Marinovich Case Prompts Change in Drug Charges

Reacting in part to the recent arrest of former USC quarterback Todd Marinovich, the Orange County District Attorney’s office announced Friday it will file felony charges instead of misdemeanors against first-time offenders caught with small amounts of cocaine.

In the past, only misdemeanor charges were filed if the amount possessed was less than a gram.

Chief Deputy Dist. Atty. Maury Evans said executives in the office have discussed changing the policy for some time, but that the decision was made after Marinovich’s arrest.

“I think it’s fair to say that the Marinovich case heightened our level of awareness that a change might be in order,” Evans said. District Attorney Michael R. Capizzi, who signed an order making the change, was out of the office for the day and unavailable to discuss it.

Marinovich, 21, was arrested Jan. 20 about 4:15 a.m. by Newport Beach police on a street near his mother’s home on the Balboa Peninsula. Police stopped Marinovich and three others, concerned that they might be disrupting the quiet of the neighborhood.

Lab tests on a substance in Marinovich’s possession showed it was less than half a gram of cocaine. He was charged with a misdemeanor under a Business and Profession Code statute, actually designed for prescription drugs.

Under Capizzi’s new ruling, Marinovich would have been charged with a felony. The guideline only affects future cases.

A person convicted of a cocaine misdemeanor can be sentenced to six months in the Orange County Jail and fined up to $1,000, or both. On a felony conviction, a defendant could be sentenced to state prison for up to three years.

In practical terms, the policy change probably won’t affect a dramatic number of defendants. Whether felony or misdemeanor, the courts in Orange County have been dismissing first-time possession charges if a defendant agrees to complete an acceptable drug diversion program. The vast majority of defendants agree to this, and the charges against them are dismissed.