Defendant and Appellant Boot Hughston was arrested and charged with possession of cocaine for sale, possession of methylenedioxymethamphetamine for sale, possession of psilocybin mushrooms for sale, and possession of nitrous oxide in the summer of 2006.

The charges were based upon an incident in which local authorities followed Hughston around the Sierra Nevada World Music Festival held at the Mendocino County Fairgrounds. Special agent Nishiyama observed Hughston exchanging certain pills for money at the festival and followed him out. After observing another exchange, Nishiyama called for assistance and two other deputies arrived and arrested Hughston. While he was being arrested, Hughston was asked by the deputies where the rented Hummer that he admitted to be driving around was. Hughston responded saying it was parked in the parking lot at which point Nishiyama proceeded to locate and search the vehicle. There he found 800 more pills, “a couple pounds” of mushrooms, marijuana, and a quarter pound of cocaine.

Hughston challenged the court’s decision to find him guilty of the charges based on what he and his attorney felt were multiple errors by the deputies and the court. The deputies didn’t read Hughston his Miranda rights when he was being arrested and as a result of that they were able to locate his vehicle, search it, and find the majority of the illegal substances. The court ruled this to be a violation of Hughston’s Fourth Amendment rights and reversed the Mendocino County Superior Court’s decision.

Hughston was fortunate to have a qualified criminal defense attorney to inform him of his rights and help identify which ones were violated by the deputies on the day of the arrest. The court made a mistake in convicting Hughston and his defense attorney was there to recognize that mistake and fight for the decision to be reversed. An experienced attorney will be able to recognize these violations of citizen’s rights and fight for your freedom.

Wallin & Klarich has over 30 years of experience in criminal defense and are ready to get you the help you need in resolving your criminal matter. Call us 24 hours a day 7 days a week at 1-888-749-0034 and speak to an aggressive and experienced lawyer. Also visit us on the web at www.wklaw.com.