Drug convictions can carry a wide range of consequences, from minor to incredibly serious. One thing that dictates the way charges are filed is the drug that was involved in the alleged illegal activity.
Michigan law has five schedules that a drug can fall into, and understanding them can help a defendant better participate in their own defense.
Medical use and the danger it presents
When determining how to classify each drug, lawmakers looked at the drug’s legitimate medical uses and its potential for abuse or dependency.
Schedule 5 drugs have significant medical use and are commonly prescribed. For example, codeine falls under this schedule, and it’s commonly found in cough medicines. The chances of abusing or becoming dependent on it are considered to be relatively low, so when combined with its clear medical use, charges around it fall at the lower end of the scale.
Heroin is an example of a drug that lies at the other end of the spectrum. It is classified as a Schedule 1 drug because it has such a high risk of abuse and dependency. Many people die from overdosing on it. There is no accepted medical use for it, either. If you are caught in possession of heroin, or suspected of distributing it, you would be in a far more serious situation than if you were caught in possession of, or trying to distribute, the same quantity of codeine.
That’s not to say the severity of the charge and potential penalties are entirely decided by the nature of the drug. The quantity of the drug and what you were allegedly doing with it also matter a great deal. Possession, for example, is less severe than distribution.
Drug charges can be incredibly complicated to understand as a defendant, and it does not help that prosecutors often seek to add other charges on top of what a person was originally arrested for. In a situation like this, seeking experienced legal guidance becomes extremely important.