A state court in Florida has declared Florida's drug possession law unconstitutional. There is a good chance that Florida will be required to release all prisoners who were convicted under the law.

If we're in Florida and I walk up to you and ask you to hold my bag while I tie my shoes and the bag contains cocaine, then you're guilty of felony possession of cocaine unless you can prove you did not know what was in the bag.

Prior to 2002, Florida's drug possession law did not specify that a person committed a crime only if the person knew he was in possession of illegal drugs, but Florida's Supreme Court interpreted the statute to require knowledge as a condition to guilt.

Reacting to the Florida Supreme Court decision, the Florida legislature amended its drug law explicitly to remove the requirement of knowledge. Instead, the amendment to the law gave the defendant the opportunity to prove lack of knowledge. The amendment moved the burden of proof from the prosecution to the defense.

Florida is the only state that does not require the prosecution to prove that the defendant knowingly possessed illegal drugs.

On the bright side, this ruling, if it survives appeal, may save Florida a lot of money that it currently spends on housing prisoners.

Source:
http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2011/07/27/florida-judge-declares-sates-drug-law-unconstitutional/