Q: Charged with ownership of illegal pipe as passenger in Virginia
I was a passenger in a vehicle registered in the driver's name, and an illegal pipe was found inside. No one claimed ownership of the pipe at the scene, but both the driver and I were charged with possession. How is ownership determined in such cases, and what can each of us do to contest these charges?
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A: Possession is the issue, not ownership. Two people can be in possession of something. Actual possession is when something is found on you whereas constructive possession is not on your person but generally nearby. They have to prove possession based on the facts... proximity, etc although proximity alone is not enough. So in a vehicle if it's found in the trunk that's harder to prove. Where it was, who it was closer to, who owned the vehicle... whether it was in plain view vs. concealed etc. those all play a role. You both would want to get lawyers to represent yourselves.
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