GrizPony said:
Skookum-Jim said:
emilsson_2000 said:
Possession of x is a felony??? Wtf? Why is the system trying to ruin young people's lives? Distribution is one thing... But possession? Horrible. Our society is fubar.
Most likely they are charging him with possession with intent to distribute. I'm sure he had a butt load of the stuff to be charged with a felony.
Read the law and you might not be so certain. But you can jump to conclusions if you want.
For the lazy:
45-9-102. Criminal possession of dangerous drugs. (1) Except as provided in Title 50, chapter 46, a person commits the offense of criminal possession of dangerous drugs if the person possesses any dangerous drug, as defined in
50-32-101.
(2) A person convicted of criminal possession of marijuana or its derivatives in an amount the aggregate weight of which does not exceed 60 grams of marijuana or 1 gram of hashish is, for the first offense, guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a fine of not less than $100 or more than $500 and by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than 6 months. The minimum fine must be imposed as a condition of a suspended or deferred sentence. A person convicted of a second or subsequent offense under this subsection is punishable by a fine not to exceed $1,000 or by imprisonment in the county jail for a term not to exceed 1 year or in the state prison for a term not to exceed 3 years or by both. This subsection does not apply to the possession of synthetic cannabinoids listed as dangerous drugs in 50-32-222.
(3) A person convicted of criminal possession of an anabolic steroid as listed in 50-32-226 is, for the first offense, guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be punished by a fine of not less than $100 or more than $500 or by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than 6 months, or both.
(4) A person convicted of criminal possession of an opiate, as defined in 50-32-101(19), shall be imprisoned in the state prison for a term of not less than 2 years or more than 5 years and may be fined not more than $50,000, except as provided in 46-18-222.
(5) (a) A person convicted of a second or subsequent offense of criminal possession of methamphetamine shall be punished by:
(i) imprisonment for a term not to exceed 5 years or by a fine not to exceed $50,000, or both; or
(ii) commitment to the department of corrections for placement in an appropriate correctional facility or program for a term of not less than 3 years or more than 5 years. If the person successfully completes a residential methamphetamine treatment program operated or approved by the department of corrections during the first 3 years of a term, the remainder of the term must be suspended. The court may also impose a fine not to exceed $50,000.
(b) During the first 3 years of a term under subsection (5)(a)(ii), the department of corrections may place the person in a residential methamphetamine treatment program operated or approved by the department of corrections or in a correctional facility or program. The residential methamphetamine treatment program must consist of time spent in a residential methamphetamine treatment facility and time spent in a community-based prerelease center.
(c) The court shall, as conditions of probation pursuant to subsection (5)(a), order:
(i) the person to abide by the standard conditions of probation established by the department of corrections;
(ii) payment of the costs of imprisonment, probation, and any methamphetamine treatment by the person if the person is financially able to pay those costs;
(iii) that the person may not enter an establishment where alcoholic beverages are sold for consumption on the premises or where gambling takes place;
(iv) that the person may not consume alcoholic beverages;
(v) the person to enter and remain in an aftercare program as directed by the person's probation officer; and
(vi) the person to submit to random or routine drug and alcohol testing.
(6) A person convicted of criminal possession of dangerous drugs not otherwise provided for in subsections (2) through (5) shall be imprisoned in the state prison for a term not to exceed 5 years or be fined an amount not to exceed $50,000, or both.
(7) A person convicted of a first violation under this section is presumed to be entitled to a deferred imposition of sentence of imprisonment.
(8) Ultimate users and practitioners, as defined in 50-32-101, and agents under their supervision acting in the course of a professional practice are exempt from this section.
50-32-101. Definitions. As used in this chapter, the following definitions apply:
(1) "Administer" means the direct application of a dangerous drug, whether by injection, inhalation, ingestion, or other means, to the body of a patient or research subject by:
(a) a practitioner or by the practitioner's authorized agent; or
(b) the patient or research subject at the direction and in the presence of the practitioner.
(2) (a) "Agent" means an authorized person who acts on behalf of or at the direction of a manufacturer, distributor, or dispenser.
(b) The term does not include a common or contract carrier, public warehouse operator, or employee of the carrier or warehouse operator.
(3) "Board" means the board of pharmacy provided for in 2-15-1733.
(4) "Bureau" means the drug enforcement administration, United States department of justice, or its successor agency.
(5) "Counterfeit substance" means a dangerous drug or the container or labeling of a dangerous drug without authorization that bears the trademark, trade name, or other identifying mark, imprint, number, or device or a likeness of an identifying mark, imprint, number, or device of a manufacturer, distributor, or dispenser other than the person who in fact manufactured, distributed, or dispensed the drug.
(6) "Dangerous drug" means a drug, substance, or immediate precursor in Schedules I through V set forth in part 2.
(7) "Deliver" or "delivery" means the actual, constructive, or attempted transfer from one person to another of a dangerous drug, whether or not there is an agency relationship.
