Drug Paraphernalia FAQs

Yes. If you were arrested for a Phoenix drug crime, you may notice that you’ve been charged with at least two crimes: one for the possession of a dangerous drug and another for the possession of drug paraphernalia. While this may seem like the government’s charging you twice for the same crime, this type of charging decision has been upheld time after time by state and federal appellate courts.

The short answer is that almost anything could be considered drug paraphernalia because Arizona law doesn’t provide a list of prohibited items. Instead, A.R.S. § 13-3415 explains that drug paraphernalia includes “all equipment, products and materials” that are intended or designated for use in planting, manufacturing, growing, harvesting, compounding, producing, preparing, testing, storing, concealing, ingesting, injecting or inhaling a drug.

Aside from being extremely broad, the definition of drug paraphernalia is also somewhat subjective. For example, a package of small balloons by itself can’t be considered drug paraphernalia because balloons have other legitimate purposes. However, if you are pulled over, and police find a large amount of heroin in your car in close proximity to the balloons, the balloons might land you with drug paraphernalia charges.

Phoenix criminal defense lawyers representing clients charged with possession of drug paraphernalia typically rely on one of two defenses. The first is challenging the prosecution’s evidence that the object was actually drug paraphernalia. For example, say you’re charged with paraphernalia after police find marijuana in your car glove box and a scale in your trunk. Your lawyer might argue that the scale was physically far away enough from the marijuana to raise doubt as to whether you planned on using the scale to weigh the marijuana.

The second defense is a pre-trial motion to suppress evidence based on an illegal search or seizure. Police officers must respect your constitutional rights when investigating any crime; otherwise, they cannot use any evidence they recover. For example, if a police officer finds a freshly-used bong in your house after barging in without your consent, a warrant, or exigent circumstances, they can’t admit the bong into evidence.

In Phoenix, the possession of drug paraphernalia is a class 6 felony. Class 6 felonies carry a possible sentence between 4 months in jail to two years in prison, assuming you don’t have any prior felony convictions. If you do have a felony on your record, you could face between 9 and 33 months of incarceration.

If you were recently arrested and charged with possession of drug paraphernalia, it’s important you consider all your options before deciding how to handle your case. A felony conviction can result in jail time; however, even if that isn’t the case, it will immeasurably affect your life. At the Law Office of James E. Novak, we take pride in aggressively defending clients charged with serious drug crimes, helping them move on with their lives after their arrests. To learn more, and to schedule a free consultation today, call 480-413-1499. You can also reach us through our online contact form.