Talking to a criminal defense attorney with substantial experience handling drug cases in metro-Atlanta and Marietta is essential if you've been arrested for violating the terms of your drug related probation. Unfortunately, sometimes the situation is all a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Work with a lawyer to sort out the situation and have the best chance of success possible. Here are some things you need to know about drug violations and what you can do about it.

TYPES OF PROBATION VIOLATIONS

Although probation violation laws vary from state to state, there are some violation laws that are pretty standard across the board. Any of the following violations may get you in serious trouble:

• Neglecting to appear in court
• Failing to report to your probation officer
• Failure to pay required fees or victim restitution
• Traveling out of state without letting your probation officer know
• Engaging in criminal activity

Although some of these seem like they may be common sense, violations happen all the time for a number of reasons. Sometimes the violation may not even be your fault.

CONSEQUENCES OF PROBATION VIOLATION

If you've violated the terms of your drug probation, the consequences of your actions, whether inadvertent or not, may seem stiff. If you've been found to be violating your drug probation, you may get a warning from your probation officer and/or be requested to appear in court.

The consequences of a drug probation violation vary widely and are largely up to the discretion of your probation officer. They will usually consider past offenses and the severity of the condition that you violated, as well as other factors, when identifying the appropriate consequence.

COURT APPEARANCE

During your court appearance, the judge will determine if you actually did violate your probation. This is dependent largely upon the same factors the probation officer uses to determine probation violation in the first place. If you're found to have violated your probation, the judge may:

• Order a longer probation term
• Order you to spend your remaining probation in jail
• Sentence you to jail
• Impose additional probation terms

Sometimes, bad things happen despite your best efforts and often this results in a violation of your drug probation. When you're facing serious drug charges or a violation of your probation, working with a criminal defense attorney with substantial experience handling drug violation in metro-Atlanta and Marietta is critical to getting your life back to normal as quickly as possible. Make sure you know all of these things when it comes to working with an attorney to provide the best defense so you can navigate the process as smoothly as you can. 

Give us a call at (404) 589-9000.  The Lopes Law Firm is here to help you!