrapment involved police setting you up to conceal the drugs in a false compartment, you can raise this issue before the judge in the preliminary stages of your case and ensure it has been well addressed.
Moreover, some entrapment cases may involve members outside the law enforcement field in fraudulent operations. They may trick you into concealing the drugs on their behalf under the pretense that nothing harmful or illegal is inside. If you accept, you will have taken on partial blame for emerging legal issues. Thus, you want to present your case in the most credible way to ensure your point is delivered exhaustively.
Penalties for Concealing Drugs in a False Compartment
After listening to both sides, the judge holds the discretion to determine whether you are guilty or innocent of the charged offense. If found guilty, you may receive any of the following punishments, depending on the nature of your crime.
If you violate section 11366.8 (a) of the Health and Safety Code, You may spend one year in county jail. Alternatively, violating section 11366.8(b) may result in imprisonment for sixteen months, two or three years.
Contact a Criminal Defense Attorney Near Me
Being accused of concealing drugs in a false compartment can be detrimental, primarily if found guilty. Your case may be tried as a felony or misdemeanor, resulting in potentially harsh punishments. Nevertheless, you can avoid this outcome by consulting an experienced criminal defense attorney knowledgeable of the laws. At Leah legal, you can expect to work with some of the best criminal defense attorneys dedicated to helping you raise strong defenses for your case. Our team comprises highly experienced persons with sufficient information to handle accusations of concealing drugs in a false compartment. If you or a loved one requires legal assistance in Van Nuys, California, call us at 818-484-1100.
