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78 Prosecutions
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66 Convictions
in Fiscal Year 2023

CITE

    21 USC Sec. 844                                             01/05/2009

EXPCITE

    TITLE 21 - FOOD AND DRUGS
    CHAPTER 13 - DRUG ABUSE PREVENTION AND CONTROL
    SUBCHAPTER I - CONTROL AND ENFORCEMENT
    Part D - Offenses and Penalties

HEAD

    Sec. 844. Penalties for simple possession

STATUTE

    (a) Unlawful acts; penalties
      It shall be unlawful for any person knowingly or intentionally to
    possess a controlled substance unless such substance was obtained
    directly, or pursuant to a valid prescription or order, from a
    practitioner, while acting in the course of his professional
    practice, or except as otherwise authorized by this subchapter or
    subchapter II of this chapter. It shall be unlawful for any person
    knowingly or intentionally to possess any list I chemical obtained
    pursuant to or under authority of a registration issued to that
    person under section 823 of this title or section 958 of this title
    if that registration has been revoked or suspended, if that
    registration has expired, or if the registrant has ceased to do
    business in the manner contemplated by his registration. It shall
    be unlawful for any person to knowingly or intentionally purchase
    at retail during a 30 day period more than 9 grams of ephedrine
    base, pseudoephedrine base, or phenylpropanolamine base in a
    scheduled listed chemical product, except that, of such 9 grams,
    not more than 7.5 grams may be imported by means of shipping
    through any private or commercial carrier or the Postal Service.
    Any person who violates this subsection may be sentenced to a term
    of imprisonment of not more than 1 year, and shall be fined a
    minimum of $1,000, or both, except that if he commits such offense
    after a prior conviction under this subchapter or subchapter II of
    this chapter, or a prior conviction for any drug, narcotic, or
    chemical offense chargeable under the law of any State, has become
    final, he shall be sentenced to a term of imprisonment for not less
    than 15 days but not more than 2 years, and shall be fined a
    minimum of $2,500, except, further, that if he commits such offense
    after two or more prior convictions under this subchapter or
    subchapter II of this chapter, or two or more prior convictions for
    any drug, narcotic, or chemical offense chargeable under the law of
    any State, or a combination of two or more such offenses have
    become final, he shall be sentenced to a term of imprisonment for
    not less than 90 days but not more than 3 years, and shall be fined
    a minimum of $5,000. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, a
    person convicted under this subsection for the possession of a
    mixture or substance which contains cocaine base shall be
    imprisoned not less than 5 years and not more than 20 years, and
    fined a minimum of $1,000, if the conviction is a first conviction
    under this subsection and the amount of the mixture or substance
    exceeds 5 grams, if the conviction is after a prior conviction for
    the possession of such a mixture or substance under this subsection
    becomes final and the amount of the mixture or substance exceeds 3
    grams, or if the conviction is after 2 or more prior convictions
    for the possession of such a mixture or substance under this
    subsection become final and the amount of the mixture or substance
    exceeds 1 gram. Notwithstanding any penalty provided in this
    subsection, any person convicted under this subsection for the
    possession of flunitrazepam shall be imprisoned for not more than 3
    years, shall be fined as otherwise provided in this section, or
    both. The imposition or execution of a minimum sentence required to
    be imposed under this subsection shall not be suspended or
    deferred. Further, upon conviction, a person who violates this
    subsection shall be fined the reasonable costs of the investigation
    and prosecution of the offense, including the costs of prosecution
    of an offense as defined in sections 1918 and 1920 of title 28,
    except that this sentence shall not apply and a fine under this
    section need not be imposed if the court determines under the
    provision of title 18 that the defendant lacks the ability to pay.
    (b) Repealed. Pub. L. 98-473, title II, Sec. 219(a), Oct. 12, 1984,
      98 Stat. 2027
    (c) "Drug, narcotic, or chemical offense" defined
      As used in this section, the term "drug, narcotic, or chemical
    offense" means any offense which proscribes the possession,
    distribution, manufacture, cultivation, sale, transfer, or the
    attempt or conspiracy to possess, distribute, manufacture,
    cultivate, sell or transfer any substance the possession of which
    is prohibited under this subchapter.

