Drug Offenses

Laws governing drug offenses are set by both the Federal government and the individual states. Punishments for drug crimes vary widely by geographical region. States that are adjacent to international borderlines tend to have stricter drug laws due to the heavy amount of drug trafficking that occurs at borders. The most common drug offenses include:

The unlawful

of any controlled substances.

Drug offenses include not only drugs per se, but all "controlled substances". Controlled substances include, but are not limited to:

Defenses to drug crimes are few and rarely available. This is because drug offenses typically involve a person who knows what they are doing and are intentional in their actions.

The Controlled Substances Act & Drug "Schedules"

Different drugs carry with them different penalties. The Controlled Substances Act (CSA) attempts to combine various laws and regulations regarding drug offenses. The Act is important because it categorizes drugs according to a "schedule", ranking them in order of severity. The schedule lists five classes of drugs, Schedule I through Schedule V.

The schedules are rated according to various factors such as tendency for abuse and medicinal value. Schedule I drugs demonstrate a high tendency of abuse and little to no medicinal value, while Schedule V drugs have a low tendency of abuse and some medicinal uses.

Accordingly, punishment for Schedule I drug offenses would be much more severe than a Schedule V drug offense.

Punishment for Drug Offenses

Punishment for drug offenses can vary drastically depending on the type of drug and the persons' motivations. Usually punishments for small amounts of drugs for personal use are classified as misdemeanors, punishable by a fine and/or less than one year jail time. Possession of large amounts of drugs for distribution purposes is usually a felony, punishable by greater fines and/or more than one year prison time.

Oftentimes, simply possessing a large amount of drugs will lead the police and authorities to believe that the person is intending to distribute the drugs. This will be assumed even if no other evidence exists that the person intends to distribute. Punishment for distribution of drugs is more severe than for personal use.

Again, some of the factors used in prescribing punishments for drug offenses include:

Further Consequences of a Drug Conviction

Besides the legal consequences such as fines and prison time, a drug conviction can be devastating and lead to further consequences such as:

Additionally, punishments become much more severe if minors are involved in the drug charge. These include distribution to minors, using minors for distribution, and distributing/selling drugs near a school.

If the person charged with drug distribution is a professional drug dealer, they will be subject to more specific, stricter laws. Also, drug crimes involving the use of rental property (such as setting up "meth labs" or drug houses) are subject to specific laws.

Points to Consider

Drug convictions can be devastating to one's career and personal life.  If you have been involved in a drug offense, it is essential that you obtain a lawyer. Some points to consider are: