What is the test for a driver to be convicted of possession of heroin?

California, United States of America


The following excerpt is from People v. Williams, A136945 (Cal. App. 2014):

Here, the substance was found in defendant's car, and he was the driver. While the heroin was not in plain view, it was found in a baggy in an ordinary compartment of the car, and Officer Fok apparently had no trouble finding it. In the same compartment was a second baggy containing marijuana. Defendant, at the time of the traffic stop, had a marijuana cigar in his lap. This constitutes reasonable, credible, and solid evidence from which a rational finder of fact could find, beyond a reasonable doubt, that defendant knew he was transporting heroin in his car. A driver's knowledge of the character and presence of the drug, together with his control over the vehicle, is sufficient to establish his guilt for transporting the drug. (Rogers, supra, 5 Cal.3d at pp. 135-136) The crime can be established by circumstantial evidence and any reasonable inferences drawn from that evidence. (People v. Meza (1995) 38 Cal.App.4th 1741, 1746.)

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