Arrested for Nunchaku: How serious is this?

[durandal]

Its worth not having to spend a year in prison

[becxltoo984]

That's a shame if you had responded no you cant search my car . They would have checked you for wants or warrants and I assume would have kicked you down the road .
Talk to a lawyer ....

[RickD427]

Let's check the Penal Code shall we?

The Penal Code on nunchaku....



And PC 1170(h) has the following.....



Possession of a nunchaku is a felony, which may be reduced to a misdemeanor. This is known as a wobbler. If convicted of the felony it can be up to three years imprisonment.... and a lifetime loss of rights to own or possess any firearm or ammunition.

While most often these will get knocked down to a misdemeanor, a charge like this is nothing to be ignored or trifled with. The OP needs to stop posting here now, engage a competent criminal defense attorney immediately and be prepared for the worst possible outcome. DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES appear in court at a criminal proceeding against your interest without competent counsel present to represent you. Get a lawyer now.

OP made a very simple mistake which has the potential to be life altering. Beating him up here over what he should and should not have done, or speculating about his case or what he should do about it, does no good.

^^^^^THIS^^^^^

Bigdog gave an excellent post. In addition, the law does make an attempt to be fair, particularly when a wide range of conduct is covered by a penal section. That's why many offenses are "wobblers". The legal system is quite complex, and it's not always intuitive. Ordinary folks don't do very well navigating the system. You really do need a competent lawyer to represent you.

[SVT-40]

1. Did you give them permision to search the trunk? If not they had no right to look in your trunk. Looking inside the passenger area and the trunk are two different things. The trunk is a locked area and they would need to ask if they could look in it seperatly.

2. Why the heck would you let them look in your car? Duh...


GET A LAWYER NOW!

No, they do not need separate permission to look in the trunk . The OP gave the officers permission to search the vehicle. That includes the trunk.

Now if the OP had said sure search my car , except for the trunk, then the officers would have been limited to the passenger compartment, unless while searching the passenger compartment they found contraband. Then they could continue into the trunk.

But since the OP set no limits to the search the officers were legally allowed to search the entirety of the vehicle.

[Fortified Peasant]

No, they do not need separate permission to look in the trunk . The OP gave the officers permission to search the vehicle. That includes the trunk.

Now if the OP had said sure search my car , except for the trunk, then the officers would have been limited to the passenger compartment, unless while searching the passenger compartment they found contraband. Then they could continue into the trunk.

But since the OP set no limits to the search the officers were legally allowed to search the entirety of the vehicle.

Uh, I dont think so. Where did you get that? If it is locked they need to ask permision. Just like the glove box, if its locked they need to ask permision.

[Invisible_Dave]

If he gave consent to search the car, all parts are in play. Conversely if he wanted he could have terminated consent at any time.

Trucks and glove boxes get tricky under non-consented searches, but that's not the case here.

On edit: if the person consenting to the search said "yeah but you can't look in the truck" then the truck would be off limits.

[Fortified Peasant]

If he gave consent to search the car, all parts are in play. Conversely if he wanted he could have terminated consent at any time.

Trucks and glove boxes get tricky under non-consented searches, but that's not the case here.

On edit: if the person consenting to the search said "yeah but you can't look in the truck" then the truck would be off limits.

If the cops knew what they were doing they would have asked if they could look in the trunk after searching the car. I am also asuming the trunk was locked. If the trunk or govle box are locked the cops are going to have to request the key (ask for permision). A good lawyer would disagree with you.

[Invisible_Dave]

A good lawyer will always challenge the search. Doesn't make them correct.

[Fortified Peasant]

A good lawyer will always challenge the search. Doesn't make them correct.

True. I'm not even saying the officers did anything wrong. The dirver shoudl have know that what he had was illegal. Ignorence will not get him out of trouble here.

[Sleighter]

Just my 2 cents, but I would reconsider this decision and see if you can arrange to have counsel (lawyer) represent you on the 25th. When it comes to dealing with a potential felony I know that I would want an attorney handling every aspect of the case.

As you have already learned, small decisions early on (i.e. consent to search) can have long lasting effects. Get a lawyer, and TODAY, not AFTER the hearing, BEFORE THE HEARING!

Thank you for the insight/advice. I knew that hiring a lawyer was a matter of time, but this makes it more clear. I will definitely show up to court on my date and will follow through. So I would plead not guilty, then would I be able to ask for a time extension on the grounds that I am looking for legal representation?

Does anyone have any recommendations for legal representation? I have so far gotten one(1) PM only, would like to have a few more lawyers ready on hand.

And for those who are wondering: I am 20 years old, no previous violent crime history. This happened in Huntington Beach.

[Fortified Peasant]

[Librarian]

Felony charge? Lawyer is almost always the right answer.

Since court proceedings will be so important to the resolution of the question, closed for something official.

OP, if you care to tell us how this turns out, please start a new thread in Off Topic.