DRUG POSSESSION FOR SALE LAWYER

Arizona law separately prohibits possessing certain controlled substances for sale.

Under A.R.S. § 13-3407, a person may not knowingly possess a dangerous drug for sale. Under A.R.S. § 13-3408, a person may not knowingly possess a narcotic drug for sale.

The phrase “for sale” is important.

A possession-for-sale prosecution may involve evidence that prosecutors claim demonstrates a commercial purpose, such as:

• Drug quantity
• Individual packaging
• Scales or measuring equipment
• Cash
• Communications concerning alleged transactions
• Customer or transaction records
• Multiple types or quantities of drugs
• Surveillance
• Statements by witnesses or alleged buyers
• Other circumstances surrounding the possession

No single piece of evidence necessarily answers the question in every case. The prosecution must establish the elements of the offense charged against the particular defendant.

Drug possession does not always involve something being found in a person's pocket or hand.

Arizona drug cases may involve allegations that someone exercised dominion or control over drugs found elsewhere, sometimes referred to as constructive possession.

This issue can become especially important when drugs are discovered in:

• A shared home
• An apartment occupied by several people
• A vehicle containing multiple occupants
• A hotel room
• A garage or storage area
• A container belonging to someone else
• A location accessible to several people

The defense should examine who owned or controlled the location, who had access to the drugs, where the substances were found, and what evidence actually connects the accused to them.

Mere proximity to drugs does not automatically resolve the question of knowing possession.

Possession-for-sale prosecutions frequently arise from searches of homes, vehicles, phones, or other property.

Investigators may rely on surveillance, informants, controlled purchases, intercepted communications, traffic stops, or other information to obtain or justify a search.

The defense may examine:

• Whether a warrant was supported by probable cause
• Information supplied by confidential informants
• Whether information supporting the warrant was stale
• The scope of the warrant
• How officers executed the search
• Whether an exception to the warrant requirement actually applied
• The legality of a vehicle search
• Searches of phones or electronic data
• How evidence was seized and documented



When evidence was obtained in violation of constitutional protections, a motion to suppress may be available depending on the circumstances.

Every case is different, but potential issues can include:

• Lack of knowing possession
• Lack of dominion or control over the drugs
• Drugs belonging to another person
• Shared property or vehicle
• Insufficient evidence of an intent to sell
• Quantity consistent with an alternative explanation
• Unreliable witnesses or confidential informants
• Unlawful search or seizure
• Problems with a search warrant
• Statements obtained in violation of constitutional protections
• Laboratory or chain-of-custody problems
• Electronic communications taken out of context
• Failure to establish the alleged drug quantity
• Failure to prove an element beyond a reasonable doubt



A possession-for-sale charge should not be treated as proven merely because police characterize the surrounding circumstances as evidence of drug dealing.

There may be no direct statement saying that drugs were possessed for sale.

Instead, prosecutors may ask a judge or jury to infer intent from circumstantial evidence.

That evidence can include:

• Quantity of drugs
• Packaging
• Scales
• Cash
• Multiple phones
• Text messages or social-media communications
• Alleged customer lists or ledgers
• Surveillance
• Short-term traffic at a location
• Statements by alleged purchasers
• Confidential-informant information
• Weapons or other items prosecutors associate with drug sales

Each item should be evaluated individually and as part of the entire case.



The defense can challenge both the underlying evidence and the conclusions prosecutors ask a judge or jury to draw from it.

Quantity can be important in a possession-for-sale prosecution, but it should not be analyzed in isolation.

Arizona law defines specific threshold amounts for certain unlawful substances. Current statutory examples include one gram of heroin, nine grams of cocaine, nine grams of methamphetamine, nine grams of amphetamine, and nine grams of fentanyl or fentanyl mimetic substances. Other substances can be governed by different measurements or a statutory market-value threshold.

Threshold amounts can affect sentencing consequences, but crossing a threshold is not a substitute for proving the elements of the offense actually charged.

The defense should examine:

• What was actually weighed
• Whether the substance was properly identified
• Whether mixtures were involved
• Laboratory procedures
• Chain of custody
• Whether the prosecution's quantity calculation is legally and factually correct

Methamphetamine possession-for-sale cases are prosecuted under Arizona's dangerous-drug laws.

These investigations may involve alleged quantities of methamphetamine, individual packages, scales, cash, communications, surveillance, statements, or other evidence prosecutors contend demonstrates an intent to sell.

Arizona currently defines the statutory threshold amount for methamphetamine as nine grams, including methamphetamine in liquid suspension.

The defense may examine:

• Whether the accused knowingly possessed the methamphetamine
• Actual versus constructive possession
• Drug weight and laboratory testing
• Whether the alleged quantity was calculated correctly
• Packaging and other alleged indicators of sales
• Electronic communications
• Witness and informant credibility
• Search-and-seizure issues
• Whether the evidence actually proves possession for sale

The seriousness of a methamphetamine allegation does not change the prosecution's burden of proof.

Fentanyl is expressly included within Arizona's statutory definition of a narcotic drug. Arizona currently identifies nine grams of fentanyl or fentanyl mimetic substances as the statutory threshold amount.

Fentanyl possession-for-sale investigations may involve pills, powders, mixtures, packaging, alleged transaction communications, cash, surveillance, laboratory testing, and multiple defendants.

For a broader discussion of possession, sale, transportation, laboratory evidence, and sentencing issues, see our Tucson fentanyl defense lawyer page.

Important defense issues can include:

• Whether the accused knowingly possessed the substance
• Whether laboratory testing established what the substance contained
• Drug weight and quantity
• Whether the accused controlled the location where drugs were found
• Whether other people had access
• Whether messages or other electronic evidence actually establish sales activity
• Informant or cooperating-witness credibility
• The legality of searches and seizures
• Whether the evidence proves possession for sale
• The dangerous nature of fentanyl can make the accusation emotionally powerful.

It does not relieve the State of its obligation to prove the charged crime against the individual defendant.