Drug laws in Texas are already among the most severe in the US. If caught with illegal drugs of any kind in Texas, you could easily be looking at a lengthy legal proceeding and long incarceration. However, not all drug offenses are equal and the penalties can vary greatly. With the help of an experienced drug crime attorney, it’s possible to reduce your sentence, get a full dismissal, or even keep you out of prison.

Understanding the most common drug charges is an important first step in any defense. Here are some of the most common drug charges you may encounter.

Drug Possession

Drug possession is one of the most basic charges you could be charged with and potentially convicted of. Even if you’re simply holding the item for a friend, you could be charged with possession and even intent to sell.

It’s important to understand how you might get charged and how your attorney can help.

To face charges, a person must be deemed guilty of knowledgeable possession. The prosecutor must prove that they knew about the drugs and willingly carried them with consent or knowledge. Otherwise, they can’t be deemed guilty.

The court may also charge you with possession if drugs are found on your property, such as your vehicle or your home. You could also be charged for joint possession if a friend brings a controlled substance onto your property.

A drug possession attorney can instruct you on how to challenge a drug arrest without making things worse for yourself. Not all drug arrests are airtight, so there could be a lack of evidence that supports your innocence.

Drug Distribution

Drug distribution refers to the intent to sell or transport a controlled substance to others. In this case, you not only possess drugs but also intend to distribute them to buyers.

As with possession, the fines and potential jail time will vary depending on what substance you intend to sell. Heavily controlled narcotics may result in life imprisonment and fines reaching the hundreds of thousands.

The goal of your lawyer in this case may be one of two options.

They might try to prove that you are innocent of intentional drug possession. Alternatively, your lawyer could make the case that you never intended to sell whatever drugs you possessed.

The problem with the second option is the quantity of your drugs. Anything over a certain amount suggests an intention to sell.

Drug Manufacturing

Intent to manufacture includes both the production and processing of controlled substances. Something naturally grown, like marijuana, is exempt from this category. However, anything synthetic can result in a drug manufacturing charge.

In 2023, Texas enacted some harsher penalties for anyone manufacturing and distributing fentanyl. One of the new bills classifies fentanyl overdoses as “poisonings”, allowing for murder charges for anyone who created or sold the substance.

As such, getting charged for manufacturing fentanyl puts your attorney in the position of proving their client innocent of murder. You must find an experienced attorney who can challenge the evidence. They may be able to get the charge lowered to simple possession, depending on the case.

Drug Trafficking

Drug trafficking involves a combination of manufacturing, cultivating, distributing, and the eventual sale of illegal substances. Larger operations are often referred to as trafficking, with the individuals involved considered traffickers.

This is one of the most severe drug crimes you can be charged with. In certain states, trafficking a large amount of heroin will result in a minimum lifetime prison sentence.

The top five districts for drug trafficking offenders in 2022 included the Southern District of Texas at 975. The Southern District of California was the only one with more offenders at 1,755.

Drug Dealing

When selling drugs in smaller quantities, you may get charged with a less severe punishment than trafficking. This is most common with small-time dealers who are often supplied by manufacturers.

Once again, the punishment will depend on what group the sold substance belongs to. Selling something like marijuana in small quantities is only considered a misdemeanor. However, selling even the smallest amount of fentanyl in Texas may result in much more serious charges.

Penalty Groups

Texas is one of the toughest states on drug crimes and convictions. It has some of the highest conviction and incarceration rates in the United States. Part of that is due to its proximity to the southern border as well as how many states it borders.

There are nine drug penalty groups that Texas uses to determine the punishment for possession, dealing, and so forth. They are categorized according to their addictive nature and medical purpose, and are as follows:

• PG1
• PG1-A
• PG1-B
• PG-2
• PG-2A
• PG-3
• PG-4
• Dangerous drugs
• Marijuana

The first penalty group and its subcategories all consist of opioids with a high potential for abuse. Fentanyl gets its classification, PG1-B, due to its potency and high risk of abuse.

Across the United States, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) also breaks down drugs according to schedule.

Schedule I drugs have no FDA-approved medicinal value. These include heroin, ecstasy, and LSD.

