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Possession of Drug Paraphernalia

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Drug paraphernalia is essentially anything that is used or designed to assist with either using or manufacturing drugs. This means that even if you don't have any illegal drugs, you can be arrested for possession of objects use to assist in ingesting or manufacturing these drugs. In other words, if you have a bong for smoking marijuana you can be arrested for possessing it even if you don't have any marijuana. Of course, the prosecution would need to establish that that is what it was used for but, if they can do that you could be convicted of possession of drug paraphernalia.

Alabama's law on drug paraphernalia is quite long and goes into great detail about all sorts of things from hypodermic needles to roach clips, but the basics are that you can't possess something intended to assist with illegal drug use.

So, here's a real-life case. When I was a very young lawyer I was prosecuting case where a person was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia. The paraphernalia was plastic bags used for marijuana.

The judge said to me, now wait, a second lawyer, if I have a sandwich in a plastic bag in my back pocket and I ate the sandwich and put the bag back, are you telling me I'm in possession of drug paraphernalia?

I started to drone on-correctly that the difference is the use to which the object is put. That plastic bag when used to hold your weed is considered drug paraphernalia but it is not drug paraphernalia if it is holding a peanut butter sandwich.

A hammer is just a carpenter's tool if your building birdhouses but it's a murder weapon if you're the “Hammer Slammer Killer”.

At any rate, an experienced prosecutor next to me grabbed my coat and tells me “Sit down and shut up, the judge knows the law. He wants to see if you do."

For the most part, drug paraphernalia cases are what I call "stack on charges". In other words, somebody's arrested for a drug case and there is a crack pipe or syringes or something of that nature so the cops stack on the pipe or syringes as extra charges.

Now you might be wondering how on earth do head shops get
Away with existing?

I mean if drug paraphernalia is illegal, how do these places get away with selling bongs and rolling paper & things of that nature?

Well, that's because they claim (wink, wink) that these are just for using regular old tobacco. Let's face it, everybody really knows what these guys are selling this stuff for. However given their "plausible deniability" most prosecutors don't want to bother to waste time & money chasing after old hippies selling tie-dye shirts, incense, dugouts bongs and beads.

Of course, that's not to say that people don't get prosecuted for drug paraphernalia; they do.

There's a couple of different versions of this crime and punishment depends on what exactly is alleged.

Simple possession of drug paraphernalia is a misdemeanor. There are however felony versions of drug paraphernalia punishable by as much as 20 years in prison.

If you're charged with possession of drug paraphernalia (or any other crime} and you want our help, just contact us at the link here:

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If you'd like to read the entire, and boring, statute, it is reproduced below:

