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Pretty and easy-going actress Sheila Marcia Joseph didn't think carefully enough when she entered Golden Sky apartment in August 2008 to have a 'shabu-shabu' party with her male colleagues. In her young age of 19 and emerging career, she must spend time in prison for illegal drug possession.

Category : Drug Abuse

Case : Sheila Marcia on Illegal Drug Possession and Use

Indictment : Psychotropic Law No 5 Year 1997 Article 62 jo 71 and Article 62 jo 55

Case Year : 2008

Time Span: Arrested in August 7, 2008 - Fully released on February 9, 2010

Here's the Case

Sheila was arrested on August 7, 2008 at the Golden Sky Apartment building in Pluit, North Jakarta with four other guys. The report said that they were having drug party and later on she was charged of possessing 0.27 grams of Shabu-shabu. Apart from the drugs, police also confiscated a bong and lighters.

The Law Process

The trial of Sheila's illegal drug possession was conducted in North Jakarta District Court. Sheila was represented by Mudarwan Yusuf as her lawyer. During the process, Sheila was always accompanied by her mother, Maria Cecilia Joseph.

The first trial was conducted on October 20, 2008. It was a hard case for her as there were some incriminating factors: she was caught red-handed and the other witnesses said that she indeed asked for the drugs herself.

On the trial dated November 17, 2008, Sheila was prosecuted for 2 years in prison and IDR 10 Million fine in lieu of 5 months confinement.

On December 15, 2008, Sheila received the verdict of 1-year confinement in Pondok Bambu penitentiary and IDR 5 Million in fine. Sheila and her lawyer then appealed to the High Court.

On March 5, 2009, which was 7 months after the first verdict, the North Jakarta High Court decided that the punishment for Sheila be reduced from 12 months to 'only' 7 months. Sheila team accepted the new verdict, however the prosecutor further appealed this case to Supreme Court.

How It Ends

Unfortunately for Sheila, the case didn't end yet. After her release in March 2009, Sheila was back in the show business by being a host in 'Inbox' music show and covering a Chrisye's hits song “Damai Bersamamu” (Peace Be With You). She was also engaged to a Balinese basketball player named Delano Ezar. It seemed the media loved Sheila and put her a lot in their infotainment news.

Sadly Sheila couldn't enjoy her freedom for too long. On September 7, 2009, after the Supreme Court granted the appeal of persecutor, she was forced to return to the prison to finish her remaining confinement period for 5 months. Her execution was quite dramatically as she was picked up by the North Jakarta District Court staffs at 3:30 AM in Bali. Sheila kept making news as at that time, she was 2-month pregnant out of wedlock and would not publicly reveal the name her baby's father. She only claimed that it wasn't Delano's.

Sheila will be again set free from Pondok Bambu jail on February 9, 2010.

Sheila Marcia Joseph was born on September 3, 1989 in Malang, Java. She was a model and starred in rather famous horror movies like Hantu Jeruk Purut and Kereta Hantu Manggarai.

Do You Know?

• Sheila's maternity due date is between February 24 – March 3, 2010. As she would have already been released at that time, she'd planed to give labor in Harapan Bunda Hospital, Pasar Rebo, East Jakarta that has appointed her as the Anti-abortion icon in December 2009.

• The verdict of physical confinement for Sheila was considered unfair by the GANNAS Chairman (National Movement of Anti Narcotics and Psychotropics) as Sheila was merely a young user instead of a dealer and shabu-shabu was categorized psychotropics rather the narcotics. They said it would be more appropriate to apply the rehabilitation punishment for such case.