Kenneth Vercammen is a Middlesex County Trial Attorney who has published 130 articles in national and New Jersey publications on Criminal Law, Probate, Estate and litigation topics.

He was awarded the NJ State State Bar Municipal Court Practitioner of the Year.

He lectures and handles criminal cases, Municipal Court, DWI, traffic and other litigation matters.

To schedule a confidential consultation, call us or New clients email us evenings and weekends via contact box www.njlaws.com.

Kenneth Vercammen & Associates, P.C,

2053 Woodbridge Avenue,

Edison, NJ 08817,

(732) 572-0500

Tuesday, December 4, 2018

Sharing of Drugs Not Distribution; State v. Lopez, State v. Garcia, 359 NJ Super. 222 (App. Div. 2003)

Sharing of Drugs Not Distribution; State v. Lopez, State v. Garcia, 359 NJ Super. 222 (App. Div. 2003)



Sharing of Drugs Not Distribution. State v. Lopez, State v. Garcia, 359 NJ Super. 222 (App. Div. 2003) 

We conclude that, as a matter of law, the sharing of drugs by individuals in joint possession of the drugs does not constitute ?intent to distribute? within the meaning of N.J.S.A. 2C:35-5 and N.J.S.A. 2C:35-7. The prosecutor's assertion to the jury that a finding of ?intent to distribute? could be based on evidence of drug sharing between the two defendants in joint possession of the drugs was a material misstatement of law. In the context of the evidence presented here, the trial court's failure to correct this material misstatement of law amounted to plain error, R. 2:10-2, requiring reversal of defendant's convictions.
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