Should I waive my right to a jury trial for a drug charge?

If you waive your right to a jury trial, one of two things will happen: either you will arrange a plea bargain with the prosecution or you will have a trial before a judge, which is called a "bench trial." Depending on the charge that you’ve been given at your arraignment, waiving your right to jury trial could both help and hurt you, depending on the situation.

You have a legal right to a trial by a jury of your peers, and often taking advantage of this is a wise move. Generally, you would want to accept a plea bargain only if you believe that the prosecutor is going to be able to prove your guilt and if you think you can get a lesser or reduced sentence by accepting a plea. Regarding your other option instead of a jury trial, you generally will want to have a trial in front of a judge instead of a jury if the case is legally complex and you believe the jury might not understand all of the legal technicalities involved. For example, sometimes there are legal technicalities and the average layperson might not understand all of these rules well enough to truly determine your guilt or innocence in the eyes of the law. 

Making this decision is not something you should ever try to do on your own.   Having a lawyer any time you are charged in criminal court is imperative throughout the court proceedings. Because there are mandatory minimum drug sentences and "3 strikes” laws in place in many states, drug charges are serious and could have very serious consequences on your life- get a lawyer to help.