ILLEGAL ACTS

The drug laws are complicated, and the states differ from each other and from the federal system. So, there is no easy way to explain them in detail. However, there are a few very powerful and relatively unknown aspects of the law that should be explained to everyone.

First is the difference between a felony and a misdemeanor. A misde­meanor is a minor crime that might result in a fine, public service, or a short prison sentence—typically less than one year (in the federal sys­tem)—and usually is associated with traffic violations, minor theft, or sometimes possession of a very small amount of an illegal drug. A felony (murder, armed robbery, sale of drugs) usually carries a sentence in excess of one year and is considered such a serious crime that convicted individ­uals lose many rights that ordinary citizens enjoy. This includes the right to hold many kinds of highly paid jobs. A felony conviction is truly a life-changing event. Understanding this is important for drug users because possession of some amounts of some drugs can be considered a misdemeanor, while larger amounts are always felonies.

The law always sets the level of punishment based on the amount of a drug that one possesses or distributes, and in this case size counts a lot.

For example, there is a current public controversy because the federal laws are terribly tough for possession of even a few grams of crack cocaine, but one would have to possess much more powdered cocaine to receive the same punishment. Anyone who contemplates drug usage should under­stand the severity of the penalties that various levels of drug possession invoke. (As we write this, the US Department of Justice has decided to modify the way US attorneys may charge cocaine/crack dealers. Now they can make the charge without stating the amount of drug, so that the pen­alties are more consistent between crack and powdered cocaine. The problem is that this is an executive decision and can be reversed in any case and at any time. The actual law regulating possession and distribu­tion of these drugs has not been changed.)

Most people know that conviction for selling drugs (distribution) results in stiffer penalties than for possession. What they don't know is that sim­ply possessing certain amounts of a drug can be considered an "intent to distribute" and thus may subject a person to the much stiffer distribution penalties. Moreover, money may not have to change hands for distribution to take place from a legal perspective. Simply handing a package of a drug from one person to another can be considered distribution.

Another obscure criminal area is conspiracy. In drug cases, there are many convictions for conspiracy to commit a crime because very often a drug deal involves much more than the simple transfer of money and drugs. The conspiracy laws are broad and powerful, and even people peripheral to the planning of a crime, who may not have participated in the crime itself, are often charged under these laws, sometimes in the hope that they will cooperate with the court officials to convict others. Anyone hanging around individuals involved in drug possession and dis­tribution should be aware of the risk of being charged with conspiracy for seemingly innocent acts, such as lending a boyfriend a car, cashing a check, or allowing a friend who is a dealer to use a telephone if it can be proven that in doing any of these seemingly innocent acts you knew why the person wanted you to do them. From the standpoint of law enforce­ment, drug dealing is considered a business (although it is illegal), and just as in a legal business, different people play different roles and have different levels of importance. In general, being around drug dealing is legally very risky.

Finally, there is the issue of the confiscation of property. Most of us have heard about auctions where the property of drug dealers is sold. This hap‑

pens because of forfeiture laws that allow property used in drug dealing to be confiscated and sold by the government. The particularly devastating aspect of this is that the property of a more or less innocent individual might be confiscated because it was being used in violation of drug laws. Imagine, for example, a student distributing cocaine from his father's home and car. Suppose the father knew something about this and told the student to stop it. If the prosecutor could prove that the father knew some­thing and allowed it to continue, it is possible that both the home and the car could be confiscated as part of the criminal prosecution.

What about marijuana? It's now legal, right? Some states have "legal­ized" marijuana possession for medicinal purposes; others have made the possession of small amounts for recreational use either legal or punish­able as a misdemeanor. But the US federal law makes it a crime in all fifty states. In general, federal law overrules state law, so you might well be in a state in which possession is legal but prosecuted under federal law. As we are writing this new edition, President Obama has asked the Department of justice to refrain from enforcing the marijuana laws in certain circum­stances for states that permit its possession. But that is an executive deci­sion that can he reversed at any time. Moreover, the specific conditions under which the federal law might be enforced may not be crystal clear. So, be aware that no matter what a state law says, federal law still has this drug illegal everywhere in the United States.

METHORPHAN

METHORPHAN

Dextromethorpha_n is the main constituent of many over thecountercough remedies. At appropriate doses (a teaspoon or two), this drug decreases coughing and doesn't do much else. However, it is a cousin of the hallucinogenic anesthetics PCP and ketamine, and some resourceful drug users—usually teenagers—have discovered that if they take exces‑ sive doses (equivalent to drinking an entire bottle of cough syrup—about 300 milligrams—or taking anywhere from ten to sixty DXM-containing pills), they can experience a dissociative state that is dose-related. While the lower end of the abused range (10 pills) leads to a mild state, very high numbers of pills (60 pills) can lead to an intense dissociated, hallucinatory state, and there are case reports of psychotic behavior in people taking extremely high doses. Recent research shows that it indeed acts much like ketamine. Dextromethorphan also shows up in the guise of fake Ecstasy pills—it is a common substitute for MDMA. Toxic doses cause confusion, disorientation, elevated body temperature, high blood pres­sure, and vomiting or nausea. Some users develop patterns of repeated chronic use, although there is not much in the scientific literature about dextromethorphan tolerance, dependence, or addiction. Although it can cause toxicities, the lethal dose is still considerably above (roughly double or more) the highest doses the recreational users typically employ How­ever, the other constituents in cough syrups can add to the toxicities. Cough syrups with decongestants in them can raise blood pressure mark­edly, and the combination of DXM and the antihistamine (chlorpheni­ramble ma leate) in some preparations can cause a serotonin syndrome-like toxicity in rare cases. Ingestion of high doses (thirty to sixty pills) of for­mulations with acetaminophen can deliver enough of this analgesic drug to damage the liver. While DXM is not illegal, most states have laws that prevent sales to anyone under the age of18.