Evidence

Officer Landonio is now in the drug task force. He and three other officers have been assigned to serve a search warrant regarding a stolen 50-inch plasma television set. He serves the search warrant and walks into the residence with the three officers. Sitting on the coffee table is a variety of narcotics, both prescription and illegal. What are his options at this time?

During the search, one officer opened a kitchen cabinet and found a kilogram of cocaine. Can Officer Landonio take this as evidence and arrest the residents? Why or why not? What would be the next step in this process?

Check the laws in a U.S. state of your choosing and the requirements of arrest warrants. Be sure to reference and use citations in your material.

Assignment Guidelines

• Address the following in 3–5 pages:
• Can Officer Landonio take the cocaine as evidence? Why or why not? Explain.
• Assuming that the residents of the dwelling are present, what are Officer Landonio’s options upon finding the prescribed and illegal narcotics on the table? Explain.
  • What actions will he be required to take by law? Explain.
    • You will need to fabricate the details or at least address multiple possibilities for this case.
  • How does discretion come into play in this case?
    • How can nonresidents present in the dwelling be handled? Explain.
      • With what can they be charged if arrested? Explain.
• If the residents are arrested, what are the next steps in the process? Explain.
• Can drug courts come into play regarding this case? Why or why not?
• Typically, when will drug law offenders be fined, and when will they be incarcerated? Explain.

You and Officer Landonio are on patrol. You see two juveniles sitting on the curb, and they are smoking what appears to be a marijuana cigarette. They are not trying to hide the fact that they are smoking marijuana, and you pull your patrol car over to talk to them. You run their names and find that one juvenile, Thomas Jones, does not have any record. But the other, Henry Thompson, has a long juvenile record. You now have the option to use, or not to use, your discretion.

Assignment Guidelines

• In 5–6 paragraphs words, address the following:
  • In your own words, what is a chronic juvenile offender? Explain.
  • Do you take both boys into the juvenile assessment center? Do you let the juvenile without a record leave and take Henry Thompson to the juvenile assessment center? Or do you let both boys go with a warning?
    • Explain your decision.
  • What do you think would be the benefits of your decision? Explain.
  • What do you think would be the consequences to your decision? Explain
  • What are your state laws pertaining to marijuana? Explain.
    • Do you agree with these laws? Why or why not?