Q: Can a person be charged with possession simply because they are in the car with someone and drugs are found under them?
If drugs are found under the driver seat of a car and the driver is the owner of the car, can the passenger be charged with possession because the driver/owner refuses to take ownership? If so, how likely is a case like that to stick?
A:
You wouldn't be asking this question if this fact situation hadn't already occurred. So you know the answer already. The passenger(P) can be charged with possession. (If the assumptions I'm making are incorrect, then disregard my answer.)
If the P is charged based solely on P's presence in the vehicle, then police should not have charged P with anything. However, there are all kinds of facts which would make P's charge reasonable. Let's say when the Driver (D) presents his insurance to the officer, P's name appears on D's proof of insurance. This means P is an insured driver for the vehicle, even if P doesn't own the car. Such evidence connects P to the vehicle, making it more likely that P is also in possession of the drugs than if no such evidence existed. What if police saw P driving the vehicle an hour earlier without D even being in the car? What if police see P bend over and make motions indicating he's sticking soemthing under driver's seat when police initiate the stop? These types of facts make P's drug possession charge more likely than if these facts didn't exist.
How likely is this charge to "stick"? Well, if P pleads guilty , this charge is absolutely guaranteed to stick. If P hires a lawyer and fights the charge, the likelihood of the charge sticking decrease dramatically.
So, for best result, hire a lawyer and do not plead guilty.
Kiele Linroth Pace agrees with this answer
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