Why This Case Matters
In Broward County, a felony drug arrest can follow a young person for the rest of their life. A conviction—or even a plea—can end a college career, close professional doors before they open, and permanently alter the trajectory of a life that has barely begun.
But a police report is not proof. An arrest is not a conviction. And probable cause built on a minor traffic stop, a questionable observation, and a stack of assumptions is not the same thing as evidence of a crime.
This case demonstrates how early, aggressive defense advocacy—before charges are formally filed—can expose weaknesses in the State's theory and persuade the State Attorney's Office to decline prosecution entirely
What Our Client Was Facing![]()
Our client was a college student with no prior criminal record when he was pulled over for a tinted windows violation in Broward County — a minor equipment infraction. This was not a drug investigation. There was no tip, no surveillance, no prior intelligence suggesting any involvement in drug activity. Officers detected the odor of marijuana during the stop and conducted a search of the vehicle. What they found — a quantity of cannabis that crossed the felony threshold — combined with a small amount of cash and what an officer described in the probable cause affidavit as a hand-to-hand transaction, led to two felony charges:
- Possession of Cannabis with Intent to Sell or Deliver (felony — up to five years in Florida state prison)
- Possession of Cannabis (based on the weight recovered)
For a college student with no record, the stakes could not have been higher. A felony drug conviction in Florida does not just mean potential incarceration. It means the loss of federal financial aid eligibility. It means a permanent criminal record that surfaces on every background check, every job application, every professional licensing inquiry for the rest of his life. For a young person still building his future, these charges represented an existential threat to everything ahead of him.
Why the State's Theory Had Problems
The case began with a traffic stop for tinted windows — not a drug investigation, not a tip, not surveillance. There was no prior intelligence suggesting our client was involved in drug activity of any kind. What followed was a search premised entirely on odor, which produced cannabis that — when actually examined — bore none of the hallmarks of street-level distribution.
The cannabis recovered was not loose, unmarked, or packaged in the manner associated with street dealing. It was individually sealed in branded, commercially packaged containers — labeled products in distinct flavors, consistent with merchandise sourced from a licensed cannabis dispensary or legal-market operation. This was not the packaging of someone breaking down bulk product to sell. This was the packaging of a consumer.
The cash found on our client — approximately $80 — was not the bankroll of a dealer. It was the pocket money of a college student. The State's own narrative required the inference that this young man was operating a drug distribution enterprise with less cash on hand than most people carry to a grocery store.
And the hand-to-hand transaction described in the probable cause affidavit? The circumstances surrounding that observation, weighed against the totality of what the search actually produced, made it far less credible than the arresting officer's characterization suggested. A tinted windows stop. Branded dispensary-style packaging. Eighty dollars. This was not the profile of a dealer — and the evidence did not support treating it as one.
Our Approach: Early Intervention Before Filing
Before the State Attorney's Office made a formal filing decision, Fort Lauderdale criminal defense attorney Dave Simmons reached out directly to the prosecution and presented a comprehensive pre-file argument against the intent charge.
The core of that argument:
The stop itself provided no basis for a drug investigation. Our client was pulled over for a tinted windows infraction — a minor equipment violation unrelated to drug activity. The entire case flowed from a search premised solely on odor, with no independent indicia of distribution before a single item was recovered.
The packaging told a different story. Individually sealed, branded, multi-flavor cannabis products are the hallmark of legal-market sourcing — not street distribution. The products recovered were consistent with personal-use purchases from a licensed dispensary, not bulk product staged for resale.
The cash was inconsistent with dealing. Approximately $80 does not support an inference of an active drug distribution operation. Combined with the professional packaging, the cash was far more consistent with a personal-use purchase than with proceeds from sales.
The hand-to-hand observation could not carry the weight the State's theory placed on it. When evaluated against the full context of the stop, the search, and the evidence actually recovered, the alleged transaction described in the probable cause affidavit was not a credible foundation for a felony intent charge.
We did not wait for the State to file charges and force our client into a defensive posture. We brought the argument to them — clearly, directly, and before the machinery of a felony prosecution was set in motion.
The State Attorney's Office agreed.
The Result: No Information — Both Counts
After reviewing our pre-file presentation, the State Attorney's Office declined to formally file charges on either count. A No Information was entered on both the Possession with Intent to Sell or Deliver and the Possession charge.
Our client walked away with:
- No formal charges were ever filed on either count
- No felony record
- No conviction of any kind
- No jail time, no probation, no conditions
- His college enrollment and financial aid eligibility are fully intact
- The ability to pursue sealing and expungement of the arrest record
If Your Child Has Been Arrested on Drug Charges in Broward County, the Time to Act Is Now
The period between a drug arrest and a formal charging decision is the most important — and most overlooked — window in a criminal case. What happens during that window can be the difference between a felony prosecution that follows your child for decades and a case that never formally exists.
At the Law Offices of Dave L. Simmons, P.A., we understand how the Broward State Attorney's Office evaluates felony drug cases — because Dave Simmons spent years making those decisions from the other side. That experience drives our pre-file strategy and gives our clients a critical advantage before the State ever files.
If your son or daughter has been arrested on marijuana, cannabis, or any felony drug charge in Broward County, contact our Fort Lauderdale office today at 954-765-3540 for a confidential consultation.
Note: Every case is unique, and past results do not guarantee future outcomes. The specific facts and circumstances of your case will determine the available defense strategies and potential outcomes.
