Wethepeople
New Member
- Jurisdiction
- California
Hi peeps, so i want to thank everyone in advance for taking the time to read over my concerns regarding two 626.10 (b) (POSSESSION OF WEAPON ON COLLEGE CAMPUS) charges i am facing today, the situation has gone complex on me and i need some professional advice that doesn't cost me 500 dollars to get, so you know your help is very much appreciated, anyways, the story is...at the time (about a year and half ago), i was pulled over driving out of a student housing complex where me and my friends would go to study (although we did not live there nor did i attend UCI, we only had friends who did) which as i am now very well aware of is considered a part of the UCI campus property and therefore treated with many of the same rules and regulation as school grounds, unfortunately at the time i was unaware of this fact and due to some very unfortunate financial circumstances i was out of a room and had all my belongings in my car and amongst them a mora bushcraft knife and a cold steel jungle machete (both which were kept within their sheaths and placed somewhere along the back seat of the vehicle). I suspected that the only reason i was being pulled over was because i was leaving the complex so late (at approximately 4am), since i had not broken any traffic laws, but i tried to be as cooperative as possible since i was also unable to pay for my car insurance at the time, hoping that by being very cooperative i would possibly increase my chances of them not finding out (possibly my biggest mistake, since at the time, they had no possible reason to have had pulled me over in the first place) so this let to further interrogation, "whether or not i lived at the complex, what i was doing there, whether or not i had any weapons in my vehicle"...etc, i answered yes to the last question indicating i had 3 knives, all which i believed were legally possessed and simply because i was in between places and had all my belongings in my vehicle, that was the turning point of me being treated relatively with respect and being treated like a terrorist even though i was still fully cooperative, the officer requested backup and i was asked to remove myself from the vehicle and stand against the vehicle while he searched my person, i was then handcuffed, placed on the curb and had my car searched without my consent and taken to jail on two counts of felony charges which were later reduced to misdemeanors yet still had my DNA taken and cost my family 2000 dollars to bail me out of the long 4 day weekend plus another ~375 to take my car out of impound, not to mention they also confiscated my laptop claiming it to be stolen after requiring its password or they wouldn't release my car, and lied about everything in the police report indicating that the stop was initially conducted due to having none functioning break lights, i tried filing for a motion to suppress, but i was held obligated to prove that im innocent even though no citation was issued regarding the so claimed malfunctioning tail lights and considering UCI campus police does not include video cameras i was unable to prove otherwise a year later and the judge denied the motion without any explanation simply believing the cops words over mine...anyways, at this point taking on my last battles concerning the weapon charges as i realize how serious that will sound in this day and age with all the craziness going on on school campuses across the country. the DA has offered me a relatively decent plea bargain but i would still be charged with a different weapon charge (one that is off campus such as possession of an illegal switchblade inside your vehicle), plus reduced fines, commitment to 3 years of informal probation, and having to donate my DNA. My other option would be going to trial, in which case i have a couple arguments, first and foremost the fact that i was not aware of the fact that this area of the city was considered to be part of the UC campus property, you have to realize how big the UC campus ground is, and how many major streets simply run through this massive area, and how small the actual campus (classes...etc) is relative to the grounds that are considered part of the UC campus property and the fact that i was pulled over less that 200 feet from the main street which is not considered to be a part of the campus grounds, but my real concern is whether or not i was even guilty of a crime in the first place even technically speaking. reading subdivision (e) of penal code 626.10 (b):
(b) Any person, except a duly appointed peace officer as defined
in Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of Part 2, a
full-time paid peace officer of another state or the federal
government who is carrying out official duties while in this state, a
person summoned by any officer to assist in making arrests or
preserving the peace while the person is actually engaged in
assisting any officer, or a member of the military forces of this
state or the United States who is engaged in the performance of his
or her duties, who brings or possesses any dirk, dagger, ice pick, or
knife having a fixed blade longer than 2 1/2 inches upon the grounds
of, or within, any private university, the University of California,
the California State University, or the California Community
Colleges is guilty of a public offense, punishable by imprisonment in
a county jail not exceeding one year, or by imprisonment pursuant to
subdivision (h) of Section 1170.
