What Happens if I’m Caught With Drugs in Illinois? Facing criminal drug charges in the state of Illinois? Attorneys Joshua Boardman and Andrew Russek from Combs Waterkotte discuss what happens if you’re caught with drugs. If you are caught with drugs in Illinois, you may face criminal charges ranging from misdemeanor possession to serious felony offenses. Illinois drug laws under the Illinois Controlled Substances Act (720 ILCS 570) outline penalties based on the type and amount of the substance involved. Possible consequences can include fines, probation, mandatory treatment programs, or even jail or prison time.
Combs Waterkotte is a leading criminal defense law firm serving Illinois and Missouri. Our Illinois defense attorneys will fight for your freedom and rights and will not stop until you get justice. If you are facing criminal charges in Illinois, we can help. Call us at (312) 500-HELP 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Interview Transcript
Scott Michael Dunn: What happens if I get caught with drugs in Illinois? Is there a difference?
Joshua Boardman: Well, it depends on the circumstances in which you were caught with drugs. Were drugs found on your person as a result of a consent to search? Were drugs found under the passenger seat of a vehicle that you happen to be driving? Depending on the different circumstances in which the drugs were located, dictates how your response should be. First and foremost, if you’ve been charged or if you’ve been caught that will likely lead to a charge for possession, you want to contact an attorney. But the underlying principles when confronted with law enforcement in these situations are exactly the same. You do not want to be making statements basically copping to it or admitting to possession or ownership of the drugs. You do not want to be consenting to searches. You do not want to be trying to explain, oh, they’re for somebody else. I know they’re in my car, but they’re for somebody else. Or I was just holding these for somebody. You want to assert your rights to an attorney. You want to keep your mouth shut and not give law enforcement any additional fodder for later on in the case. And then seek out an attorney right away.
Andrew Russek: Seeking out an attorney can be good, not just for your defense, but whether it’s a case where you think you may be charged and they weren’t your drugs, or we do get a lot of cases where our clients did do the crime they’re accused of and the evidence is there. Drug mitigation is huge. So, getting an attorney to say, hey, the drugs were sent out to the lab, I’m expecting I’m gonna be charged with a felony four months from now. Well, that’s the time to start treatment. That’s the time to start documenting your success. Because maybe we can stop the prosecutor from even charging you, or we can get in right away and show everything you’ve done since then. So sometimes these are proactive, not in terms of just beating the charges, but damage control, especially in drug cases.
