What Are the Penalties of Interstate Drug Trafficking?
One of the most severe charges that you can get when it comes to drugs is drug trafficking. This goes beyond being caught with a small number of medications on your person. Trafficking includes possession, purchasing of the medicines, sale of the drugs, manufacturing of the drugs, and more.
Different substances carry different charges across the world. If you are caught with a significant amount of drugs, then you can be charged with the intent to sell and distribute.
Don’t jump to illegal drugs when you think of people being charged with drug trafficking. It also pertains to people that attempt to sell and distribute a prescription that is solely for them.
How Much of the Drug Do I Need to Have to be Charged
Whether you are charged with drug trafficking depends on how much of the drug you are caught with. A possession charge could be because you were caught with 1-2 grams of a substance.
While being caught with 50 grams could be what gets you a drug trafficking charge. There is also a difference in the charge depending on the type of drug that you are carrying.
10kg of cocaine is not the same as 10kg of heroin. Drug trafficking charges also depend on the appearance of the drug when you are detained.
- Is the drug packaged?
- Do you have a scale with you?
- Is there a considerable amount of cash found with the drugs?
- Are there other plastic bags for drug packing?
All of these factors can move your misdemeanor to a felony.
Drug Trafficking: State or Federal Crimes
Interstate drug trafficking can be both a state and federal crime. A drug trafficking case will be prosecuted as a felony if it can be proved legally that the drugs were carried across state lines. Drug trafficking will also be prosecuted as a felony if there is a large amount of the drugs present.
Trafficking Penalties
When your charge is moved from a misdemeanor to a felony, the penalties for the charge increase as well. The severity of the punishment will be determined by the type of drug that you were arrested with.
If you are caught with marijuana depending on how much is on your person, you could be fined upwards of $100,000. You could also be sentenced to 3-15 years in prison.
If you are caught with cocaine, the fine is upwards of $250,000 and carries a prison sentence of 3-15 years as well.
Being caught with heroin can carry a hefty fine of $500,000. And if found guilty could carry a prison sentence of 25 years.
IF you are an immigrant that is found guilty of drug trafficking, you could face deportation if found guilty. It could also mean the loss of any personal assets and your rights.
Don’t Do It
Overall the risk of drug trafficking outweighs any potential benefit that one could get from doing it. Having your freedom taken from you, along with an extensive fine, isn’t worth it.
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