California Drug Possession Act - Health and Safety Code 11350. Drug possession, also known as possession of a controlled substance (Health and Safety Code Sections 11350 and 1137), is a felony, although certain drugs can be charged as a misdemeanor. Alcohol is legal for adults 21 and older in the state of California to possess, buy and consume. The sale of alcohol is regulated and county authorities must grant a license before a store, bar or restaurant can sell alcohol.
Driving a motor vehicle while intoxicated with alcohol is a misdemeanor that carries a penalty of up to one year in county jail. Subsequent offenses can be charged as a felony under certain circumstances. In practice, driving a motor vehicle while intoxicated will result in probation for the first offenses, along with hefty fines, alcohol education, and community service. Subsequent offenses generally result in a small amount of jail time along with probation.
Public alcohol poisoning is a misdemeanor under state law and also under most city ordinances. Public alcohol poisoning often goes unprosecuted and the offender is released after being sober in jail. Sometimes, based on criminal records, those convicted of public intoxication can serve very small jail terms. Raw opium, opium poppy and straw, as well as their derivatives morphine, oxycodone, hydrocodone and codeine, are included in Schedule 2 of the California Uniform Controlled Substances Act.
Products that contain nicotine, such as tobacco, cigarettes, cigars, and chewing tobacco, are legal for adults 21 and older to possess, buy and consume. The sale of tobacco and nicotine-containing products is regulated and the state must grant a license before a store can sell tobacco and nicotine-containing products. Anabolic steroids, including testosterone and human chorionic gonadotropin, are included in Schedule 3 of the Uniform Controlled Substances Act. Under California drug possession laws, you can legally possess up to eight grams of cannabis concentrate for recreational use.
But if you use medical marijuana, you're not subject to this limit. So you don't have to worry about how much you carry with you, but it's important that you have a valid prescription. California law makes it a crime to possess, buy or sell, be under the influence of, possess for sale, or traffic cocaine. Unlike possessing cocaine for personal use, possessing or buying cocaine to sell it doesn't allow you to participate in a drug diversion program.
If you have been charged with possession of a controlled substance, there are several ways a drug defense lawyer can help you fight the charges. While most people assume that you must be in possession of drugs to be charged with possession of a controlled substance, law enforcement can charge you with possession in three ways. While some of the elements of the crime are present, she should be acquitted because she did not possess the drug. Simple drug possession is generally charged as a misdemeanor (as opposed to a felony or an offense).
California's most severe penalties for drug possession relate to transporting and possessing a controlled substance with intent to sell it. Most first-time offenders can have the charge dropped if they successfully complete a PC 1000 drug diversion program. A prosecutor can charge a defendant with simple possession when the defendant possessed one of the substances listed in the Health and Safety Code. Fortunately, a conviction for personal possession of cocaine can allow you to participate in a California drug diversion program.
California establishes penalties for drug possession that vary depending on the type of drug, the amount of the drug, and the purpose for which the defendant possessed the drug. Since possession of a controlled drug is a nonviolent crime, the new Health and Safety Code considers it a misdemeanor. Section 11352 differs from HSC section 11351 in that section 11352 addresses possession for sale in the actual purchase of drugs, not just the intention to sell. She would not have had a legal right to possess the drug in what would presumably have been a large enough quantity to be used.
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