prescription drug abuse tampa
Harsh penalties for drug offenses in Florida are not new. However, what and who have become the target of a drug investigation has changed. The growth of pain–clinics in South Florida has caused the Governor and Florida legislature to enact new laws. A growing crime rate associated with pharmaceutical drugs means that the Tampa and Pinellas police will be tracking who issues prescriptions and who obtains pharmaceutical drugs legally or illegally. Moreover, Tampa and St. Petersburg police have been singling out organizations which have been illegally issuing these suspect prescriptions.
A Tampa criminal lawyer’s view of illegal prescription drugs
Florida has become known as a pill state because of the growing market for illegal pharmaceutical pain killers. Florida Law enforcement has seen other Counties in the State lose control of the unlawful sale of oxycodone and other types of pain killers. As reported in the St. Petersburg Times, Pinellas county law enforcement worries that the problem could become as bad as it has become in Broward and Dade county. Miami has seen the illegal sale of pharmaceutical drugs eclipse the purchase of cocaine and heroin.
Florida’s Prescription Drug Law
In an effort to address this problem, Governor Charlie Crist passed a law last year which requires doctors and pharmacies to keep records of patient prescriptions.
The new law, passed nearly unanimously in the Legislature, will require doctors and pharmacists to record patient prescriptions for most drugs in a state-controlled database.
This would allow health-care professionals —and police and regulators, in some circumstances— to detect patients who go to multiple doctors seeking pills, a practice known as doctor shopping.
While this law has the potential of helping individuals who have become addicted to pain killers which their doctors prescribe for them it also has the potential of prosecuting those same patients.
Patients Become Victims
Charging someone with a felony for the possession of an illegal pain killer such as oxycodone doesn’t address the source of the problem. Law enforcement has the ability to track the flow of these pain-killers. State attorneys and police, however, prosecute crimes, and that fact creates the possibility of injustice. What kind of injustice? 1) These law enforcement agencies don’t have the means or the directive to assess the entire source of the problem. 2) Some of the people sought in these criminal investigations have unwittingly become addicted to these pain killers. That is a social problem not a criminal court problem. It should be handled through our state’s drug intervention programs.
Prescription drug addiction & criminal charges
Anyone who intentionally uses deception or falsity to obtain a prescription drug, either to profit from it or for recreational purposes, can be charged with obtaining a controlled substance by fraud (also known as prescription fraud).
If you have been charged with a felony or a misdemeanor for the illegal possession of prescription drugs or a forged prescription, my name is William Hanlon, and I am a Tampa criminal lawyer who can help you. I will aggressively defend you against any charges which stem from a prescription drug offense.
8 types of Prescription Drug Fraud
Any doctor and pharmacists who issue a prescription to someone without a legitimate medical condition can also be prosecuted for drug fraud. The following list defines the acts which constitute prescription drug fraud:
- § altering prescriptions in any way
- § attempting to fill the same prescription at multiple pharmacies
- § forging prescriptions
- § theft of a prescription pad
- § impersonating a doctor to issue a prescription
- § impersonating a pharmacist to fill a fraudulent prescription
- § increasing the dosage of a prescription
- § using a false name to obtain somebody else’s prescription
I have practiced law in Tampa for over 15 years. I understand how drug laws have changed, and I know how State attorneys prosecute Florida’s Drug laws. I have the invaluable experience it takes to defend anyone against these serious charges. Call me today. I will personally review all the facts and the law with you.
drug paraphernalia possession: voluntary consent not given
A drug possession and drug paraphernalia charge is sometimes built on the testimony of the police. Sometimes that testimony can erode the credibility of the evidence they collect.
Fabricated scenarios are a common tool that Florida law enforcement use to obtain evidence. Sometimes those scenarios border on the absurd, as it did in the case of the State v. Bartling. As reported by Alex D Ruskell, the police will stretch the notion of informed consent further than any reasonable person would accept:
Without obtaining a warrant or conducting any surveillance of the apartment, Deputy Castanado and Detective Lopez went to Bartling's apartment and told him that the police had received an anonymous tip that someone was dragging a dead body in a rug outside his apartment. The officers continued their search and opened a cigarette pack, which was in a kitchen cupboard, and found evidence of cocaine and drug paraphernalia.
