About 2 years ago, I was growing 6 marijuana plants in the basement of my home. It was the first time I had attempted to grow, and I didnt even really know what I was doing. I had only been a marijuana smoker for a year, and my dad had died a few months before the start of my grow. I was depressed and pot seemed to help me relax. The only reason I decided to grow was for my own use, I was very aware that it was illegal, and it was my stupidity, but I had no intentions of selling. In my opinion, I was addicted to pot, and I planned on smoking every bit of my grow.
Time passed by, and my plants were about 3 months into the grow, but they were not producing any buds. I figure it was becuase I had no idea what I was doing. I made a mistake and told one of my buddies [or so I thougth] about my grow. I knew he had grown in the past and I thought I could trust him. He said he could help me out, and we hauled a bunch of his equipment into my basement and made my grow a little better with a higher quality light, and growing buckets. My plants started to look healthier at that point.
A couple weeks later, I got a knock on the door at 4AM. I saw a police officer at the door and he saw me too. My heart skipped a beat, I was nervous and I decided to answer the door. The officer said that he was responding to a 911 call made from this residence. I replied that I am the only one awake and that no one could have possibly made the call. He said that they tried calling my house and no one answered, and that it was policy that he must search my home. I did not hear the phone ring. I replied again that I assure him nothing is wrong and that it is not necessary to search my home. Again I am nervous, and I think he noticed it. He then said that he isnt here for anything else and will be on his way after he searches my home. I asked him if he had a warrant, and his reply is "Do I need a warrant?". Well, I didnt know if he did or not.. if he is there for a 911 call how do I know? He then said, "I can smell marijuana and Im not going to worry about it, I just need to search the home to make sure it is safe". I began to panic and truly didnt know what to do. He asked me if I had pot, and I said yes. I just broke under the pressure. He came in and as soon as he was in my home he said, "now if you have plants growing its a different story." He was already in my home, what can I do now? I basically admitted it and he said "take me to the plants". He did no search at all for a 911 call. I 100% believe that he was tipped off about my grow by the same guy who gave me the light fixture.
He called for back up and they came to my house, took photos, and took me to jail. I was released within 24 hours on a "warrant pending". I was told that I can expect to be arrested again and charged with the crimes. They told me to search for my warrant online at a missouri courts website. I checked online for weeks, months, and then after a year I stopped checking so often. Well, 3 days ago I was pulled over while driving for expired tags, and I was told that I had a warrant for my arrest, saying it was for dangerous drugs.
I was taken to jail again, and was told I am being charged with a class B felony, and that I had a 20,000$ bond, which I paid 10% of and was out again within 24 hours.
I am scared. This is my first offense. The punishment for a class B felony in Missouri is up to 15 years in prison. I am a good person, I honestly would not harm a fly. I have court on the 29th of this month. Please, any advice you can give is greatly appreciated.
Thank you very much
Time passed by, and my plants were about 3 months into the grow, but they were not producing any buds. I figure it was becuase I had no idea what I was doing. I made a mistake and told one of my buddies [or so I thougth] about my grow. I knew he had grown in the past and I thought I could trust him. He said he could help me out, and we hauled a bunch of his equipment into my basement and made my grow a little better with a higher quality light, and growing buckets. My plants started to look healthier at that point.
A couple weeks later, I got a knock on the door at 4AM. I saw a police officer at the door and he saw me too. My heart skipped a beat, I was nervous and I decided to answer the door. The officer said that he was responding to a 911 call made from this residence. I replied that I am the only one awake and that no one could have possibly made the call. He said that they tried calling my house and no one answered, and that it was policy that he must search my home. I did not hear the phone ring. I replied again that I assure him nothing is wrong and that it is not necessary to search my home. Again I am nervous, and I think he noticed it. He then said that he isnt here for anything else and will be on his way after he searches my home. I asked him if he had a warrant, and his reply is "Do I need a warrant?". Well, I didnt know if he did or not.. if he is there for a 911 call how do I know? He then said, "I can smell marijuana and Im not going to worry about it, I just need to search the home to make sure it is safe". I began to panic and truly didnt know what to do. He asked me if I had pot, and I said yes. I just broke under the pressure. He came in and as soon as he was in my home he said, "now if you have plants growing its a different story." He was already in my home, what can I do now? I basically admitted it and he said "take me to the plants". He did no search at all for a 911 call. I 100% believe that he was tipped off about my grow by the same guy who gave me the light fixture.
He called for back up and they came to my house, took photos, and took me to jail. I was released within 24 hours on a "warrant pending". I was told that I can expect to be arrested again and charged with the crimes. They told me to search for my warrant online at a missouri courts website. I checked online for weeks, months, and then after a year I stopped checking so often. Well, 3 days ago I was pulled over while driving for expired tags, and I was told that I had a warrant for my arrest, saying it was for dangerous drugs.
I was taken to jail again, and was told I am being charged with a class B felony, and that I had a 20,000$ bond, which I paid 10% of and was out again within 24 hours.
I am scared. This is my first offense. The punishment for a class B felony in Missouri is up to 15 years in prison. I am a good person, I honestly would not harm a fly. I have court on the 29th of this month. Please, any advice you can give is greatly appreciated.
Thank you very much
