Principal Office
15110 Dallas Pkwy #400
Dallas, TX 75248
(972) 528-0478
15110 Dallas Pkwy #400
Dallas, TX 75248
(972) 528-0478
Years Defending Texans
Cases Dismissed
Criminal Cases Handled
Counties Served Across Texas
Available | Serving All of Texas
Marijuana charges in Texas still carry real consequences.
Even as laws change elsewhere, possession, delivery, or intent to distribute in Dallas can lead to jail time, fines, and a criminal record that follows you. But these cases are often more vulnerable than they appear. Searches may be illegal. Evidence can be challenged. Lab testing isn’t always reliable. That’s where the defense matters.
At the Law Offices of Richard C. McConathy, we’ve defended hundreds of marijuana and drug cases and know how to identify weaknesses in the state’s case. If you’re facing charges, working with an experienced Dallas drug defense lawyer can make a critical difference in your case.
Texas has not legalized recreational marijuana, and possession of any amount is a criminal offense under Texas Health & Safety Code §481.121. The amount you possess determines whether you’re facing a misdemeanor or felony charge, but understand: any possession is illegal, and the distinction between a misdemeanor and felony often depends on weight and circumstances.
Here’s how Texas grades marijuana possession:
The penalty escalates dramatically as weight increases. Additionally, possession with intent to distribute, manufacturing, or delivery charges carry much higher penalties—felonies ranging from 2 to 99 years. If you’re charged with any of these more serious offenses, aggressive representation is absolutely critical.
This distinction can be the difference between a misdemeanor and a serious felony. Understanding how prosecutors distinguish them helps you defend against overcharging.
Simple possession means the marijuana was for your personal use. The charge is determined by weight alone. If you’re found with 2 ounces, you face a Class A misdemeanor charge, period. Intent doesn’t matter for simple possession—only quantity.
Possession with intent to distribute (PWID) means prosecutors believe you intended to sell or deliver the marijuana. This is where “intent” matters, and prosecutors often overreach. PWID is a felony, and the penalty depends on weight, but starts at a 2-year minimum and can exceed 20 years for larger amounts.
Prosecutors infer intent to distribute from circumstantial evidence: the presence of scales, baggies, large amounts of cash, multiple phones, or text messages discussing sales. However, these circumstances are often innocent. Having scales doesn’t mean you’re selling—they might be for cooking. Having cash doesn’t mean you’re dealing—it might be your wages. Having baggies doesn’t indicate sales—they might be for storage. We challenge these inferences aggressively.
Delivery means transferring marijuana to another person. You don’t have to sell it; even giving it to a friend is “delivery” under Texas law. A single delivery of any amount is a felony, with penalties starting at 2 years.
Manufacturing means growing, producing, cultivating, or processing marijuana. Growing even a single plant is manufacturing, and it’s a felony. The penalty depends on the plant count and other factors, but manufacturing charges are taken very seriously by prosecutors.
If you’re facing delivery or manufacturing charges, the stakes are high, and defending aggressively is essential. We challenge whether you actually delivered or manufactured anything, whether the evidence was obtained legally, and whether you knew the substance was marijuana.
Understanding how police approach marijuana investigations helps you protect your rights and identify legal violations.
Many marijuana charges arise from traffic stops. Police stop your car for a minor violation (broken taillight, improper lane change), and during that stop, the officer claims to smell marijuana or observes the drug. From there, the officer requests a search.
This is where your right to refuse searches matters enormously. If you refuse consent, the officer can’t search your vehicle unless they have a warrant or an exception to the warrant requirement applies. If the stop is extended beyond its original purpose while waiting for a drug dog, that’s an illegal extension of the stop and violates your Fourth Amendment rights.
Many marijuana cases are dismissed because the search was illegal. If police violated your rights to search your car or person, any marijuana found is “fruit of the poisonous tree” and must be excluded from trial. We file motions to suppress illegally obtained evidence aggressively.
If marijuana is in plain view—on your dashboard, sitting on a car seat, visible through a window—police can seize it without a warrant. However, the plain view doctrine only applies if the officer was lawfully in a position to see it. If the officer looked through a window from your property without permission, or if they looked into your car during an illegal search, the plain view doctrine doesn’t apply.
If police enter your home and find marijuana, they need a warrant or your consent. A warrant requires probable cause and must be signed by a judge. If police didn’t have a warrant and you didn’t consent, the search was illegal.
Never consent to a home search. If officers ask to search your home, say clearly: “I don’t consent to a search. If you have a warrant, show it to me.” If they have a warrant, they can search. If they don’t and you don’t consent, they can’t legally search. Any marijuana found in an illegal search is inadmissible at trial.
The foundation of many marijuana prosecutions is illegal police conduct during traffic stops or searches. If the initial stop was pretextual (an excuse to search for drugs), if it was extended beyond the original purpose, or if the search lacked proper justification, we file a motion to suppress.
A successful suppression motion removes the marijuana from evidence, and without the physical evidence, the prosecution often has no case.
Marijuana must be chemically tested to prove it is THC (the controlled substance) rather than hemp, which is legal in Texas. If the lab work is incomplete, if chain-of-custody procedures were violated, or if the testing was inadequate, we challenge it. Some marijuana charges have been reduced or dismissed because the prosecution couldn’t prove the substance was actually marijuana.
Mere proximity to marijuana isn’t possession. If marijuana is found in a shared apartment, in a vehicle with multiple people, or in a public place, prosecutors must prove you knowingly possessed it. If there’s any ambiguity about whether you possessed the marijuana or merely had access to the location where it was found, we use that to create reasonable doubt.
