Heroin is a Schedule 1 drug and carries severe penalties, even for a simple felony possession charge as discussed elsewhere in this blog:
If you are found guilty of a Heroin related crime, you are facing severe jail or prison time. It is important that you hire an aggressive Michigan drug defense attorney who has the experience and ability to defend your drug charges, and keep you from extended jail and prison time.
Heroin has recently become one of the more popular drugs used in Michigan, and certainly the most addictive. It is cheap, easy to get and highly addictive. On the street heroin is also commonly referred to as: “Dragon,” “Dope,” “H,” “Mud,” and “Smack.” Heroin is synthesized from morphine and heroin is highly addictive and destroys families and lives. It is illegal to use, possess or sell heroin in Michigan and throughout the United States, and even mere possession carries extreme penalties.
Heroin users become addicted very quickly. Unfortunately, users soon build up a tolerance to the drug and need more and more heroin to experience that extreme “high” they originally felt when they first started using heroin. Sometimes this is referred to as “chasing the dragon,” which smokers of heroin call it. The more heroin someone uses, the more the become dependant on its use, and the more of a chance they have of overdosing on the drug and dying. Heroin, in large quantities, relaxes a user’s lung function, and death commonly occurs when a user stops breathing or chokes on their vomit.
There are many ways to ingest or use heroin. The most popular method is injecting heroin into one’s veins, which is commonly called “shooting up.” Veins eventually collapse from repeated heroin use and injection, and the user is forced to find a new vein leaving “track marks” all over their body from repreated use. Injecting Heroin into the veins gives a user the fastest and most intense rush and high, which usually occurs within a few seconds. Other methods of using heroin include snorting and heating the drug to smoke it or inhale its vapors. When a user inhales heroin, some residue of the drug is usually left on the inhalation tube and users resmoke this residue. The “high” received from snorting or smoking heroin is not as potent or quick as the “high” from heroin injection, and accordinly heroin injection is the most addictive form of use. Heroin remains in the body for a significant amount of time and can be detected in the blood, plasma, and urine. If you are convicted of a heroin related felony and are on probation, and arerequired to give urine under a probation order, and you have a “dirty drop” that shows the presence of heroin, you could be sentenced to jail or prison for the probation violation alone. On a probation violation in Michigan a judge is not obligated to follow sentencing guidelines, and can sentence you to the maximum amount of prison time of your underlying criminal felony charge because in Michigan a probation violatio charge and conviction sentence amounts to a resentencing for your original crime without the restrictions of sentencing guidelines.
The government’s “War on Drugs” brought stricter drugs laws to Michigan and throughout the United States. The law enforcement and police throughout Michigan are cracking down harder on illicit drug use than ever before, especially heroin. Courts and prosecutors are not lenient with people who have been caught using, possessing, or manufacturing, creating, or delivering heroin or other drugs.
Heroin is a Schedule 1 drug in Michigan, which means the consequences and penalties for being caught with possession of heroin even under 25 grams are the most severe out of any other type of drug. There are a variety of Heroin related crimes so the potential punishment depends on which charge a defendant is convicted of and sommonl other theft crimes accompany heroin possession charges because users depend on stealing and theft to support their heroin habit.
If you are convicted of mere heroin use it is a misdemeanor and you could go to jail for up to one (1) year or pay a fine of up to $2,000, or both.
Heroin possession is a felony as discussed above, and if you are convicted of possessing or possession of even under 25 gams of heroin you face sever penalties: Heroin possession in Michigan carries the following penalties, depending on the quantity:
If you possessed 1,000 grams or more of heroin, you could go to prison for up to your entire life or pay a fine of $1,000,000, or both.
If you possessed between 450 grams and 999 grams of heroin, you could go to prison for up to 30 years or pay a fine of up to $500,000, or both.
If you possessed between 50 grams and 449 grams of heroin, you could go to prison for up to 20 years or pay a fine of up to $250,000.
If you possessed less than 25 grams of heroin, you could go to prison for up to 4 years or incur a fine of up to $25,000, or both.
If you are convicted of manufacturing, creating, or delivering heroin, your punishment will likewise depend on the amount of heroin involved:
If you manufactured, created, or delivered more than 1,000 grams of Heroin, you could go to prison for up to your entire life or pay a fine of up to $1,000,000, or both.
If you manufactured, created, or delivered between 450 grams and 999 grams of Heroin, you could go to prison for up to 30 years or pay a fine of up to $500,000, or both.
If you manufactured, created, or delivered between 50 grams and 499 grams of Heroin, you could go to prison for up to 20 years or pay a fine of up to $250,000, or both.
If you manufactured, created, or delivered less than 50 grams of Heroin, you could go to prison for up to 20 years or pay a fine of up to $25,000, or both.
However, regardless of whether you were caught using, possessing, manufacturing, creating, or delivering heroin, your potential jai time, prison time and other punishments could be even more severe if any of the following circumstances apply to your case:
you are at least eighteen years old and you distributed heroin to someone who is at least three years younger than you.
you delivered heroin to someone who is a student and the delivery took place at a school or within 1,000 feet of a school.
you used a location or equipment to manufacture heroin located within 500 feet of a house, business, school, park, or church.
this is not your first drug conviction.
Also, if you are convicted of heroin use, possession, manufacturing, creating, or delivering, your driver’s license will be suspended, regardless of whether or not you were driving at the time of the offense. Your license will be suspended for six months after your first drug conviction. Your license will be suspended for one year if this is your second or more drug offense in the last seven years. You will also have to pay multiple fines to the State of Michigan.
The drug laws are incredibly difficult to navigate and require an experienced and able attorney to do so. Michigan treats all heroin crimes severely and you require aggressive and knowlesgable legal representation from a qualified drug attorney in Michigan. Nobody should attempt to defend themselves or hire an attorney who is not experienced in heroin cases, or simply rely on a court appointed attorney.
If you are charges with any heroin crime in Michigan, you should contact the attorneys at & Torrice, PLLC today for a free consultation. Our law firm represents clients on heroin related felony charges frequently, and we can help keep you out of jail or prison, get you the treatment you need, and help you get yout life back.
Call right now at (586) 285-1700 to speak to a heroin defense attorney at Canu Torrice Law today!
Peter A. Torrice
& Torrice, PLLC / Canu Torrice Law
(586) 285-1700
