Talbot County Criminal Lawyer
With a residential population of about 40,000, Talbot County is near the bottom of the state in terms of size, but there are tens of thousands more people passing through or visiting each year. Route 50 cuts right through the heart of the county and is a major thoroughfare for all beachgoers traveling to Ocean City in the summer. Route 50 is also the best way to get to Cambridge and other nearby cities including Salisbury. Law enforcement is well aware of the amount of people passing through and the state police, county police and the Easton Police Department heavily patrol the stretch of 50 that passes through the more populated areas. The speed limit decreases rapidly as you enter the busy sections of the highway in and around Easton, and this is a prime area for police to make stops. Other areas where police presence is high include Trappe, Oxford and Saint Michaels. While many of theses stops are for minor traffic citations such as speeding or expired registration there are also numerous criminal cases that begin as simple traffic stops. Police know that the best way to investigate a person is to stop them for a traffic infraction, and while these pretextual stops seem unfair they are legal.
Police officers in the area have a heightened suspicion of all drivers at night, and if you are pulled over at this time it is almost a guarantee that an officer is looking for more than just issuing a simple ticket. We have seen dozens of cases including DUI, drug possession and firearm possession begin as a simple speeding stop. Our advice for anyone driving through Talbot County is to watch their speed and make sure all rules of the road are followed. You do not want to give police any excuse to investigate you or the passengers in your car. While many cases begin as traffic there are numerous other ways a resident or visitor can end up facing criminal charges. County law enforcement is heavily involved in the prevention of drug trafficking in the area, and there are a great deal of undercover buy bust operations conducted each year. Police are also on heightened alert for theft cases at one of the many businesses in the area. Regardless of what you are charged with, Benjamin Herbst is standing by to provide you or a family member with an aggressive and effective representation from start to finish. Contact Benjamin today at 410-207-2598 for a free case consultation.