Schedule II drugs are highly addictive but may have some medical use, such as methadone and oxycodone. Fentanyl can also be found in this category.

The other three schedules cover drugs with lower abuse or addictive potential. They also usually have higher medicinal value. As such, you can also expect a much less severe charge when compared to some of the other more dangerous drugs.

Avoid a Criminal Record

Since Texas is one of the toughest states on drug crimes, the court system is constantly overwhelmed with new cases. Resources are stretched thin, which means that defendants rarely get an adequate defense. There are only so many court-appointed lawyers, after all.

If you need a drug crimes attorney, look no further than the office of Andrea M. Kolski. Kolski is a former prosecutor and defense attorney with over 20 years of experience defending individuals across Texas. Reach out today to speak with one of our associates and set up a visit with our law firm.

Texas already has some of the highest rates of incarceration and convictions in the US and these new laws will surely grow the numbers of arrests and expand the Texas prison population. Meanwhile, the funding for police and other law enforcement agencies grows exponentially. The escalation of the “drug war” continues to exact a high cost for taxpayers and communities throughout Texas.

Many of these laws went into effect on September 1, 2023 and will have far reaching impact on anyone facing charges related to these crimes. Here’s a brief overview of the new Texas criminal laws.

Fentanyl

In 2023, Texas enacting some of the harshest penalties in the nation in an effort to combat fentanyl distribution, manufacturing, and possession.

• HB 6 increases the penalties for those who manufacture or sell fentanyl to a person resulting in their death. The bill classifies fentanyl overdoses as “poisonings,” allowing murder charges for those accused of providing the fatal dose. Read more here. The bill was signed by Abbott and takes effect on Sept. 1, 2023.
• HB 3144 designates October as Fentanyl Poisoning Awareness Month in an effort to increase awareness of the dangers of fentanyl and potential overdoses. The bill was signed by Abbott and takes effect on Sept. 1, 2023.

Aggravated Assault Penalties Elevated

• HB 28 raises the criminal penalty for aggravated assaults from a second-degree felony to a first-degree felony if the assailant uses a deadly weapon during an assault that causes a traumatic brain or spinal injury that results in a vegetative state or paralysis. The change in law applies only to an offense committed on or after Sept. 1. The bill was signed by Abbott and takes effect on Sept. 1, 2023.

Intoxication Manslaughter

• HB 393 orders a defendant convicted of intoxication manslaughter to pay restitution to a child whose parent or guardian was killed in the crash. They will have to pay monthly support until the child reaches 18 years old or until they have graduated from high school, whichever is later. The bill was signed by Abbott and takes effect on Sept. 1, 2023.

Boating While Intoxicated

• HB 1163 creates a separate criminal offense for boating while intoxicated with a child passenger. In this bill’s context, a child passenger is someone who is younger than 15. Several amendments that come with the bill can be viewed in the bill’s analysis. The bill was signed by Abbott and takes effect on Sept. 1, 2023.

Street Racing

• HB 1442 builds off the foundation laid by SB 1495 from the last session and gives law enforcement officials and prosecutors additional means to combat street racing and street takeovers in Texas. The bill was signed by Abbott and takes effect on Sept. 1. 2023.

Tampering With Monitoring Device

• SB 1004 makes tampering with an electronic monitoring device a criminal offense. The bill’s text clarifies that an offense of this nature would be a third-degree felony. The law does not apply to a monitoring device that is removed by a health care provider. The bill was signed by Abbott and takes effect on Sept. 1, 2023.

That means there is also a huge amount of demand for the help of skilled lawyers. However, some people do not understand why it is supposed to be so vital to find a drug possession attorney after facing drug possession charges.

The truth is that working with the right attorney can provide a long list of benefits that can make it more than worth your while. If your legal situation seems bad now, you may find that a great attorney can help things resolve much better than you imagine.

Read on to learn all about the top ways a qualified drug possession attorney can help you!

Understand Your Drug Charges Prospects

Most people don’t have much experience dealing with drug charges. In contrast, drug possession lawyers get to see how a wide variety of drug possession cases are resolved in the end. That gives them the perspective necessary to assess your legal situation after being charged with drug possession.