(8) "Department" means the department of labor and industry provided for in Title 2, chapter 15, part 17.
(9) "Dispense" means to deliver a dangerous drug to an ultimate user or research subject by or pursuant to the lawful order of a practitioner, including the prescribing, administering, packaging, labeling, or compounding necessary to prepare the drug for that delivery.
(10) "Dispenser" means a practitioner who dispenses.
(11) "Distribute" means to deliver other than by administering or dispensing a dangerous drug.
(12) "Distributor" means a person who distributes.
(13) "Drug" has the same meaning as provided in 37-7-101.
(14) "Hashish", as distinguished from marijuana, means the mechanically processed or extracted plant material that contains tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and is composed of resin from the cannabis plant.
(15) "Immediate precursor" means a substance that the board finds to be and by rule designates as being the principal compound commonly used or produced primarily for use and that is an immediate chemical intermediary used or likely to be used in the manufacture of a dangerous drug, the control of which is necessary to prevent, curtail, or limit manufacture.
(16) (a) "Manufacture" means the production, preparation, propagation, compounding, conversion, or processing of a dangerous drug either directly or indirectly by extraction from substances of natural origin, independently by means of chemical synthesis, or by a combination of extraction and chemical synthesis and includes the packaging or repackaging of the drug or labeling or relabeling of its container.
(b) Manufacture does not include the preparation or compounding of a dangerous drug by an individual for personal use or the preparation, compounding, packaging, or labeling of a dangerous drug:
(i) by a practitioner as an incident to the administering or dispensing of a dangerous drug in the course of a professional practice; or
(ii) by a practitioner or the practitioner's authorized agent under the practitioner's supervision for the purpose of or as an incident to research, teaching, or chemical analysis and not for sale.
(17) "Marijuana (marihuana)" means all plant material from the genus Cannabis containing tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) or seeds of the genus capable of germination.
(18) "Narcotic drug" means any of the following, whether produced directly or indirectly by extraction from substances of vegetable origin, independently by means of chemical synthesis, or by a combination of extraction and chemical synthesis:
(a) opium and opiate and a salt, compound, derivative, or preparation of opium or opiate;
(b) a salt, compound, isomer, derivative, or preparation of a salt, compound, isomer, or derivative that is chemically equivalent or identical with any of the drugs referred to in subsection (18)(a), but not including the isoquinoline alkaloids of opium;
(c) opium poppy and poppy straw; or
(d) coca leaves and a salt, compound, derivative, or preparation of coca leaves and a salt, compound, isomer, derivative, or preparation of a salt, compound, isomer, or derivative that is chemically equivalent or identical with any of these drugs, but not including decocainized coca leaves or extractions of coca leaves that do not contain cocaine or ecgonine.
(19) "Opiate" means a drug having an addiction-forming or addiction-sustaining liability similar to morphine or being capable of conversion into a drug having addiction-forming or addiction-sustaining liability. The term does not include, unless specifically designated as a dangerous drug under 50-32-202, the dextrorotatory isomer of 3-methoxy-n-methylmorphinan and its salts (dextromethorphan). The term does include its racemic and levorotatory forms.
(20) "Opium poppy" means the plant of the species Papaver somniferum L., except its seeds.
(21) "Person" means an individual, corporation, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, or any other legal entity.
(22) "Poppy straw" means all parts, except the seeds, of the opium poppy after mowing.
(23) "Practitioner" means:
(a) a physician, dentist, veterinarian, scientific investigator, or other person licensed, registered, or otherwise permitted to distribute, dispense, or conduct research with respect to or to administer a dangerous drug in the course of professional practice or research in this state;
(b) a pharmacy or other institution licensed, registered, or otherwise permitted to distribute, dispense, or conduct research with respect to or to administer a dangerous drug in the course of professional practice or research in this state; and
(c) a physician licensed to practice medicine or a dentist licensed to practice dentistry in another state.
(24) "Prescription" means an order given individually for the person for whom prescribed, directly from the prescriber to the furnisher or indirectly to the furnisher, by means of an order signed by the prescriber and bearing the name and address of the prescriber, the prescriber's license classification, the name of the patient, the name and quantity of the drug or drugs prescribed, the directions for use, and the date of its issue. These stipulations apply to written, electronically transmitted, and telephoned prescriptions.
(25) "Production" includes the manufacture, planting, cultivation, growing, or harvesting of a substance or drug regulated under the provisions of this chapter.
(26) "State", when applied to a part of the United States, includes a state, district, commonwealth, territory, insular possession of the United States, and any area subject to the legal authority of the United States of America.
(27) "Ultimate user" means a person who lawfully possesses a dangerous drug for personal use or for the use of a member of the person's household or for administering to an animal owned by the person or by a member of the person's household.
And if you want a list of the possible Schedule I substances as listed in 50-32-222, it's here: http://data.opi.mt.gov/bills/mca/50/32/50-32-222.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
