Will a paraphernalia ticket from 9 years ago affect a current possession of marijuana charge?

It depends. There are pretrial programs for first time offenders and the paraphernalia ticket could exclude you from participating. Every county has different programs and I am not familiar with Johnson County. If should not affect your ability to get deferred adjudication, but you need to hire an attorney who can evaluate your case and see about other alternatives to fighting the charge.

Possession of Paraphernalia is a Class C offense. This should have been heard at the municipal court. When you disposed of the case 9 years ago did you sit the ticket out in jail? pay the ticket? or get straight probation? If so, you were convicted of that offense. The conviction may be on your record. However, if you received deferred probation there is no conviction and the case would have been dismissed once you satisfactorily completed probation. It is also unlikely that a record exists of a 9 year old Class C Possession of Paraphernalia case. That being said, it is entirely possible that a record exists. There are multiple options on how to approach your situation. Consult with a qualified criminal defense attorney.

I would say that it all depends on the county and the prosecutor handling the case. I see that the residence is in Cleburne. Johnson County prosecutors will certainly look at the prior Class C charge in determining what to do with the new possession. There are no pre-trial diversion programs for this offense in Johnson County, however deferred adjudication probation is available to avoid having the final conviction on your record.