This case would be hard to believe if Abraham Lincoln repeated it. Be that as it may, the absurdity of the dead body scenario highlights an important problem with many drug possession and drug paraphernalia criminal cases: uninformed citizens who give their consent to the police. Without that consent, the search can not happen.
How consent worked in a drug possession case in Tampa
State v. Bartling shows how far the police will bend the laws to collect evidence. Consent played a important role in a case which criminal law attorney William Hanlon had. The Tampa Police claimed that our client give voluntary consent. Read more…
Analyzing Florida’s Drug Paraphernalia Laws
Tampa police officers routinely add additional charges to a felony drug possession charge. Anyone under investigation or charged with felony possession of cocaine, marijuana, or any other illicit drug will probably also receive a possession of drug paraphernalia. You should know what Florida law considers drug paraphernalia because the Tampa prosecutor could use the additional charges to substantiate a felony drug possession case against you.
Florida’s Drug Laws And Drug Enforcement (Dea)
The Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) has defined what many states consider drug paraphernalia. Florida is no different. The DEA divides these products into two categories: user–specific products and dealer–specific products.
- Drug Paraphernalia user–specific products
- [Devices] marketed to drug users to assist them in taking or concealing illegal drugs. These products include certain pipes, smoking masks, bongs, cocaine freebase kits, marijuana grow kits, roach clips, and items such as hollowed–out cosmetic cases or fake pagers used to conceal illegal drugs.
- Drug Paraphernalia dealer–specific products
- [Devices] used by drug traffickers for preparing illegal drugs for distribution at the street level. Items such as scales, vials, and baggies fall into this category. Drug paraphernalia does not include any items such as pipes and rolling papers traditionally used with tobacco.
Felony Drug Possession and Circumstantial Evidence
With the help of the experienced drug possession attorney in Tampa, you will have legal representation which knows all of the circumstantial evidence which the prosecutor will use against you. The Florida Defense Group knows how to challenge that evidence. Their case results show it.
Featured Drug Charge Case in Tampa
What Florida Criminal laws says
A possession of cocaine charge in Florida carries a significant of amount jail or prison time. We have breakdown Florida’s laws regarding this charge into three elements:
- the statue of limitations
- sentencing guidelines for a cocaine possession charge
- sentencing for trafficking in cocaine
Statute Of Limitations for Cocaine possession
As Florida statute 775.15 stipulates, any prosecution of a 1st degree felony for cocaine possession must commence with 4 years. If you believe that you are under investigation by the St. Petersburg Police for a cocaine charge or a crack cocaine charge or if you have already been charged, you need to take action immediately.
Waiting for the statute of limitations to run on any criminal charge could cost you dearly. It could mean jail or prison time. Waiting could allow the State Prosecutor to build a case again you. Those clients who have acted quickly to criminal charges or a preliminary investigation make considerable contribution their criminal defense.
| Possession and ⁄ or Trafficking | Felony | Jail or Prison time | Fine |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charts created by the Florida Law Group ∗ minimum mandatory (MMS) | |||
| 28 grams or more, but less than 150g | 1st degree | a term not to exceed thirty years | $ 1000 |
| 28 g or more, but less than 200 g | 1st degree | 3 years MMS∗ | $ 50,000 |
| 200 g or more, but less than 400 g | 1st degree | 7 years MMS∗ | $ 100,000 |
| 400 g or more, but less than 150 kg | 1st degree | 15 years | $ 250,000 |
Cocaine Possession
With so much at stake, you must have a drug possession criminal lawyer who has a history of success in defending clients in Tampa. At the Florida Defense Group, we have defended clients against unjust drug possession charges for over 15 years. A drug–trafficking, drug possession, and ⁄ or drug-paraphernalia charge can be resolved successfully. Consult us now, and start your defense today.
Marijuana Possession tampa
A Marijuana conviction in Tampa, Florida means that you will receive a swift two year suspension of your driver’s license. To avoid that outcome, learn what the Florida law considers possession of drugs.
Marijuana possession, Florida driver’s license suspension
Receiving a conviction for Marijuana possession gives the DMV the authority to suspend your Florida driver’s license. Regardless of the context of the arrest, driving or not, the department of motor vehicles will revoke your driver’s license for a conviction which involves the possession or sale of any illicit drug.
How does Florida law define Marijuana possession?
The criminal attorneys at the Florida Defense Group have had a number of cases, which you should review, that show the Marijuana possession cases they have resolved and how they did it.
