Why Choose Our Tampa Drug Charge Lawyers to Defend You
Attorney Brett Metcalf is a passionate and successful Tampa drug defense attorney. He began his career as a prosecutor in the State Attorney’s Office. Attorney Metcalf learned firsthand how the prosecution prepares for drug crime cases and wins convictions. Since establishing his criminal defense and personal injury firm in 2012, attorney Metcalf has used this knowledge to his client’s advantage.
Award-Winning Drug Defense Attorneys in Tampa, FL
Metcalf Falls, Criminal Defense Attorneys, P.A., has received more than 70 five-star reviews and a perfect 10 rating on Avvo.com.
In addition:
- Top 100 Trial Lawyers & Top 40 Under 40 by The National Trial Lawyers
- Rising Star, 2018, Super Lawyers
Choosing a drug charge lawyer who truly cares about the future of his clients could make all the difference in your case.
Proven Results in Tampa Drug Cases
Metcalf Falls has achieved favorable outcomes for clients facing a wide range of drug charges in Hillsborough County, from simple possession to felony trafficking. Here are a few representative results:
- In a fentanyl trafficking case, the judge agreed to suppress illegally obtained evidence, and the entire trafficking case was dismissed. Fentanyl trafficking, dismissed.
- In a drug possession case, through aggressive negotiation, felony possession charges were reduced to a misdemeanor with no jail time.
- In a marijuana possession case, our client completed a pretrial diversion program and all charges were dismissed, leaving no criminal record.
Past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Every case is different. View all case results.
Our attorneys appear regularly in the Hillsborough County Courthouse and are familiar with the assistant state attorneys who handle drug dockets, the local court procedures, and the diversion programs available in this jurisdiction. This local knowledge gives our clients a significant advantage.
Personalized Drug Crime Defense in Tampa
Our Tampa drug crime lawyers leave no stone unturned in investigating the allegations against you. We will gather all the evidence available, analyze your case from every angle, and determine the most effective defense strategy to pursue a reduction in your drug charges, a dismissal, or an acquittal.
If you want an aggressive drug charge lawyer and a skilled negotiator, call attorney Brett Metcalf.
How Our Tampa Drug Charge Lawyers Help
No two drug cases are the same. Our defense attorneys in Tampa conduct a thorough process to determine the best defense for you.
- Investigates the facts surrounding the police stop
- Reviews the validity of a search and seizure warrant or arrest warrant
- Reviews whether you were adequately Mirandized
- Gathers witness statements
- Researches the backgrounds of the officers involved in your arrest
- Submits legal documents on your behalf
- Helps you arrange bail and obtain your release from jail
- Represents you in court
- Challenges any violation of your constitutional rights in court
- Pursues an aggressive pretrial motion practice
- Pursues a reduction in the charges or dismissal of the case
- Pursues an acquittal at trial
- Explains the advantages and disadvantages of a plea bargain
- Strategizes to mitigate the consequences of a drug crime conviction
What Happens After a Drug Arrest in Hillsborough County
Understanding the criminal process helps you make informed decisions at every stage. Here is the typical timeline for a drug case in Tampa:
Arrest and Booking
After arrest, you are transported to the Hillsborough County jail (Orient Road or Falkenburg Road facility) for booking. You will be photographed, fingerprinted, and processed. Bond amounts depend on the severity of the charge. Simple possession typically has a standard bond schedule, while drug trafficking charges may carry very high bond or a bond hearing.
First Appearance and Bond
Within 24 hours, you appear before a judge who sets bond. The judge considers the type and quantity of drugs, your criminal history, flight risk, and community ties. Our attorneys attend first appearances to argue for the lowest possible bond. Understanding the bail bond system in Florida is essential for families trying to secure a loved one’s release.
Discovery and Pretrial Motions
This is the most critical phase of a drug case. Your attorney obtains all discovery: police reports, body-cam footage, search warrant affidavits, lab analysis results, chain of custody records, and witness statements. We file motions to suppress evidence obtained through illegal searches or stops. If the drugs are suppressed, the case often collapses entirely. We also challenge the reliability of field testing and lab procedures. Understanding how the Fourth Amendment protects your criminal case is critical at this stage.
