USA - Possession of needles w/o prescription (4140) (Somewhat urgent)

[dr.gonzo]

"I took a friend out to sushi, and the service was disrespectful and just plain bad. One joke lead to an attempted dine and dash. I left the restaurant first, trying to get my friend in the car, but a worker was on his ass and he couldn't get in the car without the Japanese worker getting a hold of him. He ran away and I drove around looking for him, hoping that he got away. There was no sign of him so I tried calling him on his cell phone a few times before he answered and said he was being held at the restaurant. I told him I'd be right there. I parked about fifty yards away and stashed some heroin I had in a vial in my sock, I also had some clonazepam that was actually prescribed but I had it in a celexa bottle. Three police cars arrived in no time and I was trying to rush to the scene before the cops apprehended my friend.

I got in the restaurant with my 21 dollars in cash in hand, and I said "I just went out to get the money, here it is."

A police officer already in the restaurant for some reason pulled the money out of my hand and put it in my pocket. He felt a syringe, capped of course, then paused and looked me in the eyes. I stared back for a moment, shocked, and said "I do not consent to a search."

He said that didn't matter I believe because he already saw the needle, and he took me outside, cuffed me and searched me. He found like four more needles and my bottle of klonopin. He had my friend searched as well, but he was luckily clean-he's just a pot smoker anyway.

There were three officers there in total, one young rookie who said he had never seen a drug shake down before and seemed to be observing with the interest of a child watching cops for the first time. I considered him the good cop. The main officer was a bit older, white male in his forties probably, and did all the searching and most of the talking. I considered him the bad cop. There was one other huge African American officer who played the other bad cop, and he basically insinuated that if I ever returned to the restaurant that he would beat my ass.

The main officer found all my syringes and I was honest with him, telling him that I use heroin when asked (maybe a bad idea). He didn't find the H luckily, but he did find my bottle of Klonopin, and damn did I wish I had it in the correct bottle, because he made me stomp them into the gutter.

After a lot of questioning and insults, the main officer said he'd consider letting me off the hook if I gave him any valuable information regarding sources. I said I got it out of town and would not get any more specific. I think that the only thing worse than a pig is a narc, and I had no intention of having that on my conscience. The one compliment the main officer gave was saying that I was the most coherent and well spoken junkie he's seen, albeit the youngest. But then he began talking to my friend in the cab of the cop car and asked why he didn't try to stop me from using. My friend said that he didn't think it was his place, which is logical. The officer then said to my friend that I'm going to be dead by the age of 24, which may or may not be true but pretty goddamn inappropriate nonetheless.

The cop finally uncuffed me after writing me a ticket for a misdeameanor 4140: possession of phd needles (without a script). I wasn't actually arrested or read Miranda rights. My court date is March 23 at either 6:30 or 8:30, I can't read this goddamn blue meanie's handwriting.

My family found out because the walls at my brother's house, my new home, are too goddamn thin and my sister in law overheard me as I explained to my friend who was with me why he was home late. She flipped out and told everyone in my family. So I went and detoxed at a mental hospital (technically a 'behavioral center', but i'd been there before and it's a goddamn cuckoo's nest), and now I'm attending classes at a Kaiser Permanente out of town... again. And I can't stand them, but i'm hoping it will look good to the judge. I'm also looking for an inpatient rehab, but kaiser will cover very little and i'm absolutely broke.

Sorry for the long post, but I thought knowing the whole story would be best if anyone were to offer any advice or any hypotheses on what the outcome may be. This is a first offense, no priors of any kind. Should I ask for a public defender at the arraignment? And if for some reason I am denied a public defender, should I try to represent myself? I know that's a bad idea, but I cannot afford any kind of legit defense attorney. Hell, should I plead guilty? I don't know what the likeliness of this getting expunged from my record are, but I'm hoping that this somehow happens. Hope for the best but prepare for the worst.

Any advice or help would be greatly appreciated."

-Jack
(I am Jack's complete lack of court etiquette and knowledge. Jack has had no experience since juvenile courts [minor out past curfew; public intoxication; possession of paraphernalia] and that was erased from his records years ago.)