Manufacturing of Controlled Substances

The Health and Safety Code 11379.6 HS under the laws of California criminalizes the act of manufacturing regulated substances. To help you understand this code, we will elaborate on the term manufacture and define what controlled substances are.

Manufacture implies to any process that compounds, converts, produces, derives, prepares or makes controlled substances from raw materials or materials worked up to a new form by the help of human power or a machine.

Any substance whose production, possession and use are supervised or regulated by the federal government can be referred to as a controlled substance. Substance as used here mainly refers to any drug which when introduced to the body leads to a stimulant or narcotic effect on the user. The Controlled Substance Act of the United States establishes these controlled substances under schedules (I-V), depending on their accepted medical values, the potential for abuse and safety or potential for addiction.

Examples of these controlled substances include; Ecstasy, Heroin, Cocaine, Marijuana, PCP, LSD, GHB, and Methamphetamines commonly referred to as Meth.  These drugs can be made in a residential house without requiring sophisticated equipment in a highly risky process which may result to chemical corrosions, explosions, fires and even death due to the toxic and flammable materials used in the process.

Notably, it is possible to be prosecuted for violating the California Health and Safety Code 11379.6 HS even though you had not necessarily completed the drug manufacturing process. 

The law considers you an offender as long as you intentionally and knowingly take part in the preparatory steps that lead to the production of a controlled substance.

You may also be penalized for synthesizing chemicals which are known precursors to the manufacture of controlled substances when it is proved that your intentions were to make any of the prohibited drugs listed under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).

The prosecuting attorney in a manufacturing of a controlled substance case should be in a position to prove that the defendant manufactured, compounded, converted, produced, or processed a regulated substance either by means of chemical synthesis or chemical extraction. They don’t need to have finished the process, and thus the prosecutor will only have to show intent in their actions.

The prosecutor will also need to show the court that the accused was aware of the nature and characteristics of the final product to be an illegal substance or a drug.

Violating the California Health and Safety Code 11379.6 HS which is the law prohibiting the manufacture of controlled substances is basically considered a felony. It attracts a three (3), five (5) or seven (7) years behind bars in a state prison in California and a fine of up to fifty thousand dollars ($50,000). The court may, however, choose to impose probationary terms and a year in county jail instead of time in state prison.

Defendants who are sentenced for providing help in the manufacture of drugs face a felony charge which is penalized by either probation and a year in jail or by a jail term of 3, 4 or 5 years.

 You could face additional sentences as well as those discussed above if there are aggravating factors to your case. Such factors which could lead to lengthy sentences include;

1. Presence of large quantities of manufactured substances,
2. Presence of children within the proximate vicinity,
3. Cases of fatalities or even injuries,
4. Prior convictions for drug-related charges.

Making large quantities of controlled substances which contain Phencyclidine (PCP), GHB (Gamma-hydroxybutyrate), or Methamphetamines (meth) could have you face additional jail terms to be served consecutively in case the said substance exceed certain volumes.

Should the substance be over 3 gallons for liquids or over a pound in mass for solids, you will get 3 more years to your jail term if convicted. You may also be jailed for 5 more years if the substance overshoots 10 gallons for liquids or 3 pounds in weight for solids.

Likewise, if the substance is over 25 gallons for liquids or over 10 pounds of weight for solids, you face 10 more years added to your sentence. Finally, the defendant gets 15 years in case the substance passes 105 gallons for liquids or exceeds 44 pounds for solids.

In case you are sentenced for breaching the California Health and Safety Code 11379.6 HS where the substance in question is meth and a person below the age of sixteen (16) years was present in the residential complex where the crime took place, you will face a two (2) years enhancement to your sentence. Manufacture of meth within a two hundred feet (200) radius of an occupied house or structure will also attract additional jail terms to your sentence. 

In case a person of 16 years and below endures great injury as a result of your drug making activities you will get five more years to your initial sentence to be served consecutively.

In cases where a person other than the defendant or their colleague dies or sustains great bodily harm due to the illegal activities of the defendant, the judge will prefer an additional year for each recorded death or injury to the primary sentences of the accused to be served consecutively in a state facility.

In case the defendant in the manufacturing of controlled substances charge had previous convictions for cases touching on drug possession, sale or transport of drugs or controlled substances they face additional 3 years for each prior conviction to their primary sentences even if the previous convictions never ended up in jail terms. These sentences are supposed to be served successively.

Our attorneys may be able to negotiate an alternative sentencing possibility where a defendant who did not engage in a violent activity during the drug manufacture, receiving a chance for drug rehabilitation programs instead of serving a prison sentence.

Drug diversion programs divert you from facing the usual justice system to a program aiming at rehabilitation and drug education. Ultimately, after going through the program to a successful finish, the court may dismiss the charges you were facing and hence you will avoid a jail term and court fines. 

Drug diversions programs are however only available to you if you are being charged for possession of drugs for own use, and thus, your Vista criminal attorney will have to persuade the prosecutor to believe you had no intentions to sell the drugs that you were manufacturing. If this goes through, the prosecutor may allow you to take a plea bargain for the less serious crime of simple possession of drugs, which now qualifies you for drug diversion programs.

A Vista Criminal Attorney Law Firm lawyer will help you review the circumstances of your case and come up with possible defenses against a California drug manufacturing charge. We will discuss some of the most frequent counter-arguments below.

In case your rights as stated under the Fourth Amendment were violated during the search and seizure process this would form grounds to seek for the dismissal or reduction of the charges citing the illegal manner in which the police collected evidence or arrested you.

This argument however only applies in case the law enforcement officers searched your alleged manufacturing plant either with no valid search warrant as required by law, no probable cause to search your property, or if they searched an area beyond that which was legally recommended by law.

