Category Archives: Drug Crime
Pittsburgh Nurse Accused Of Stealing Prescription Pills From Nursing Homes
In elementary school, teachers would warn you that, if you buy drugs on the street, you never know what you are getting; it could be cocaine, or it could be something even worse, like rat poison. That warning rings even truer now, when fentanyl is a deadly but inexpensive substitute for almost every recreational… Read More »
Most Recent Attempt To Get FDA Approval For MDMA Is Unsuccessful
There is no vilified drug that was not once considered a panacea, and no wonder drug that was not once considered a gateway to evil and death. People used to buy cocaine and morphine over the counter at pharmacies and use them to treat all manner of nonspecific ailments. Cannabis is officially a Schedule… Read More »
Seven Philadelphia Defendants Could Face Life In Prison For Selling Drugs Near Middle School
It isn’t just fear mongering when people tell you that you can get life in prison for drug crimes, but context is everything. No one gets a life sentence just for carrying a baggie with two oxycodone pills in their backpack. For the truly draconian sentences to apply in crimes that do not involve… Read More »
Pennsylvania Drops Charges Against Defendant Because Of Substandard Work By Forensics Laboratory
In many criminal cases, the prosecution bases its case on forensic evidence, such as illegal drugs or weapons recovered from a defendant’s car or DNA evidence showing that the defendant or an item that the defendant had touched was present at the crime scene. Sometimes the prosecution summons expert witnesses to interpret the evidence… Read More »
Even Small Criminal Cases Are Worth Fighting
If you have never struggled with addiction, then the memoirs of a recovering addict during his or her days of using read like an adventure story. The protagonist communicates with drug dealers in euphemisms; they wait for just the right moment to hand over the drugs. No one is sure who to trust. The… Read More »
Police Obtain Search Warrant After Undercover Officer Buys Drugs At Folcroft Residence
You have probably seen news stories where an undercover officer bought illegal drugs from a defendant, and as soon as the money and the drugs had changed hands, multiple police officers appeared out of nowhere and flashed their badges, making an arrest after a dramatic confrontation. That is not always how sales to undercover… Read More »
Yes, You Can Still Get Criminal Charges If You Act As A Confidential Informant
The media narrative on confidential informants tends to be that they are snitches who avoid criminal prosecution, but because they have betrayed their friends, they can trust no one. In fact, it is often possible to dissociate yourself from illegal activities without telling all of your friends’ secrets to people who would use this… Read More »
Pennsylvania Senator Introduces Bill To Restrict Sale Of Kratom
So many substances that one might ingest are either a death trap or a miracle cure, depending on who you ask. Some drugs that have been implicated in numerous fatal overdoses were once widely used in medicine, or at least were investigated for their therapeutic potential before researchers determined that the drugs’ risks outweighed… Read More »
What Happens If You Are From Out Of State, But You Get Caught With Illegal Drugs In Pennsylvania?
Some events are worth traveling lost distances to attend, and many of these events are several orders of magnitude less fun when you are sober. Without the booze, Mardi Gras in New Orleans would just mean watching high school marching bands perform while socialites wave from glitzy parade floats. Imagine Woodstock without the drugs. … Read More »
Enter Wonk, A New Trend Involving A Not Especially New Drug
Ketamine is a schedule III controlled substance, which means that it has legally accepted uses in medicine but also carries considerable potential for abuse; other pharmaceutical drugs in this category include anabolic steroids, suboxone (a combination of an opioid and naloxone, used to treat opioid use disorder), and some stimulants used as treatments for… Read More »
