Plantation Drug Trafficking Lawyer
The number one type of offense that convicts get sent to prison is that of drug crimes. Most are there for possession or possession with the intent to sell/distribute. Others are there for the more serious crime of drug trafficking, which involves the sale, distribution, manufacture, or purchase of high volumes of various controlled substances. If you were arrested for drug trafficking, an lawyer is absolutely necessary to have the charges reduced or dropped. Whether the police conducted an illegal search and seizure, or you were simply at the wrong place and the wrong time and are being blamed for a crime that you had no part in, the Plantation drug trafficking lawyer at Haber | Blank LLP is here to help in every way possible.
Where Drug Possession with Intent to Distribute Diverges From Drug Trafficking
Possession of a controlled substance with the intent to distribute is generally a class three or class two misdemeanor. The former carries a penalty of up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine, while the latter carries an even heftier punishment of up to 15 years in prison and a potential fine of $10,000. Being in possession of 24 pounds of cannabis, for example, is a class three felony. However, once a certain threshold for the specific controlled substance is reached, the offense becomes drug trafficking, as opposed to possession or possession with intent to sell/distribute. Drug trafficking has harsher mandatory minimums, and the felony offense goes up to a capital felony.
Definition of Drug Trafficking in Florida
Drug trafficking is defined as the sale, purchase, possession, manufacture, delivery, or transport of a large quantity of a controlled substance. If a defendant is allegedly caught with the following amount of any of the controlled substances, they will be charged with drug trafficking. Drug trafficking any of the following examples of controlled substances also carries a mandatory minimum of three years and a fine of $50,000:
- Cannabis—25 pounds to 10,000 pounds
- Cannabis—300 cannabis plants to 2,000 plants
- Fentanyl—4 to 14 grams
- Hydrocodone—4 to 14 grams
- Oxycodone—4 to 14 grams
- Morphine—4 to 14 grams
- Opium—4 to 14 grams
- Heroin—4 to 14 grams
- Amphetamine—14 grams
- Cocaine—28 grams to 200 grams
The next step up in drug quantity equates to a first degree felony, punishable by up to 30 years in prison, with a mandatory minimum of seven years for cannabis and cocaine, and a mandatory minimum of 15 years for all opiate derived drugs.
Call a Plantation Drug Trafficking Defense Lawyer Today
With incredibly harsh mandatory minimums and a society of jurors that, because of the opioid crisis, will not look favorably at drug trafficking defendants, being arrested for drug trafficking is an incredibly serious predicament. But we encourage you to keep your hopes up. There may be multiple options for a successful defense or plea deal. Our Plantation drug trafficking defense lawyers here at Haber | Blank LLP have decades of combined experience handling these types of drug cases. Call us today at 954-767-0300 to schedule a free consultation.