You would not be held liable for violating the California Health and Safety Code 11379.6 HS barring the manufacture of controlled substances if you were still in the preparatory stages of the entire process, such as gathering together of equipment and materials.

Our attorney will be able to undertake the task of differentiating to the court between actual manufacturing and the attempts to do so. Please note that you may still be charged for another violation if you were found with controlled substances as part of your ingredients for making the alleged illegal substance.

If you are charged with attempting to manufacture drugs you may face half the sentence that you could have served in case you had made the actual drug as it is elaborated under the laws on attempted crimes in California.

You would not be held liable for violating the California Health and Safety Code 11379.6 HS barring the manufacture of controlled substances if you were still in the preparatory stages of the entire process, such as gathering together of equipment and materials.

Our attorney will be able to undertake the task of differentiating to the court between actual manufacturing and the attempts to do so. Please note that you may still be charged for another violation if you were found with controlled substances as part of your ingredients for making the alleged illegal substance.

If you are charged with attempting to manufacture drugs you may face half the sentence that you could have served in case you had made the actual drug as it is elaborated under the laws on attempted crimes in California.

In some cases the defendant could have been arrested at a drug house which they had visited to purchase the drugs, hence, it would not be possible for the court to hold them liable for a drug manufacturing crime as they are not part of the group doing the actual illegal activity. This though may have them charged with possession of an illegal substance which attracts lesser repercussions as compared to violating California Health and Safety Code 11379.6.

Also, it may be possible that you were sharing a common space with illegal drug manufacturers without your knowledge, say in the garage of residential premises or even a camping van nearby. In such a case, a skilled attorney is in a position to convince the court that they are charging the wrong person.

No Knowledge it was a Controlled Substance

The prosecutor has to prove to the jury that you actually knew that you were manufacturing a drug but it may occur that you were hired to make what you thought to be legal medicine only to learn that you were engaging in the illegal business. This might turn out to be very frightening especially to a diligent California citizen and that's where we come in. Our knowledgeable attorney will be able to articulate your innocence to the court and this may have the charges against you thrown out.

Some drug laws violations are closely related to the crime of manufacturing of controlled substances either because they may be filed together with or instead of these charges. Common examples include;

• Possession of Materials for Manufacturing Controlled Substances

This offense is punished under the California Health and Safety Code 11383 and 11383.5 HS which elaborates on the materials classified the main ingredients in the manufacture of regulated substances. You may be liable of this offense if you are found with certain chemicals used in making meth or PCP, either in their pure state or as chemical mixtures.

If sentenced for this felony offense, you may get 2, 4 or 6 years in jail.

• Allowing the Manufacture of Controlled Substances on your Premises

The details of this crime are contained in the Health and Safety Code 11366 HS under the California laws. This law prohibits and punishes any person who knowingly rents out a building or structure under their control for the purposes of illegal drug manufacture, storage, or sale.

This violation is a wobbler in California, which attracts a year in jail if filed as a misdemeanor or 16 months, 2 or 3 years in jail if it is charged as a felony.

In some instances, the owner may have even allowed the tenant to fortify the structure and disguise it in a bid to keep off officers of the law with such a person receiving a better figure above the market value of such property to turn a blind eye. If that’s the case, the landlord may face a California felony punishable by 2, 3 or 4 years in a correctional facility. They may also be charged with additional offenses of abetting and aiding crimes or conspiracy to defeat justice.

• Possession of a Regulated Substance

Possessing a regulated substance in low quantities may also be referred to as a ‘simple possession’ in California, implying that you possessed the substance for personal needs and not for selling.

Simple possession is regulated under the Health and Safety Code 11350 HS which pertains to a number of controlled substances such as cocaine, heroin, Vicodin, ketamine, GHB while the California Health and Safety Code 11377 HS prohibits the simple possession of methamphetamine.

HS 11350 California’s law against simple possession is a felony which attracts a 3 years county jail term while the California Health and Safety Code 11377 HS possession of meth is seen as a wobbler and hence punishable as a misdemeanor or a felony, depending on the case facts and the defendant’s criminal records. A misdemeanor offense attracts a year in a county facility and a fine of a thousand dollars ($1000) while a felony charge imposes a probation period and a year in jail or 16 months, 2 or 3 years in jail or a $10,000 court fine.

• Possession for Sale

The Health and Safety Code 11351 HS is the law in California which prohibits possessing a regulated substance for sale. It is a significant offense as it judges you for destroying other people’s lives by availing drugs to them at a profit and thus, it does not allow for a drug diversion program.

It arises if you are found with a large number of controlled substances at the time of arrest for allegedly manufacturing drugs and it is punished as a felony, where a convict faces probation terms and up to a year in jail or two (2), three (3) or four (4) years in a county correctional facility.

• Influence of a Regulated Substance

In some instances, the defendant may be visibly and detectably under the influence of the controlled substance that they were manufacturing at the time of arrest. In such a case, they may face charges for manufacturing illegal substances together with charges under the California Health and Safety Code 11550 HS which prohibits the use of these controlled substances. 

It is penalized as a misdemeanor with offenders getting a year in county jail.

In instances where you face both charges for manufacturing of controlled substance and being under the influence of a prohibited substance, a well-versed attorney may persuade the prosecuting attorney to enter a plea bargain with you, where they might drop the earlier serious charges for the manufacture of drugs and charge you with the latter offense. In such a case, you may be eligible for a drug diversion program and hopefully, have your charges dismissed.

In case you are facing charges for manufacturing of controlled substances you do not have to worry even if you think you are guilty. A Vista Criminal Attorney Law Firm attorney is in a position to present your case before the court aiming to achieve the best favorable outcome for your case. 

Kindly reach our Vista criminal lawyer at 760-691-1551 as soon as possible to have us start building a defense for you. We serve the areas of Vista and North County.