Diversion and Plea Negotiations
For first-time offenders and certain non-violent drug charges, Hillsborough County offers diversion programs that can result in charges being dismissed upon completion. These include pretrial intervention programs and drug court. We evaluate your eligibility and advocate for program placement when it serves your interests. You may qualify for Florida diversion programs depending on the circumstances of your case.
When diversion is not available, we negotiate aggressively with prosecutors for charge reductions, reduced sentencing, or favorable plea terms. In many cases, it is possible to get drug possession charges dropped or reduced.
Trial and Sentencing
If no favorable resolution is reached, your case proceeds to trial. The prosecution must prove every element, including knowing possession, beyond a reasonable doubt. Our attorneys regularly try drug cases in the Hillsborough County Courthouse and understand the local prosecutors, judges, and jury dynamics. Florida sentencing guidelines determine the range of penalties a judge may impose.
Types of Drug Cases We Handle in Tampa, FL
Our drug charge attorneys handle a wide range of Florida and federal drug offenses. Here are a few of the more common drug charges we see in Tampa criminal court.
Drug Possession Charges
In Florida, prosecutors file drug possession charges when they determine you have a small amount of a controlled substance in your possession for personal use. These drug charges can arise based on actual or constructive possession. The level of charge you face depends on the type and amount possessed.
Marijuana and Schedule V drugs can lead to first-degree misdemeanor charges, while other controlled substances lead to felony charges. If it is a first-time non-violent drug offense, you could receive a diversion program or probation. It would be best to consult a drug charge lawyer near you before accepting any sentence.
Possession of Marijuana Charges
Marijuana remains a controlled substance in Florida, and possessing cannabis without a prescription is a crime. Possession of fewer than 20 grams of marijuana is a first-degree misdemeanor. Possession of more than 20 grams is a third-degree felony.
Possession With the Intent to Distribute Charges
The drug offense a prosecutor will charge you with depends on the threshold amount of the drug. You will be charged with a felony for possession with intent to distribute if you have more than a personal amount. Prosecutors use this threshold to charge suspected drug dealers for possession, if not for actual trafficking. The threshold amounts differ depending on the controlled substance.
Possession with Intent to Sell Charges
You could be facing serious consequences if you’re charged with possession of illicit substances that police believe you wanted to sell. Getting help from a Tampa drug defense lawyer from Metcalf Falls is crucial to deal with your possession of drugs with intent to sell charges.
Drug Trafficking Charges
A prosecutor in Florida can charge you with drug trafficking if you are allegedly involved in selling, manufacturing, delivering, buying, or possessing one or more controlled substances. A Tampa drug trafficking lawyer can help you understand the charges and build a strong defense strategy tailored to your case.
Drug trafficking charges are based on the amount in your possession, not your actual conduct. You will be charged with trafficking if you possess above a certain threshold amount. Trafficking is a felony, and the quantity in your possession determines the level of the offense and the minimum term of imprisonment you face.
Drug Cultivation and Manufacturing
It is a felony to cultivate marijuana (or another drug) or manufacture it, such as methamphetamine. The level of the offense and the minimum term of imprisonment you face depends on the type and amount of the drug involved.
Possession of Drug Paraphernalia
Drug paraphernalia is considered any equipment, product, or material that enables someone to use, grow, store, or manufacture drugs. Even without evidence of using drugs yourself, you could be facing serious consequences if you’re charged with anything involving drug paraphernalia. Our Tampa drug paraphernalia lawyers can help.
Prescription Drug Charges
There are crimes attached to prescription drugs that many people do not know about, and if you fall foul of the law, you could face extreme penalties. Metcalf Falls is ready to help you fight charges involving prescription drugs.
Drug Sales & Delivering
Like other Florida drug crimes, the charge you face for selling or delivering a controlled substance to another party depends on the type and amount of the drug involved. For this offense, prosecutors do not have to prove you provided drugs in exchange for money.
You can be convicted for exchanging the drugs for any object or service of value enough to establish a sale. You can also face equally harsh drug charges for the mere intent to sell.
Conspiracy to Commit a Drug Crime
You can be charged with conspiracy if you and one or more persons agree to commit a drug offense. The prosecutor will seek to prove an implied or explicit agreement and intent to commit the drug crime.
