When Is Drug Crime Simply a Symptom of Addiction, and When Is It Something Worse?

A life of ease protects you from most situations in which people break the law.  Poverty, abuse, and other sources of chronic stress make people more vulnerable to using illicit drugs for the first time and for becoming addicted.  Once drugs enter the picture, people sometimes find themselves doing things they previously thought contrary to their nature, such as stealing, lying to their closest family members and friends, and threatening people with violence.  Pretrial diversion programs are a move in the right direction to protect people whose substance use problems have already gotten them into trouble with the law from falling farther down the spiral of crime and punishment.  Getting arrested for drug crimes is terrifying, but remember that things can get better, even if you have been arrested for drugs more than once.  The best way to avoid nightmarish outcomes after a drug arrest is to contact a Florida drug offenses attorney.

Miami Woman Arrested for Doing Something Much Worse Than You Have Ever Done to Support Her Addiction

In the summer of 2024, police in Miami-Dade County arrested a 45-year-old mental health counselor for sex trafficking.  The counselor checked into the hotel and spent her days hanging out by the hotel swimming pool with her dog.  One day, she struck up a conversation with a 15-year-old girl.  Over the next few days, in a series of conversations, she used her credentials as a mental health counselor to win the girl’s trust.  She also offered the girl alcohol and cannabis, but the girl refused to accept them.  Eventually, she invited the girl to her room, where she had also invited an adult man who had promised to give her drugs.  The counselor tried to persuade the girl to engage in sexual acts with the man, but the girl refused.  Eventually, the man sexually assaulted the girl.

The girl fled from the hotel room and told police what had happened.  Police arrested the counselor and the man.  They are now both facing a long list of criminal charges.  The man is being charged with sexual assault, among other offenses, and the worst of the counselor’s offenses is sex trafficking of a minor.  The counselor told police that, because of her drug addiction, she had been trading sex for drugs when she did not have money.

Judges sometimes consider the big picture, that drug addiction can easily turn minor crimes into major ones, but this defendant’s actions are beyond the scope of things getting slightly out of control.  Prosecutors are often willing to downgrade drug charges, even when there is obvious evidence of drug distribution activity.

Contact FL Drug Defense Group About Drug Cases

A Central Florida criminal defense lawyer can help you negotiate a plea deal where you can downgrade your drug charges or, if it is your first offense, enter a pretrial diversion program.  Contact FL Drug Defense Group in Orlando, Florida to discuss your case.

Sources:

miamidade.gov/global/release.page?Mduid_release=rel1724176242178568

wild941.com/2024/08/22/psychologist-forces-15-year-old-girl-sleep/