Tag: Possession of a Controlled Substance

Warning! Warrantless Searches of Curbside Garbage Resume July 1, 2022

Readers of the GRL Law blog are no doubt familiar with the firm’s efforts to protect the privacy rights of Iowans in State v. Wright.  That’s the 2021 ruling from the Iowa Supreme Court that banned police from trespassing on your curbside garbage and searching it without a warrant. Predictably, the law enforcement community threw a tantrum after the ruling.  And they ran kicking and screaming to some legislators at the statehouse who obviously can’t appreciate the difference between the Iowa Bill of Rights and the Communist Manifesto. The result? Effective tomorrow, July 1, 2022, anyone can scavenge your garbage.  […]

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Changes in Iowa Law – Effective July 1, 2022

It has become a tradition at GRL to highlight the Legislature’s activity over the past year that impacts GRL’s areas of legal practice.  Here are the top 5 changes in Iowa laws that GRL believes the Iowa public should be aware of in 2022: Taking out the Trash.  As we have repeatedly posted, the Iowa Legislature wants Iowan’s trash to be open season.  Not just by law enforcement but by anyone.  Senate File 2296, signed into law by the Governor states in part: “It is the public policy of this state that a person has no reasonable expectation of privacy in […]

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Do Marijuana Seeds Still Provide PC to Search?

There was a time when the observation of marijuana seeds on the floorboard of a vehicle provided probable cause to search. Why? Because the definition of “marijuana” under Iowa law includes cannabis seeds. However, with the passage of the Iowa Hemp Act, Iowa Code chapter 204, that may no longer be the case. “Hemp” in Iowa is any part of the cannabis plant with a delta-9 THC concentration of up to 0.3 percent on a dry weight basis.  The definition of hemp also includes seeds.  Hemp is legal to possess in the state of Iowa. Both marijuana and hemp seeds […]

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Reciprocity Defense for Medical Marijuana Results in Two Dismissals

Frequent visitors to the GRL Law Blog are no doubt familiar with our approach to defending medical marijuana charges. The drug defense lawyers recently raised this reciprocity defense in two separate cases.  The first dealt with raw cannabis flower purchased in another state with a valid medical card.  The other concerned edibles. In both cases, the court entered an order granting the defense and dismissing the charge at the state’s cost. We believe these are the first rulings of their kind in the state on the issue of reciprocity. Charged with possession of marijuana for out-of-state medical marijuana?  GRL knows […]

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GRL Successfully Raises Medical Marijuana Reciprocity Defense to Dismiss Drug Charge

Frequent readers of our blog are certainly familiar with the firm’s reciprocity argument regarding medical marijuana.  Normally, the State concedes this issue and voluntarily dismisses the charge.  However, the Iowa State Patrol trooper involved here objected to a dismissal.  So, we had the opportunity to finally pitch our argument to the district court. Our client held a valid medical card from Missouri.  The cannabis flower seized by the trooper was medical marijuana. The court dismissed the charge and found that Chapter 124E provides reciprocity for out-of-state medical marijuana. Charged with possession of medical marijuana?  Call the drug crime lawyers at […]

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Drug Felonies Dismissed Following Unconstitutional Garbage RIp

Earlier this year GRL convinced the Iowa Supreme Court to outlaw the police tactic of warrantless garbage searches in State v. Wright. We haven’t rested on our laurels since the ruling.  Instead, we got to work in several counties where these trash rips resulted in felony charges. A recent case in southeastern Iowa was no exception.  The facts were essentially identical to Wright.  Police illegally trespassed onto our client’s garbage containers set out for collection to scavenge trash.  A search of this trash led to a search warrant to search our client’s home resulting in two drug felony charges. However, […]

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Iowa Supreme Court Reinstates Drug Possession Conviction

On December 3, 2021 the Iowa Supreme Court reinstated a drug possession conviction in State v. Jones. The ruling provides a good reminder to the drug defense bar regarding the differences between actual and constructive possession. The drugs in this case were located in a small drawstring bag on the ground near Jones’ front bumper.  The Iowa Court of Appeals determined this was a constructive possession case because the bag was not found on Jones. That is an incomplete statement of the law. A person can be in actual possession when substantial evidence supports a finding the contraband was on […]

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Plain View Observation is Not Probable Cause to Search

Do police have the right to search your car without a warrant if they see THC edibles in your center console during a traffic stop? The answer may surprise you. Suspected contraband in plain view does not necessarily provide probable cause to search the passenger compartment.  Sure, the observation alone might provide PC under the right circumstances, but it’s still the State’s burden to prove it. The drug defense attorneys at GRL Law believe PC requires more that just a plain view observation. Like furtive movements or efforts to conceal.  Or uncooperative behavior or false identification by the driver or […]

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Firearm Prohibition is a Collateral Consequence of Using Marijuana

One of the collateral consequences to a drug conviction is the prohibition against possessing a firearm or ammunition. Even if the charge does not involve a firearm. Did you know that Iowa law tracks federal law when it comes to marijuana and firearms? A drug conviction within the past 365 days will trigger the prohibition.  So will a self-admission of use or possession in an officer’s narrative report.  Or multiple arrests within 5 years establishing a pattern of use.  This can include drug related DUIs or paraphernalia charges with positive residue tests. Same for use of marijuana under a state-approved […]

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Marijuana with Fentanyl Awareness

If you consume cannabis flower, then you should be aware of common opioid overdose symptoms. Opioid overdose?  But marijuana does not contain opioids?! True. There have been dozens of reports, however, from Connecticut since July 2021 involving patients who exhibited opioid overdose symptoms and required naloxone, a medication that rapidly reverses an overdose, for revival. The patients all denied any opioid use and admitted to only smoking marijuana. A recent lab test confirmed marijuana seized in that state tested positive for fentanyl.  It may be the first reported lab confirmation in the United States. Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic opioid […]

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