Drug charge after attempted suicide

[Jeannie 333]

Jurisdiction

Wisconsin

My grandson attempted suicide by overdosing on Ketamine and ended up in treatment for several weeks. He lived in an apartment with two other people. He had no history of alcohol or drug use, but had several other drugs in his room and wasn't even aware of what some of them were. Now, 19 months later, they are charging him with felony possession! Can they do that after 19 months? This is in Walworth County, not a booming metropolis where they've been so busy it's taken all this time to investigate. They took everything he had on Feb. 13, 2022 and filed the charges on Sept 1, 2023!

 

[justblue]

My grandson attempted suicide by overdosing on Ketamine and ended up in treatment for several weeks. He lived in an apartment with two other people. He had no history of alcohol or drug use, but had several other drugs in his room and wasn't even aware of what some of them were. Now, 19 months later, they are charging him with felony possession! Can they do that after 19 months? This is in Walworth County, not a booming metropolis where they've been so busy it's taken all this time to investigate. They took everything he had on Feb. 13, 2022 and filed the charges on Sept 1, 2023!

Yes. They can do this.

 

[army judge]

Can they do that after 19 months?

A law enforcement officer can arrest a person for possession even if the substance is not on their person.

This is constructive possession, which means you stored and planned to use or distribute the drug in question.

Actual possession occurs when the substance is in your pocket, hand or otherwise on your person.

Illegal drug possession charges depend on the specific substance, which Wisconsin categorizes into five schedules as follows:

Cannabis, heroin, LSD and PCP are Schedule I substances with the highest potential for abuse.

Methadone, amphetamines, morphine, cocaine, codeine and opium are Schedule II drugs, with less abuse potential.

Substances with accepted medical use fall into Schedule III, VI or V depending on their abuse potential.

You asked and answered your question.

Your relative was arrested, illustrating to the entire planet the ability (answering your CAN they query) because you told us it was previously a fait accompli = "An accomplished fact, something that has already occurred; a done deal"!


Regarding the time allowed for the prosecutor to levy felony charges in Wisconsin, here you go: [Quick answer, prosecutor is allowed SIX years to bring a felony charge]


Wisconsin==> Code citation:939.7

https://codes.findlaw.com/wi/crimes-ch-938-to-951/wi-st-939-74.html


Homicide: none; certain crimes against a child: before the victim turns 45 years old; ...... other felonies: six years; ...... special provisions apply when DNA evidence identifies the perpetrator at a later date.


Final thought: Discussing any aspect of an accused person's criminal charges in a public forum or a coffee shop does the accused no good.

In fact it could bring him or her irreparable harm.

Such disclosures by you or others, could have them testifying in open court at trial.

I suggest you cease chattering about any of these criminal matters, and if requested to by his defense attorney, speaking on his behalf at his trial.

In fact, if he wants to blab to you, gently advise him to use his RIGHT to remain silent and speak about the incident only with his attorney of record.

 

[Tax Counsel]

Regarding the time allowed for the prosecutor to levy felony charges in Wisconsin, here you go: [Quick answer, prosecutor is allowed SIX years to bring a felony charge]

I wanted to highlight army judge's statement on this as it goes directly to the question you asked, which is whether the state can bring the case after 19 months. In many states, and for most federal charges, the time allowed for the government to file felony charges (known as a statute of limitation or SOL) is often 5 to 6 years or more when the crime is not a crime of violence. As far as I know, no state has a SOL for felony charges of less than 2 years.

 

[flyingron]

Wisconsin indeed has a six-year SOL on drug possession felonies. They also have an uncommonly long (three year) SOL on misdemeanors.