TL;DR

Escondido criminal defense attorney Richard S. Sterger explains that a minor caught with drugs such as cocaine, methamphetamine, LSD or someone else's Adderall is typically charged with a misdemeanor, while marijuana is treated as an infraction. At a party, prosecutors have to show the child had knowledge and control of the drugs. Sterger also warns that the protections teens have with police do not apply to school administrators, and that what a child says to an administrator can be used later.

• According to Richard S. Sterger, primary drug possession by a minor is a misdemeanor, covering drugs such as methamphetamine, cocaine, LSD and using somebody else's prescription, such as Adderall.
• Having your own prescription for the pills is an automatic defense, and marijuana possession is treated as an infraction rather than a misdemeanor.
• To charge a teen for drugs found at a party, the DA has to show knowledge and control. Sterger says that if the drugs were not with your child, there is a pretty good chance your child will not be charged.
• Cars are harder. Once drugs are dropped on the floor, the question of whose they are becomes more difficult.
• The protections a juvenile has with police, including the right to have counsel or parents present, do not exist with a school administrator. Statements to an administrator can come in later as an admission against interest.
• Sterger sees fights, vapes and, more and more, possession of explicit images among minors as the main school incidents. He warns these can lead to state or federal charges and that administrators do not have the right to take or search a student's phone.

What charge does a minor face for pills, cocaine or marijuana?

Richard S. Sterger: Primary possession is a misdemeanor. And that's going to encompass the methamphetamine, the cocaine, the LSD. It's also going to encompass the Adderall, using somebody else's prescription.

There is a defense to prescription pills provided you have a prescription for it. That's an automatic defense. All of those are now misdemeanors on their first offense. And then you also have the marijuana. And the marijuana will actually be treated as an infraction, not as a misdemeanor.

Can my child be charged if the drugs belonged to someone else?

Richard S. Sterger: At the party, that's going to be a difficult one because you have to be able to show that there was knowledge and control. You could have 20 people at a party, and one of them has drugs or five of them have drugs. Your kid has no knowledge of it, and the DA can't prove that they have knowledge of it. And they also have to have control. If it's in the pocket of another kid, how much control does your kid have of it?

Where we see this more frequently is in the car. What happens is it gets dropped. Now it's not in a pocket. It's on the floor. And then it becomes the question of whose is it? Is it one person? Is it everybody's? It becomes a more difficult question. But in the party context, knowledge and control, if it wasn't with your kid, you're probably going to have a pretty good chance that your kid's not going to be charged with it.

Should my teen answer questions from school administrators?

Richard S. Sterger: We get the school administrator thing all the time.

Parents have to understand that the same protections that apply in a custodial interrogation by police, or even being arrested by a police officer when you're a juvenile, and the right to have counsel or your parents present, don't exist with a school administrator. I've seen plenty of times where the school administrator is giving a report as to what they were told. And even though it's hearsay, there are exceptions to hearsay, and admission against interest is one of those exceptions. These things could come into play later. They could be used against you.

The hard part about it today is that kids believe that what they say to an administrator may dictate the outcome of how this is going to go down, and that's really not true.

The conduct that is alleged is more likely to dictate whether or not the police are going to come in. And that is because the schools have gotten out of the game of working with parents to resolve issues of discipline. Because of the CYA, they've resorted to just calling the police.

Which school incidents most often lead to police involvement?

Richard S. Sterger: Now when we're talking about what happens at school, what is it that we're normally talking about? These things fall into pretty small categories.

The number one thing I see nowadays is going to be fights. Number two is going to be vapes. And probably the one that I see growing more and more is the possession of child pornography.

These little flings and these little pictures are being sent back, and they're all minors. It's all child pornography under the strict definitions, the possession of it, whether or not it was given. And then certainly the sharing of it becomes an issue. Revenge porn type things are an issue when you're an adult, and that takes on a whole different level at the juvenile age.

When you're talking to an administrator, you could be walking yourself into not only a state charge, but a federal charge. And they don't have the right to take your phone. They don't have the right to search your phone. The idea that we work with them because they're the administrators at the school, that's not true. Your child has a significant liberty interest at stake, and I think you really need to protect it.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it a crime for a teen to have a friend's Adderall?

Yes. Richard S. Sterger says using somebody else's prescription, such as Adderall, falls under the same misdemeanor possession charge as cocaine or methamphetamine. Having your own prescription for the pills is an automatic defense.

Is marijuana possession by a minor a misdemeanor in California?

According to Sterger, marijuana possession by a minor is treated as an infraction, not as a misdemeanor. Drugs like cocaine, methamphetamine and LSD are charged as misdemeanors on a first offense.

Can my child be charged if someone else at the party had the drugs?

The DA has to show your child had knowledge of the drugs and control over them. If the drugs were in another kid's pocket and not with your child, Sterger says there is a pretty good chance your child will not be charged. Cases involving drugs dropped on a car floor are more difficult.

Can what my child tells a school administrator be used in court?

Yes. Sterger explains that the protections a juvenile has with police, including the right to counsel or a parent, do not apply with school administrators. Even though an administrator's report is hearsay, admission against interest is an exception, so those statements can be used later.

Can a school administrator search my child's phone?

Sterger says administrators do not have the right to take or search a student's phone. He warns that phone-related incidents involving shared images of minors can lead to state or even federal charges.

Edited for length and clarity from a recorded conversation with Richard S. Sterger.