What is Drug Crime?

Crime is acts or omissions that can be prosecuted and punished by the government. Drug crime is violation of laws that are related to the unlawful manufacture, distribution, or possession of drugs that the jurisdiction (i.e., state and federal government) defines as controlled substances. A controlled substance, as its name suggests, is a certain variety of plant or chemical compound that is being controlled by lawmakers and law enforcement. The manufacture, distribution, or possession of these drugs must specifically be unlawful because some substances are legal as medical prescriptions, doled out at strict dosages, but not otherwise. When looking at a specific act, you might ask, “What is a drug offense or offender?” A drug offense is a single instance of drug crime, and a drug offender is someone who commits a drug offense.

What are drug laws? The key ones specific to Florida are contained within Florida Statutes Chapter 893: Drug Abuse Prevention and Control. That section of law provides the state law, while the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) is the key statute for federal regulation of substances classified as threats to public health and safety. The CSA was signed into law by President Richard Nixon nearly a half-century ago, as part of a broader bill; it was Title II of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970.