If you’re charged with PWID, we challenge whether the prosecution can really prove intent to distribute. Circumstantial evidence—scales, cash, baggies—is weak when we explain innocent uses. We present expert testimony about marijuana use patterns, pharmacology, or forensic evidence that undermines the prosecution’s theory.
If you were arrested for marijuana but didn’t actually possess it, or if the substance was someone else’s, we investigate and develop a defense based on innocence. Perhaps someone else left marijuana in your car. Perhaps the arrest was mistaken identity. We gather evidence and present a complete defense.
You do not have to consent to a search of your person, car, or home. Politely but firmly refuse: “I don’t consent to a search.” If officers insist on searching anyway, don’t physically resist—that creates additional charges. Just say no. Your refusal doesn’t prove guilt; it protects your rights.
Don’t answer questions about where the marijuana came from, who it belongs to, or what you intended to do with it. These answers will be used against you. Request a lawyer and remain silent.
Request a lawyer immediately upon arrest. Don’t try to explain yourself to officers. Your attorney will handle communication with police and prosecutors.
You have the right to challenge how evidence was obtained, how it was tested, and how the prosecution intends to use it. We file motions to suppress illegally obtained evidence and challenge the reliability of lab testing.
Our firm has extensive experience defending marijuana charges in Dallas County and throughout the DFW metroplex. We know how Dallas prosecutors approach these cases and how different judges view marijuana offenses.
In Dallas County, marijuana charges range from low priority (first-time simple possession) to high priority (manufacturing or large-scale distribution). Prosecutors in Dallas County are often willing to negotiate simple possession cases, especially if it’s a first offense. However, they’re aggressive on PWID, manufacturing, and trafficking charges.
Dallas County judges vary in their views on marijuana cases. Some judges are lenient on simple possession; others are harsh. We know these judges and tailor our approach accordingly. We also know which prosecutors are more willing to negotiate and how to present our case most persuasively.
Beyond criminal penalties, a marijuana conviction carries serious collateral consequences:
These collateral consequences are sometimes more damaging than the direct criminal penalties. This is another reason to fight marijuana charges aggressively—limiting the immediate criminal consequences also limits the long-term damage to your life.
Contact the Law Offices of Richard C. McConathy immediately. We’ll review the charges, examine the evidence, and determine whether illegal police conduct occurred. We’ll challenge the evidence aggressively and explore every option for resolving the charges in your favor.
Contact our Dallas Drug Defense Lawyer for your free consultation. With 35+ years of experience and over 1,000 cases handled, we’ve successfully defended marijuana charges ranging from simple possession to large-scale manufacturing. We know how to fight these charges and how to minimize the consequences.
Yes, marijuana remains illegal in Texas, although a law legalizing hemp in 2019 led to marijuana prosecutions in Texas plummeting by more than half in the six months after the law was enacted. While many police departments lack the equipment needed to determine the tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content in alleged marijuana to distinguish it from hemp, it remains likely that law enforcement will continue to arrest individuals for alleged marijuana possession offenses.
The possible disciplinary measures of a court in a marijuana case will depend on multiple factors, largely the amount of marijuana that was allegedly possessed. A person’s prior criminal record could also impact penalties in marijuana cases. In general, the most common kinds of penalties are usually fines and imprisonment, but additional penalties could include driver’s license suspensions and other punishments.
Police officers can arrest individuals who they believe were in knowing possession of marijuana, and possession may be actual or constructive. Actual possession is when marijuana is found on the person of an individual, whether it is in their pocket or their hands. Constructive possession means that a person could be accused of possession when marijuana is found in an area accessible to multiple people.
The record of the arrest could be public and be available to many people who perform background checks. While an arrest is not the same as a conviction, it can still appear on a criminal record and have possible negative complications for employment applications or college-related efforts.
Many marijuana cases are thrown out when police officers violate the rights of alleged offenders in their encounters with them. An unlawful search and seizure is one of the most common defenses against any drug charge because when police seize evidence unlawfully, it is prohibited from being used as evidence by a prosecutor and they are subsequently left without anything to pursue a case with.
A lawyer is immediately going to be able to conduct their own investigation into the arrest and determine the strongest possible defenses in your case. The attorney will know what kinds of evidence to seek out and how to use certain elements to your advantage. When you have a lawyer, they will also be more comfortable negotiating with a prosecutor to achieve a reduction in or dismissal of criminal charges.
A prosecutor must prove your guilt for any marijuana crime beyond a reasonable doubt, which is an exceptionally high bar to satisfy. You can achieve a not guilty verdict by simply giving a jury enough reason to doubt any element of a prosecutor’s case. An acquittal can be achieved through a dedicated effort to attack every element of the case against you.
Community service is one of the most common kinds of punishments for alleged offenders instead of prison sentences. It is also possible that a person could be sentenced to a term of probation in which they have to check in regularly with a probation officer. Court-ordered participation in a drug treatment program could also be possible in some cases.
Your employment situation will depend on how aggressively your employer enforces drug convictions. Some employers may have no tolerance for these kinds of issues and could terminate you just for an arrest, but other employers may not conduct any kind of background check needed to uncover the violation.
The answer will again depend on the school, as some colleges vigorously enforce their codes of conduct while others are far more lenient. Suspensions and expulsions are possible in some cases.
It may. Landlords run background checks on most prospective tenants in Texas, and a marijuana conviction could indeed be used as a reason to deny a person the opportunity to rent an apartment.
Whether you're facing a felony charge or fighting a traffic ticket, every case deserves serious attention. Get an experienced defense team in your corner now.