(e) Subdivision (b) does not apply to any person who brings or
possesses an ice pick or a knife having a fixed blade longer than 2
1/2 inches upon the grounds of, or within, any private university,
state university, or community college for lawful use in or around a
residence or residential facility located upon those grounds or for
lawful use in food preparation or consumption.
reference:
CA Codes (pen:626-626.11)
To my public defenders opinion this does not constitute a solid argument to overturn the charges being filed against me, but in my opinion, situations similar to mine are exactly why subdivisions like this one exists, so people wouldn't have to worry about entering an apartment complex located on campus grounds or having to empty out their vehicles before doing so in order to avoid being convicted with a charge as serious as possessing a weapon on school campus grounds which sounds terrible and hilarious considering my situation. my only frustration is that i cannot seem expect any common sense from the justice system on making the right decision here subjectively as my previous experience with the suppress motion seems to suggest, so i would need to place my bets on hard factual evidence such as the subdivision listed above in order to avoid having to risk my whole future on the decision of a jury while represented by a mediocre public defender who im still not sure after all this time whose side he is truly on (as much as i am hopeful in the people making the right decision), so the only problem to me seems to be how the term Lawful Use is described within the legal system as im unable to determine if lawful possession in my situation is considered to be lawful use as i did not intend to use the weapon at all (a tool considering my intended use for them, camping, fishing...etc), even though they are also claiming that i said i was intending to use it for self defense purposes which is something i would never say, (self defense with a machete?) although im pretty sure that is not illegal in itself.
anyways, sorry for the lengthy explanation, i tried to leave out as much as i could without manipulating the story hoping for feedbacks to help me better make a decision as of whether or not i should go on with the trial or take the safe path and do the plea deal as much id hate to, thank you for your time, any solid input is appreciated.
(b) Any person, except a duly appointed peace officer as defined
in Chapter 4.5 (commencing with Section 830) of Title 3 of Part 2, a
full-time paid peace officer of another state or the federal
government who is carrying out official duties while in this state, a
person summoned by any officer to assist in making arrests or
preserving the peace while the person is actually engaged in
assisting any officer, or a member of the military forces of this
state or the United States who is engaged in the performance of his
or her duties, who brings or possesses any dirk, dagger, ice pick, or
knife having a fixed blade longer than 2 1/2 inches upon the grounds
of, or within, any private university, the University of California,
the California State University, or the California Community
Colleges is guilty of a public offense, punishable by imprisonment in
a county jail not exceeding one year, or by imprisonment pursuant to
subdivision (h) of Section 1170.
(e) Subdivision (b) does not apply to any person who brings or
possesses an ice pick or a knife having a fixed blade longer than 2
1/2 inches upon the grounds of, or within, any private university,
state university, or community college for lawful use in or around a
residence or residential facility located upon those grounds or for
lawful use in food preparation or consumption.
reference:
CA Codes (pen:626-626.11)
To my public defenders opinion this does not constitute a solid argument to overturn the charges being filed against me, but in my opinion, situations similar to mine are exactly why subdivisions like this one exists, so people wouldn't have to worry about entering an apartment complex located on campus grounds or having to empty out their vehicles before doing so in order to avoid being convicted with a charge as serious as possessing a weapon on school campus grounds which sounds terrible and hilarious considering my situation. my only frustration is that i cannot seem expect any common sense from the justice system on making the right decision here subjectively as my previous experience with the suppress motion seems to suggest, so i would need to place my bets on hard factual evidence such as the subdivision listed above in order to avoid having to risk my whole future on the decision of a jury while represented by a mediocre public defender who im still not sure after all this time whose side he is truly on (as much as i am hopeful in the people making the right decision), so the only problem to me seems to be how the term Lawful Use is described within the legal system as im unable to determine if lawful possession in my situation is considered to be lawful use as i did not intend to use the weapon at all (a tool considering my intended use for them, camping, fishing...etc), even though they are also claiming that i said i was intending to use it for self defense purposes which is something i would never say, (self defense with a machete?) although im pretty sure that is not illegal in itself.
anyways, sorry for the lengthy explanation, i tried to leave out as much as i could without manipulating the story hoping for feedbacks to help me better make a decision as of whether or not i should go on with the trial or take the safe path and do the plea deal as much id hate to, thank you for your time, any solid input is appreciated.