SOURCE

    (Pub. L. 91-513, title II, Sec. 404, Oct. 27, 1970, 84 Stat. 1264;
    Pub. L. 98-473, title II, Sec. 219, Oct. 12, 1984, 98 Stat. 2027;
    Pub. L. 99-570, title I, Sec. 1052, Oct. 27, 1986, 100 Stat. 3207-
    8; Pub. L. 100-690, title VI, Secs. 6371, 6480, Nov. 18, 1988, 102
    Stat. 4370, 4382; Pub. L. 101-647, title XII, Sec. 1201, title XIX,
    Sec. 1907, Nov. 29, 1990, 104 Stat. 4829, 4854; Pub. L. 104-237,
    title II, Sec. 201(a), Oct. 3, 1996, 110 Stat. 3101; Pub. L. 104-
    305, Sec. 2(c), Oct. 13, 1996, 110 Stat. 3808; Pub. L. 109-177,
    title VII, Sec. 711(e)(1), Mar. 9, 2006, 120 Stat. 262.)

AMENDMENTS

      2006 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 109-177 inserted after second
    sentence "It shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly or
    intentionally purchase at retail during a 30 day period more than 9
    grams of ephedrine base, pseudoephedrine base, or
    phenylpropanolamine base in a scheduled listed chemical product,
    except that, of such 9 grams, not more than 7.5 grams may be
    imported by means of shipping through any private or commercial
    carrier or the Postal Service."
      1996 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 104-305 inserted "Notwithstanding any
    penalty provided in this subsection, any person convicted under
    this subsection for the possession of flunitrazepam shall be
    imprisoned for not more than 3 years, shall be fined as otherwise
    provided in this section, or both." after "mixture or substance
    exceeds 1 gram."
      Pub. L. 104-237, Sec. 201(a)(1), inserted after first sentence
    "It shall be unlawful for any person knowingly or intentionally to
    possess any list I chemical obtained pursuant to or under authority
    of a registration issued to that person under section 823 of this
    title or section 958 of this title if that registration has been
    revoked or suspended, if that registration has expired, or if the
    registrant has ceased to do business in the manner contemplated by
    his registration." and substituted "drug, narcotic, or chemical"
    for "drug or narcotic" in two places.
      Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 104-237, Sec. 201(a)(2), substituted "drug,
    narcotic, or chemical" for "drug or narcotic".
      1990 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 101-647, Sec. 1907, inserted subsec.
    (a) designation.
      Pub. L. 101-647, Sec. 1201, substituted "shall be imprisoned not
    less than 5 years and not more than 20 years, and fined a minimum
    of $1,000" for "shall be fined under title 18 or imprisoned not
    less than 5 years and not more than 20 years, or both".
      1988 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 100-690, Sec. 6480(1)(A)-(C), struck
    out "but not more than $5,000" after "$1,000", "but not more than
    $10,000" after "$2,500", and "but not more than $25,000" after
    "$5,000" in second sentence.
      Pub. L. 100-690, Sec. 6371, inserted provisions relating to
    increased penalties in cases of certain serious crack possession
    offenses, making offenders subject to fines under title 18 or
    imprisonment to terms not less than 5 years nor more than 20 years,
    or both.
      1986 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 99-570 amended subsec. (a) generally.
    Prior to amendment, subsec. (a) read as follows: "It shall be
    unlawful for any person knowingly or intentionally to possess a
    controlled substance unless such substance was obtained directly,
    or pursuant to a valid prescription or order, from a practitioner,
    while acting in the course of his professional practice, or except
    as otherwise authorized by this subchapter or subchapter II of this
    chapter. Any person who violates this subsection shall be sentenced
    to a term of imprisonment of not more than one year, a fine of not
    more than $5,000, or both, except that if he commits such offense
    after a prior conviction or convictions under this subsection have
    become final, he shall be sentenced to a term of imprisonment of
    not more than 2 years, a fine of not more than $10,000 or both."
      Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 99-570, in amending subsec. (b) generally,
    substituted "Upon the discharge of such person and dismissal of the
    proceedings" for "Upon the dismissal of such person and discharge
    of the proceedings" in par. (2).
      Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 99-570, in amending section generally, added
    subsec. (c).
      1984 - Pub. L. 98-473 struck out subsec. (a) designation and
    struck out subsec. (b) which related to probation before judgment
    and expunging of records for first offense.
                     EFFECTIVE DATE OF 2006 AMENDMENT
      Pub. L. 109-177, title VII, Sec. 711(e)(2), Mar. 9, 2006, 120
    Stat. 262, provided that: "The amendment made by paragraph (1)
    [amending this section] applies on and after the expiration of the
    30-day period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act
    [Mar. 9, 2006]."
                     EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1984 AMENDMENT
      Amendment by Pub. L. 98-473 effective Nov. 1, 1987, and
    applicable only to offenses committed after the taking effect of
    such amendment, see section 235(a)(1) of Pub. L. 98-473, set out as
    an Effective Date note under section 3551 of Title 18, Crimes and
    Criminal Procedure.
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