Advice needed for family member QLD

[theuserformallyknownasd00d]

G'day all, wish I didn't have to be asking for such information... last night my cousin was arrested and charged with drugs trafficking (the worst kind of em...) amongst 6 others charges in QLD.

The rest of my family has left him out where he is and aren't really offering any help in ways of getting him legal advice or visiting him etc. I know I know, not good charges but I only need advice to at least try to help him. (Ps no it's not me !!! )

For starters, where's a good place to start to find a lawyer, I'm guessing it'll be legal aid or state appointed, i just wanna get a ball rolling for him if the cops haven't already.

How would I go about contacting him in the meantime? I wouldn't mind offering some family support whilst there's not much. I know which LAC he was picked up in but that's about it.

And anything else you think I might need to know with starting the two above processes? Unfortunately I'm in NSW and have never been faced with such a predicament and am well out of my depth offering support here....

Thanks a lot and feel free to take this to PM with me.

P / d00d

Edited June 21, 2014 by prioritise

[goodude]

pretty certain legal aid wont help with criminal charges only civil matters. definately get a private lawyer. tell him to check into atods volintarily. maybe even a psychologist. by doing this the judge will see he wants to help himself. good on you for sticking by him. i hope he wasnt selling meth. im not sure what u mean by u cant contact him but surely if hes in custody by contacting the police maybe u could arrange a meeting with him. i hope its his first offence. once again, good on u for supporting him. he'll need it.

[Slocombe]

pretty certain legal aid wont help with criminal charges only civil matters

Really? I would have thought it was the other way round. The legal system can't function fairly if people can't even get basic legal representation for criminal matters.

OP, I wouldn't give up on legal aid without checking first.

Edited June 26, 2014 by GHBeer

[Alice]

Legal aid certainly will represent criminal matters.

But if he was arrested with significant drug and cash assets, the magistrate won't look favourably on him using public resources if he's obviously cashed up.

[ThunderIdeal]

good point, not to mention that it will probably be worthwhile coughing up for a decent lawyer, even if it means taking out a loan.

[theuserformallyknownasd00d]

Thanks for replies and pms guys, the ball got rolling on this Monday and we know have him seeing a few community organisations as well as a psychiatrist. We all pooled for a good lawyer too, all your info via pms has been invaluable. Thanks.

[AndyAmine.]

If its a first offence and its not a large ammount he will probabaly get drug diversion in which case a legal aid will suffice, if its a large ammount or he has some other high level charges then its definitely time to spring for a quality lawyer/solicitor who specialises with criminal law, preferably drug cases.
A bit of searching around or if you ask legal aid they can provide you with some leads.

You can also call legal aid for advice rather than see them in person.

For some context, last time I was in court there was a bloke that got caught with 2 Oz of pot in individual grams, a set of scales and a few hundred baggies and he was given diversion no worries.

His main case was that it was in grams so he could control his intake and while the judge didnt believe him he still gave the benefit of the doubt because ity was his first drugs charge..

[IceCube]

Caxton legal service is good in Bris but won't represent you in court, you have to apply for legal aid.

Best of luck

[Girl Shiny]

G'day all, wish I didn't have to be asking for such information... last night my cousin was arrested and charged with drugs trafficking (the worst kind of em...) amongst 6 others charges in QLD.

The rest of my family has left him out where he is and aren't really offering any help in ways of getting him legal advice or visiting him etc. I know I know, not good charges but I only need advice to at least try to help him. (Ps no it's not me !!! )

For starters, where's a good place to start to find a lawyer, I'm guessing it'll be legal aid or state appointed, i just wanna get a ball rolling for him if the cops haven't already.

 

If the charges are serious, and the evidence weighty - then he doesn't need a lawyer (solicitor), he needs a QC. Seriously. So get him to sell a kidney, whatever it takes, so he can hire a solicitor to instruct a barrister - to brief a QC. If he wants freedom he needs the best representation he can get.

Legal aid! Fuck no - some washed out bum carrying his lunch and old newspapers in his briefcase won't work. It's like betting on a horse just because it has long odds - except that Legal Aid won't do diddly for the average joe who is pleading not guilty. The only way Legal Aid is useful is if you carry enough weight to choose the legal representation, and they send their bill to Legal Aid (only politicians seem to be able to do that). Otherwise Legal Aid will only urge him to plead guilty (and who needs a solicitor to do that?) and attempt to plea for mitigation (which is better achieved with character witnesses).

How would I go about contacting him in the meantime? I wouldn't mind offering some family support whilst there's not much. I know which LAC he was picked up in but that's about it.

 

That's a start - ring them. He'd probably appreciate the visit (which is what you'll need to do - though you can try getting them to forward your contact details).

Do be aware that you are unlikely to be able to have a private conversation with him - regardless of what you might be told. Unless... you have the balls and ability to carry off a "I'm a paralegal" and mumble the para. (I've done similar and posed as a clerk for a friendly solicitor so I could have a quiet word with a sibling who was jailed).

And anything else you think I might need to know with starting the two above processes? Unfortunately I'm in NSW and have never been faced with such a predicament and am well out of my depth offering support here....

 

I have (been faced with a similar predicament - in that state) - the money I spent on good defense was the best investment I've ever made.

• All drug charges are based on possession.
• Possession charges have a "reversal of onus" - which means if the person charges fails to demonstrate "reasonable doubt" they are guilty as charged.
• Possession means sole knowledge and sole control of the drug.

That means three things:-

1. If you can't demonstrate reasonable doubt that the evidence of drugs (analysis and chain of custody) meets the standards of scientific evidence - the drugs are drugs. You need a good criminal lawyer for that. Mary Todd of the Botanical Gardens said on the basis of her observation that the green herbaceous material had cysolith(?) hairs and turned purple in response to the Dusometing test this is cannabis - which a good lawyer will beat like a rented mule.
2. If you can't demonstrate reasonable doubt that you had sole knowledge of the drugs - you had knowledge of the drugs i.e. were they in a place that is would be "reasonable" to presume other would know of their existence? e.g. the back seat of a car others have ridden in since you last cleaned it, the laundry of a shared house.
3. If you can't demonstrate reasonable doubt that you had sole control of the drugs - you had control of the drugs i.e. was it in a locked room to which only you had the key?

Important point - if the drugs were in a common area in a shared house you should argue that in court. Then either the police produce compelling evidence and argument that all tenants had knowledge and control - or you all go free.

"Taking it like a man" is something you do when you lose in court (and apparently many men don't enjoy it). If you believe the laws suck - then don't play fair when you get caught. "Man up" is what you do when you lose in court - not the same as "give it up" (which is what you shouldn't do in court - or a police station).

Can the charge/s be beaten? Depends on the drugs - with "soft drugs" the fools who get busted generally convict themselves (more people fight traffic fines than minor cannabis charges). So statistically if he's been charged with pot offences he probably made it easy for the cops - and they would most likely have done little to prepare for a not-guilty plea and competent representation. I've had a pot possession charge dismissed as a result of paying a QC to write a letter to the magistrate, the other two in the car got fines and criminal records (there's a lesson there!). So it depends on how competent and confident the cops were, how informed and experienced (or silent) your relative was, and how good the legal representation is (and maybe, whether the QC plays golf with the Judge and the Prosecutor wants to leave the Public Service for higher pay at the QC's chambers).

I'm guessing this is an indictable offense (or he'd have made bail) - so a good suit (unless he's a prominent footballer), haircut, professional advice on conduct and composure, reputable character witnesses, and a well dressed respectable crowd of supporters in in court would also be helpful.

Hope that helps.