 Alabama Code, Title 13A – 12 – 260

(a) Definition of “”. As used in this section, the term “drug paraphernalia” means all equipment, products, and materials of any kind which are used, intended for use, or designed for use, in planting, propagating, cultivating, growing, harvesting, manufacturing, compounding, converting, producing, processing, preparing, testing, analyzing, packaging, repackaging, storing, containing, concealing, injecting, ingesting, inhaling, or otherwise introducing into the human body a controlled substance in violation of the controlled substances laws of this state. It includes but is not limited to:
(1) Kits used, intended for use, or designed for use in planting, propagating, cultivating, growing, or harvesting of any species of plant which is a controlled substance or from which a controlled substance can be derived;
(2) Kits used, intended for use, or designed for use in manufacturing, compounding, converting, producing, processing, or preparing controlled substances;
(3) Isomerization devices used, intended for use, or designed for use in increasing the potency of any species of plant which is a controlled substance;
(4) Testing equipment used, intended for use, or designed for use in identifying, or in analyzing the strength, effectiveness, or purity of controlled substances;
(5) Scales and balances used, intended for use, or designed for use in weighing or measuring controlled substances;
(6) Dilutants and adulterants, such as quinine hydrochloride, mannitol, mannite, dextrose and lactose, used, intended for use, or designed for use in cutting controlled substances;
(7) Separation gins and sifters used, intended for use, or designed for use in removing twigs and seeds from, or in otherwise cleaning or refining, marihuana;
(8) Blenders, bowls, containers, spoons and mixing devices used, intended for use, or designed for use in compounding controlled substances;
(9) Capsules, balloons, envelopes and other containers used, intended for use, or designed for use in packaging small quantities of controlled substances;
(10) Containers and other objects used, intended for use, or designed for use in storing or concealing controlled substances;
(11) Hypodermic syringes, needles and other objects used, intended for use, or designed for use in parenterally injecting controlled substances into the human body;
(12) Objects used, intended for use, or designed for use in ingesting, inhaling, or otherwise introducing marihuana, tetrahydro cannabinols, cocaine, hashish, or hashish oil into the human body, such as:
a. Metal, wooden, acrylic, glass, stone, plastic, or ceramic pipes with or without screens, permanent screens, hashish heads, or punctured metal bowls;
b. Water pipes;
c. Carburetion tubes and devices;
d. Smoking and carburetion masks;
e. Roach clips: Meaning objects used to hold burning material, such as a marihuana cigarette, that has become too small or too short to be held in the hand;
f. Miniature cocaine spoons, and cocaine vials;
g. Chamber pipes;
h. Carburetor pipes;
i. Electric pipes;
j. Air-driven pipes;
k. Chillums;
l. Bongs;
m. Ice pipes or chillers;
n. Glass tubes which are hollow, cylindrical items made of glass which are smaller than three-quarters of an inch in diameter, shorter than 12 inches in length, and which are not sealed with glass at both ends.
(b) Factors in determining whether object is drug paraphernalia.  In determining whether an object is drug paraphernalia, a court or other authority shall consider, in addition to all other logically relevant factors, the following:
(1) Statements by an owner or by anyone in control of the object concerning its use;
(2) Prior convictions, if any, of an owner, or of anyone in control of the object, under any state or federal law relating to any controlled substance;
(3) The proximity of the object, in time and space, to a direct violation of this section or to a controlled substance;
(4) The existence of any residue of controlled substances on the object;
(5) Direct or circumstantial evidence of the intent of an owner, or of anyone in control of the object, to deliver it to persons whom he knows intend to use the object to facilitate a violation of the controlled substances laws of this state; the innocence of an owner, or of anyone in control of the object, as to a direct violation of such laws shall not prevent a finding that the object is intended for use, or designed for use as drug paraphernalia;
(6) Instructions, oral or written, provided with the object concerning its use;
(7) Descriptive materials accompanying the object which explain or depict its use;
(8) National and local advertising concerning its use;
(9) The manner in which the object is displayed for sale;
(10) Whether the owner, or anyone in control of the object, is a legitimate supplier of like or related items to the community, such as a licensed distributor or dealer of tobacco products;
(11) Direct or circumstantial evidence of the ratio of sales of the object or objects to the total sales of the business enterprise;
(12) The existence and scope of legitimate uses for the object in the community;
(13) Expert testimony concerning its use.
(c) Use or possession with intent to use.  It shall be unlawful for any person to use, or to possess with intent to use, or to use to inject, ingest, inhale or otherwise introduce into the human body, drug paraphernalia to plant, propagate, cultivate, grow, harvest, compound, convert, produce, process, prepare, test, analyze, pack, repack, store, contain or conceal a controlled substance in violation of the controlled substances laws of this state. Any person who violates this subsection is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be punished as prescribed by law.
(d)(1) It shall be unlawful for any person to use, deliver, or sell, possess with intent to deliver or sell, or manufacture with intent to deliver or sell, or to possess with intent to use, drug paraphernalia to manufacture a controlled substance in violation of the controlled substances laws of this state.
(2) Any person who violates this subsection is guilty of a Class C felony. If a person is in violation of this subsection and is in possession of a firearm at the time of the offense, the person shall be guilty of a Class B felony.
(e) Delivery or sale.
(1) It shall be unlawful for any person to deliver or sell, possess with intent to deliver or sell, or manufacture with intent to deliver or sell drug paraphernalia, knowing that it will be used to plant, propagate, cultivate, grow, harvest, compound, convert, produce, process, prepare, test, analyze, pack, repack, store, contain, conceal, inject, ingest, inhale, or otherwise introduce into the human body a controlled substance in violation of the controlled substances laws of this state. Any person who violates this section is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be punished as prescribed by law. A person who is convicted of a subsequent violation of this subsection shall be guilty of a Class C felony and punished as prescribed by law. Any person convicted of violating this subsection who previously has been convicted of violating subdivision (2) of this subsection shall be subject to the same penalties specified for subsequent violations of this subsection.
(2) Any person 18 years of age or over who violates subdivision (1) of this subsection by delivering drug paraphernalia to a person under 18 years of age who is at least three years his junior shall be guilty of a Class B felony and upon conviction shall be punished as prescribed by law.
(f) Contraband; forfeiture.  All drug paraphernalia used in violation of this section shall be contraband and subject to the forfeiture laws of this state and Section 20-2-93 as amended, in particular.

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