Can I be charged with possession of marijuana if I’m a passenger in someone’s car and marijuana is found? What does’possession’ mean under Illinois marijuana laws?

UPDATED: Jul 15, 2021

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UPDATED: Jul 15, 2021Fact Checked

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Jeffrey Johnson

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Jeffrey Johnson is a legal writer with a focus on personal injury. He has worked on personal injury and sovereign immunity litigation in addition to experience in family, estate, and criminal law. He earned a J.D. from the University of Baltimore and has worked in legal offices and non-profits in Maryland, Texas, and North Carolina. He has also earned an MFA in screenwriting from Chapman Univer...

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UPDATED: Jul 15, 2021

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It’s all about you. We want to help you make the right legal decisions.

We strive to help you make confident insurance and legal decisions. Finding trusted and reliable insurance quotes and legal advice should be easy. This doesn’t influence our content. Our opinions are our own.

Editorial Guidelines: We are a free online resource for anyone interested in learning more about legal topics and insurance. Our goal is to be an objective, third-party resource for everything legal and insurance related. We update our site regularly, and all content is reviewed by experts.

UPDATED: Jul 15, 2021

Advertiser Disclosure

It’s all about you. We want to help you make the right legal decisions.

We strive to help you make confident insurance and legal decisions. Finding trusted and reliable insurance quotes and legal advice should be easy. This doesn’t influence our content. Our opinions are our own.

UPDATED: Jul 15, 2021Fact Checked

In Illinois, as in most states, you can be charged with possession of marijuana if it is found in a car in which you are a passenger. However, if the marijuana was not found on your person and did not belong to you, you have a good defense against conviction in Illinois. Drivers of cars in which marijuana is found can also be charged with possession of marijuana, thanks to the legal concept of possession.

Possession in Illinois can be considered either physical or constructive. Physical possession is self-explanatory: the marijuana was found on your person. Constructive possession is a murkier legal concept that is open to challenge from an experienced defense attorney. Typically, constructive possession means that the person is exercising some degree of control over the object, even if not physically. Examples of constructive possession include marijuana found in the car trunk or your closet, and even when someone else is carrying marijuana on your behalf. If you have been charged with possession of marijuana, consult an experienced Illinois criminal lawyer today to go over the circumstances of your arrest and determine your available defenses.

Follow this link for more information about Illinois Marijuana Laws and Illinois Medical Marijuana Laws

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Jeffrey Johnson

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Jeffrey Johnson is a legal writer with a focus on personal injury. He has worked on personal injury and sovereign immunity litigation in addition to experience in family, estate, and criminal law. He earned a J.D. from the University of Baltimore and has worked in legal offices and non-profits in Maryland, Texas, and North Carolina. He has also earned an MFA in screenwriting from Chapman Univer...

Insurance Lawyer

Editorial Guidelines: We are a free online resource for anyone interested in learning more about legal topics and insurance. Our goal is to be an objective, third-party resource for everything legal and insurance related. We update our site regularly, and all content is reviewed by experts.

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