Murfreesboro Drug Crimes Defense Lawyers
Aggressively defending the accused in Tennessee
Drug crimes are one of the most commonly-charged offenses in Tennessee. Drug violations range from minor possession charges to drug trafficking. At Taylor Law Group, our Murfreesboro drug crimes defense team has extensive experience representing individuals who are charged with all types of drug charges. Whether you are facing charges related to marijuana possession, driving under the influence of drugs or distributing hard drugs, our skilled defense team will zealously build a defense. We investigate all aspects of your case to provide customized legal solutions to the criminal charges that you are facing.
Tennessee drug schedules
The federal government has its own schedules of controlled substances. While Tennessee largely adopts these schedules, it also adopts its own schedules. The state schedules include:
- Schedule I drugs – The drugs that are under this classification are considered to be the most dangerous and associated with higher risks of addiction or dependency. They do not serve as any legitimate medical purpose. These include drugs such as LSD, heroin, mescaline and psilocybin mushrooms.
- Schedule II drugs – These drugs are also considered serious and have a relatively high risk of abuse. However, they may serve legitimate medical purposes. Schedule II drugs include opiates, opioids, methadone, amphetamines, methamphetamines and cocaine.
- Schedule III drugs – Schedule III drugs have a moderate risk of abuse and include drugs such as ketamine, depressants, testosterone and anabolic steroids.
- Schedule IV drugs – Schedule IV drugs have only a slight risk of dependency and serve legitimate medical applications. They include common prescription drugs such as Valium, Xanax and Klonopin.
- Schedule V drugs – These drugs have a very low risk of dependency. Tylenol with Codeine is one such example.
- Schedule VI drugs – These drugs also have a very low risk of physical dependency in contrast to drugs under other schedules. Marijuana is currently classified under this schedule under state law while considered a Schedule I drug under federal law.
- Schedule VII drugs – The only drug under this heading is butyl nitrate.
Penalties for drug crimes in Tennessee
To combat drug problems in the state, heavy sentences await those who are convicted of drug crimes. Potential penalties include jail, prison time, forfeiture of property, community service, probation, fines and driver's license suspension. The potential penalty is based on the type of criminal conduct and the schedule of substances involved. Schedule I and Schedule II substances include the following minimum and maximum penalties:
- Purchase or possession, first offense: Imprisonment between two and fifteen years
- Purchase or possession, second offense: imprisonment between five and thirty years
- Sell or intent to distribute, first offense: imprisonment between five and thirty years
- Sell or intent to distribute, second offense: imprisonment between ten and forty years or life imprisonment.
Schedule III, IV and V substances are associated with the following punishments:
- Purchase or possession, first offense: imprisonment between one and five years
- Purchase or possession, second offense: imprisonment between one and ten years
- Sell or intent to distribute, first offense: imprisonment between one and ten years.
Contact our accomplished Murfreesboro drug crime defense team to ensure the aggressive protection of your legal rights
Our Murfreesboro drug crime defense team at Taylor Law Group puts is long-term criminal defense experience to use in every case. Schedule a free consultation by calling us at 615-890-1982 or contact us online.