You might think that you already know how your case is likely to end. However, you might be surprised by how much you can learn from the expertise of an experienced drug possession lawyer.

On the one hand, you might discover that things are worse than you realize. Although this can be unhappy news, it is also vital to hear it in such cases. The more realistic you are about your prospects, the better you can prepare your strategy to help things go as well as possible.

On the other hand, you might find out that your legal situation is much better than it seems at first. Until you speak with a drug possession attorney, you really won’t know what you are dealing with.

When you are preparing for a drug possession trial, ignorance can be dangerous. Knowledge is power, and the insight of a skilled drug possession lawyer can go a long way toward helping you make the wisest decisions possible given your difficult circumstances.

Avoid Mistakes After Drug Possession Charges

One reason it is so important to have the experience of a lawyer on your side is so that you can avoid mistakes that can affect your life for years to come. In the middle of drug possession charges, it can be easy to say or do something that can make it much harder for you to avoid being found guilty later on.

The sooner you speak with a lawyer, the sooner you can learn about all of the different ways that their past clients have made things worse for themselves by accident. That understanding can help you avoid similar mistakes and start investing in the best case outcome possible in your situation.

One of the reasons it is so difficult to avoid mistakes after drug possession charges is that what seems fine in an everyday context is not always acceptable in a courtroom context. Sometimes, achieving an acceptable case outcome is as much about avoiding mistakes as it is about making a strong case for yourself.

Understand How to Behave in Court

In theory, our courtrooms should focus mostly on whether or not people are guilty or innocent. However, in practice, there is a lot that you can do in the courtroom that can make things go better or worse for you.

Knowing how to act in a courtroom context can have a huge effect on what kind of sentencing you receive. The more that you know how to make a positive impression on the judge, the less likely you are to regret failing to do so for months or years.

Know How to Challenge a Drug Arrest

Some people feel that once they have been charged with drug possession, it is too late to change anything. However, the truth is that drug arrests are not always as airtight as they seem. In fact, police officers will sometimes exaggerate how airtight the evidence they have is in the hopes that someone will give up and stop trying to provide themselves with the best defense possible.

That is one of the biggest reasons it is so important to get a lawyer on your side as soon as possible after a drug arrest. Your lawyer will be able to analyze your situation and identify any weak points in the case that could be made against you. They might even be able to find violations of your rights that can invalidate some of the evidence that points toward your guilt.

At the end of the day, challenging a drug arrest is a complicated process that requires a lot of training and experience. Without a lawyer on your side, there is not much chance that you will be able to defend yourself effectively.

Get Drug Attorney Help Gathering Evidence

If you wait too long before finding a drug attorney to help you, that might be too late to gather evidence that could be crucial to improve your case outcome.

Depending on your situation, it might be helpful to gather statements from witnesses. In some cases, drug attorneys even help their clients by finding expert witnesses who can testify on their behalf. There might also be a fair amount of physical evidence to gather or photos and videos that would be worth collecting for your day in court.

However, all of this evidence preparation takes time and planning. The sooner you have an attorney who knows how to help find the most effective evidence to defend you in court, the more evidence you will be able to gather.

Receive Skilled Representation in Court

Of course, the way your evidence and story are presented will also make a big difference in the persuasiveness of your defense. That is why it is essential to find an experienced drug possession attorney to help you.

Many drug possession in cases are settled out of court. As a result, some drug possession attorneys rarely represent their clients during an actual trial. If you are not careful, you might end up hiring a lawyer to help you who has little experience providing a persuasive defense against drug charges.

You will also want the experience of a successful drug possession attorney on your side when it comes to all of the forms, rules, and procedures that must be followed in court.

On the other hand, you might end up deciding to negotiate a deal before going to trial as well. In such cases, attorneys who have a lot of experience negotiating similar deals can help you receive the best deal possible.

Benefit From Connections With Prosecutors

During a trial, the lawyers on the sides of the prosecution and the defense oppose each other. However, outside of trials, these same lawyers often enjoy friendly relationships. The right drug possession attorney for you may have relationships going back years with members of the prosecution.

Those kinds of relationships can make a huge difference in determining what kind of deal you get in a negotiation.