Conspiracy is unlawful under Florida and federal law. In Florida, the prosecutor does not need to prove you or either conspirator performed an act to further the crime.
Federal Drug Charges
Many criminal drug offenses fall under Florida or federal jurisdiction. Drug crimes are federal cases if they occurred on federal land, crossed state or national borders, was investigated by federal law enforcement agents, or were discovered through an informant.
Fentanyl Drug Charges
Under Florida Statute 893.135, fentanyl-related charges carry a mandatory minimum sentence based on the amount involved. Even an amount as little as 4 grams could get you 7 years in prison. Talk to one of our Tampa drug crime lawyers about your fentanyl charges.
Cocaine Charges
As a Schedule II controlled substance, the state and federal governments consider cocaine a highly addictive and easy-to-abuse drug with extremely limited medical uses. Getting charged with a crime involving cocaine can be devastating. Metcalf Falls can inform you of your options and build a defense against cocaine charges.
Heroin Charges
As a Schedule I controlled substance, heroin is not recognized as having a medical use, but it is known for its high potential of abuse. Law enforcement take any charges involving heroin seriously, including possession, sale, or intent to distribute the drug. A Metcalf Falls drug charge attorney can help you defend against heroin charges.
MDMA Charges
Florida law imposes strict penalties for MDMA possession due to its association with recreational drug use and its potential for harm. It is classified as a Schedule I controlled substance. If you are facing MDMA drug possession or trafficking charges in Tampa or Hillsborough County, you need an Tampa criminal defense attorney to protect your rights and future.
Methamphetamine Charges
Methamphetamine is a powerful synthetic stimulant. Even with its limited medical applications, it is highly regulated as a Schedule II drug. Charges involving methamphetamine, like possession, manufacture, or distribution, carry heavy penalties. Discuss your options with a methamphetamine charges defense lawyer from Metcalf Falls now.
Schedule a Free Consultation With a Tampa Drug Crime Lawyer
Drug cases are won or lost based on how the evidence was obtained. If the search was illegal, the drugs get suppressed and the case collapses. But you must act fast. Evidence of illegal police conduct can disappear if not preserved immediately.
Call (813) 258-4800 now for a free, confidential consultation with a former prosecutor who handles drug cases in Hillsborough County every day. Available 24/7.
How to Defend Against Drug Charges in Tampa, FL
Defending against a drug charge can be difficult. It requires working with seasoned defense attorneys in Tampa. You need to partner with someone who knows how to investigate the allegations, look for weaknesses in the prosecution’s case, and develop a strong defense strategy to obtain a dismissal or acquittal.
When you are arrested and charged with a Florida or federal drug crime, speak with a drug charge lawyer. There may be strong evidence we can use to convince the prosecutor to drop your case or win a motion to dismiss. If a dismissal is unlikely, you need to speak with an experienced drug crime attorney about the possible defenses against a drug charge.
What Defenses Can Be Used to Fight a Drug Charge?
There are many possible defenses to drug crimes. Our experienced Tampa drug crime lawyers will scrutinize the facts of your case to determine the most effective strategy.
Lack of Possession
We may argue that you did not have actual or constructive possession of the drug. We may show that you were unaware the substance was there or that another person owned it.
Insufficient Evidence
During a motion to dismiss or at trial, we may argue that there is insufficient evidence to establish each element of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt.
Mistake of Identity
You may be entirely innocent of the offense. When another person is guilty of the drug crime, we may seek to establish your alibi for the time of the offense.
Unconstitutional Search or Seizure
The Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects you from warrantless and unreasonable searches and seizures. When the police or federal agents perform an unlawful search or seizure, we fight to have any evidence obtained from that incident ruled inadmissible.
Entrapment
To use entrapment as a defense against drug charges in Tampa, we must show that the impetus to commit the offense arose from the officer. Our Tampa drug crime lawyer would seek to prove you would not have committed the crime if it were not for the officer’s unreasonable influence.
Unreliable Test Results
We have handled cases where the alleged drugs did not exist, and another substance falsely tested positive for a controlled substance. Under these circumstances, we will challenge the reliability and accuracy of the test.
