Possession of drug paraphernalia in North Carolina
Possession of drug paraphernalia is governed by North Carolina General Statute NCGS 90-113.22. As it relates to marijuana, this statute makes it unlawful for anyone to knowingly use or possess drug paraphernalia for a multitude of purposes. The purposes include, but are not limited to: planting marijuana, propagating marijuana, growing marijuana, harvesting marijuana, packing marijuana, storing marijuana, concealing marijuana, or ingesting marijuana. Possession of drug paraphernalia is punished as a Class 1 misdemeanor in North Carolina (NC).
Since possession of drug paraphernalia (meth, weed, cocaine, crack, heroin, pot) is a Class 1 misdemeanor, it is punishable by up to 120 days in incarceration or jail depending on the defendant's prior record level. For a lot of people, this does not make sense at all in the way it relates to possession of marijuana. What we have now in the North Carolina justice system is that possession of the marijuana itself is a much less serious offense than possessing the paraphernalia that is associated with the marijuana. This means that one person can get in much bigger trouble for having joint papers, rolling papers, or bong rather than the marijuana itself. This is certainly not the first time the North Carolina legislature has reached a somewhat inconsistent or strange result in regards to punishing people for crimes.
Drug paraphernalia items can virtually include anything and everything. As defined in the statute NCGS 90-113.21, basically anything that is used for using the drug, selling the drug, transporting the drug, or hiding the drug can count as drug paraphernalia. Looking at these categories, pipes, bongs, gravity bongs, hookahs, bowls, and other items such as joint papers, unrolled cigars, unrolled black and milds, can all constitute drug paraphernalia in Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill, Wake county, Alamance County and all over North Carolina since people use them to smoke the marijuana. Basically any contraption that is used for the aid of consuming marijuana can constitute drug paraphernalia.
Paraphernalia for selling and storing marijuana can include laundry bins, storage sheds, and plastic baggies. Scales and other items count as drug paraphernalia in terms of selling and trafficking marijuana. Sometimes when someone is arrested for simple possession of marijuana or simple marijuana possession, the police will charge the person with possession of drug paraphernalia just for the little bag that the marijuana was held in.
Drug offenses in general, under North Carolina law according to NCGS 90-95, when a criminal defendant already has a drug conviction on his or her record, a subsequent Class 1 Misdemeanor Drug Charge is qualified to be elevated to a Class I felony. A good example would be if someone is convicted of Simple Possession of Marijuana which is a Class 3 misdemeanor. Subsequently, he or she is caught with an ounce of marijuana. Possessing one (1) ounce of marijuana is a Class 1 misdemeanor normally. Due to the prior conviction, it is now a Class I felony. This elevation in punishment does not apply to possession of drug paraphernalia. A person can be a habitual felon and charged with possession of drug paraphernalia, and the charge is still a Class 1 misdemeanor.