Reduce Your Sentencing as Much as Possible

Depending on your situation, a skilled drug possession lawyer might be able to help you avoid a guilty sentence. If that is not possible, then you will still want the best defense possible to help you reduce your sentencing. That goes double because Texas has some of the highest conviction rates in the US.

Save Money After a Drug Possession Arrest

Some people feel that hiring a qualified lawyer is too expensive. However, that analysis is often shortsighted. In the long run, it is almost always better to invest in the best representation you can.

After all, if you can’t work for years because of your case outcome, you will lose much more money to lost wages. You can also end up paying enormous fines if you don’t have a drug possession attorney to help reduce your sentencing.

Working with a skilled drug possession lawyer can also decrease the chance that you lose your job after facing drug charges.

Know How a Drug Possession Attorney Can Help

Not everyone is sure at first that they need the services of a skilled drug possession attorney. However, there is a much lower chance that you will be found innocent if you don’t have the help of an experienced lawyer on your side. Investing in anything that can reduce your sentencing is an investment that will pay for itself many times over.

To learn more about how you can find the best drug possession attorney for your legal situation, reach out and get in touch with us here at any time!

If You Have a Prescription in Texas

The government is not so stringent that they do not understand that people need to take medication on occasion. However, when traveling with your prescription you must be sure that you have proof of its medicinal needs. Keep all of the pills in the bottle supplied by the pharmacist when having the prescription filled. This will show your name and other information that will help to verify that you are legally allowed to have and consume the said drug at the proper dosage. Do not give or sell your prescription to anyone. And remember to take the proper dosage, when needed as advised by your physician. If you are ever accused of illegal prescription drug possession, contact an attorney immediately for guidance on your defense.

Texas Separates Drug Charges Into 5 Penalty Groups

Charges for drug possession in Texas range from Class A or B misdemeanor to a full-on felony. Drug possession charges are basically categorized in Texas based on the level of medicinal value and addictive properties. The stronger the drug, the tougher the possible sentence.

Penalty Group 1

This is the most serious infraction. It includes things such as cocaine, heroin and various hallucinogens. Even when prescribed, painkilling opioids such as oxycontin or hydrocodone can have you facing up to a lifetime in jail.

Penalty Group 2

Many prescribed drugs are included in this list, such as amphetamines and Xanax. This charge also includes LSD, Ecstasy (MDMA) and other mind-altering substances.

Penalty Group 3 and 4

Both of these charges can be made for possession of prescription drugs not as strong as the ones in Group 1. Both of these cover drugs that have the potential for abuse with a stimulant or depressive effect. Examples would be valium, anabolic steroids, and methylphenidate (also known as Ritalin.)

Marijuana Penalty

Although legal and often prescribed in some states, marijuana (or cannabis) has its own penalty group in Texas. Be it grown naturally or synthetic, possession of even less than 2 grams for recreation or medicinal purposes may lead to incarceration.

In Texas, being charged for any one of these penalty groups is a serious offense. You can be arrested for a one or more crime such as possession, conspiracy, or even trafficking. Just one pill or other infringement of the rock-solid laws can have you facing a minimum of 180 days in jail or up to life imprisonment. You can also be fined upwards of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Charged With Drug Possession?

You could be facing an amount of life-destroying penalties such as:

• Suspension of drivers license
• Years of probation, including house arrest
• Fines anywhere from $1000 to $10,000 for the first offense
• Mandatory addiction treatment
• Imprisonment anywhere from a few months to a lifetime

Factors That Will Affect Your Drug Charge

When charged with drug possession, many things go into consideration for the severity of the charges. These include (but are not limited to):

• Quantity of the illicit substance
• Ways you store or conceal your prescription
• Paraphernalia (such as scales)
• Past offenses or convictions
• Holding large amounts of cash

Need Expert Help? Contact Us Today

At the Law Firm of Andrea M. Kolski, we have been working for 17+ years to help those wrongly accused of prescription drug possession charges. If you are in The Woodlands or other surrounding Houston areas and facing a drug charge, it is imperative that you seek legal representation so that your defense may be told properly and with strength. Call us today at (832) 381-3430 for a review of your case.