A drug paraphernalia charge against a 22-year-old University of Illinois student has been dismissed. According to the assistant state’s attorney, the drug charge was dismissed due to insufficient evidence linking the defendant to a cannabis pipe. Earlier this month, the man’s 22-year-old co-defendant pleaded guilty to possession of drug paraphernalia. The man was sentenced to one year of court supervision, meaning the drug conviction will be cleared from his record if he has no further legal problems within that year.
The two Class A misdemeanor drug paraphernalia charges were the least serious of the charges that resulted from a University of Illinois police raid that took place on May 8. Five other men living at a fraternity house as well as a house occupied by former fraternity members received various felony charges as a result of the police drug search.
Four of the men in the group were booked for felony drug possession charges that included possession of cocaine, Ecstasy, amphetamine and psilocybin. Another 20-year-old man involved in the group arrest is expected to be charged with possession of Ecstasy and LSD with intention to sell.
After police officers raid a shared house, a person accused of drug possession may wish to contact an attorney for help building a solid defense against their charges. As it may be difficult to prove who owns what in a shared house, an attorney may challenge the prosecution to present solid evidence linking the accused person to the drugs or drug paraphernalia in question.
Source: The News-Gazette, “Cannabis pipe charge against Troy man dismissed“, Mary Schenk, July 17, 2014