Your word against the police = a criminal record: Not True
Anyone charged or under investigation for a drug crime, like Marijuana possession, might assume that it is a simple case of my word against the word of the Tampa police officer who made the arrest. If you have never been arrested before, you might think that the officer’s word always triumphs the person caught with the drugs; however, you would be making a serious mistake. Many of our investigations of drug charges for which our clients have been arrested have had serious problems proving that our client had actual possession. read more…
The facts above about the DMV and the facts that you can find on the possession Marijuana case results page is considerable and invaluable; however, that is not the whole picture. Review the chart that we have provided below. It will provided you with Florida’s 2009 laws regarding Marijuana drug possession. To make an educated decision, you must understand the are fines and sentencing consequences.
Marijuana possession and Florida’s Drug Law
| Possession and ⁄ or Trafficking | Felony or Misdemeanor | Jail or Prison time | Fine |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charts created by the Florida Law Group ∗ minimum mandatory (MMS) | |||
| 20 g or less | Misdemeanor | 1 year | $ 1000 |
| More than 20 g | Felony | 5 years | $ 5,000 |
| 25 or more plants (formerly 300 plants) | Felony | 15 years | $ 1,000 |
| Possession and ⁄ or Trafficking | Felony or Misdemeanor | Jail or Prison time | Fine |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charts created by the Florida Law Group ∗ minimum mandatory (MMS) | |||
| Delivery of 20 g or less | Misdemeanor | 1 year | $ 1000 |
| 25 lbs or less | Felony | 5 years | $ 5,000 |
| 25 to 2,000 lbs or (2,000 plants) | Felony | 3 years MMS* | $ 25,000 |
| 2,000 to 10,000 lbs (or 10,000 plants) | Felony | 7 MMS* | $ 50,000 |
Picking a Criminal Lawyer in Tampa for a drug charge?
Besides all the repercussions mentioned above, a criminal record for any type of drug possession charge is never something you should take lightly.
- In-direct Consequences of a criminal record for illegal drug possession
-
- § loss of a job
- § loss of career opportunities
- § possible loss of housing
Once you’ve reviewed our case results regarding a Marijuana conviction and the sentencing guidelines of that chart, you can make a more informed decision about your criminal defense. We believe that the 20 years that our criminal attorneys have practiced in the criminal courts of Tampa Florida afford you the best opportunity for a favorable resolution to your criminal charges.
Tampa criminal lawyer explains Florida’s drug laws
The Florida Defense Group is a Tampa, Florida law office dedicated to representing the interests of clients facing a variety of felony and misdemeanor drug charges arrest. If you face these charges, our experienced Florida drug crimes lawyer can help.s
Use, Sale or Delivery, Drug Possession charges in Tampa
A common misconception among alleged drug offenders is that their case is hopeless. Defenses are available, even if a search of your home or vehicle uncovered marijuana, or drug testing found traces of an illegal substance in your system. Our team is well-versed in law enforcement protocol for a drug charges arrest and can quickly identify violations that can lead to the immediate dismissal of all charges. Put your defense in our hands.
Common drug charges in tampa’s drug courts
Our criminal lawyers have represented clients on a variety of drug charges. Some of these charges have been resolved before the charge went before a tampa drug court judge. Some have involved multiple and complex charges. read more »
- § Drug possession
- § Narcotics sales
- § Intent to sell
- § Manufacturing
- § Distribution
- § Drug trafficking
- § Prescription drug fraud
Trafficking & possession of drugs, constitutional rights
Defending your constitutional rights is central to our drug crimes practice. An experienced drug crimes attorney will scrutinize every element of your case—from the initial traffic stop or drug crimes arrest to any search and seizure conducted by law enforcement officers. Did the officer have grounds to pull you over in the first place, or was it simply a Terry stop? Were you denied your right to walk away from an unjustified traffic stop? Were you coerced in any way?
Answers to such questions can have a significant impact on your case, as they may point to evidence of constitutional violations committed by law enforcement officials.The search by the Tampa police officer who arrested you could be entirely inadmissible. If that is the case, it could be dismissed.
Competent drug crime defense requires specific knowledge of federal and state laws. Do not entrust your case to an inexperienced attorney. Hire a lawyer with proven results—one who will treat you and your case with utmost respect. Call The Florida Defense Group to discuss your case.
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