The United States Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) schedules drugs according to the Controlled Substances Act. They schedule drugs based on the lethality, potential for abuse, and accepted medical uses. Typically, there are five schedules of drugs, with many other drugs being simply unscheduled or uncontrolled. The uncontrolled drugs are drugs that have accepted medical use or a very low potential for abuse; they’re not considered a worthwhile use of DEA time. The schedules then work their way up from schedule V to schedule I, with I being the most severe of the penalties. A drug lawyer can use this information to help you.
Controlled Substance Schedules
The controlled substance schedules can be used in your favor by you drug lawyer in Cedar Rapids, IA. That’s because controlled substances come with different penalties based on their schedule. For example, many schedule V drugs are over-the-counter drugs. Even some schedule IV drugs are over-the-counter; however, these drugs are somewhat regulated. These are drugs that have some potential for abuse, but not a high potential and also have an accepted medical use. If you have possession of one of these, your lawyer could argue that’s a mitigating factor.
Furthermore, at visit us website you’ll be able to see what types of services might be helpful if you’ve been charged with possession of one of these narcotics. Beyond just arguing based on the schedule of the drug, a lawyer will also argue other mitigating circumstances.
Mitigating Circumstances
There are many avenues a drug lawyer can pursue. In the absence of mandatory minimum sentencing, judges are often persuaded by mitigating arguments. They could be arguments such as the drug being scheduled higher than it should be, or that you were not aware of the illegality of a drug. Many of these arguments have been found to be fairly effective with some judges.
