A few grams or a single search can stand between a misdemeanor and a mandatory prison sentence. The strongest defenses start by testing how the drugs were found — call before you talk to anyone else about your case.
Call 904-383-7448Florida prosecutes drug crimes under chapter 893, Florida Statutes, the Florida Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act. Where your case falls depends on the substance and the quantity. Possession of twenty grams or less of cannabis is a first-degree misdemeanor; more than twenty grams, or possession of a controlled substance such as cocaine, MDMA, or a prescription pill held without a valid prescription, is a third-degree felony.
Most of these cases turn on one question that has nothing to do with chemistry: was the search lawful? Graham W. Syfert defends drug charges across Duval, Clay, Nassau, and St. Johns Counties, and he starts where the case started — the stop, the frisk, the dog, the door. Call 904-383-7448.
The drug code does not treat every substance the same way, and it does not treat every quantity the same way. Section 893.13, Florida Statutes, is the possession statute, and the substance's place on the controlled-substance schedules sets the stakes. Possession of twenty grams or less of cannabis is a first-degree misdemeanor under section 893.13(6)(b), punishable by up to a year in jail. More than twenty grams is a third-degree felony under section 893.13(6)(a), as is simple possession of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, MDMA, and most prescription pills carried without a valid prescription. A third-degree felony carries a sentencing exposure of up to five years under section 775.082 and section 775.083, Florida Statutes, though the actual outcome depends heavily on the facts and the person.
The word "possession" sounds simple, but the State rarely catches anyone holding the substance in an open hand. More often it argues constructive possession — the theory that you controlled drugs found in a car you were riding in or an apartment you shared. To prove that, the State has to show you knew the substance was there and had the ability to control it. When several people had equal access to the same console or the same drawer, that knowledge is far from obvious, and it is one of the first places a defense pushes back.
A drug arrest often arrives with more than one charge. Possession of paraphernalia — pipes, scales, baggies, grinders, anything used to grow, store, ingest, or conceal a controlled substance — is charged separately under section 893.147, Florida Statutes, with the term defined broadly in section 893.145. By itself that is usually a first-degree misdemeanor, but it tends to ride along with a more serious count.
The same quantity of drugs can be charged three different ways depending on what the State infers about your purpose. Simple possession is one thing. Possession with intent to sell or deliver, also under section 893.13, raises the offense because the State claims the stash was meant for distribution — an inference it draws from quantity, packaging, scales, and cash rather than from any witnessed sale. Trafficking under section 893.135, Florida Statutes, is different still: it is defined by weight alone, and once the quantity crosses a statutory threshold it carries a mandatory minimum prison term and fine that a judge cannot go below, even for a first-time offender who never sold a thing.
Most drug cases begin with a search, and most searches can be questioned. The Fourth Amendment limits when an officer may stop a car, frisk a person, enter a home, or hold a driver at the roadside while a dog is brought to the scene. When a search crosses those lines, the evidence it produced can be suppressed, and a drug case without the drugs is usually a case without a prosecution. That is why Mr. Syfert reads the police report, the dash and body camera, and the timeline of the stop as closely as he reads the lab report.
The substance also has to be what the State says it is. A roadside field test is a presumptive test, not a final answer, and the laboratory analysis and the chain of custody behind it are fair game. When a case turns on what came back from the lab, that work is covered on the page about challenging scientific evidence. The weight itself can be contested too, because trafficking thresholds are exact numbers and the scale, the mixture, and the packaging all bear on whether the real weight reaches the line.
For many first-time charges, a conviction is not the only road. Duval County offers diversion and drug-court paths that can end in a dismissal and leave the door open to sealing the record afterward. Whether that fits depends on the charge, the history, and the facts, and it is worth a careful look rather than a quick guilty plea that leaves a permanent mark on a background check. The point of an early call is to keep every one of these doors open before the State has made its decisions for you.
No. Twenty grams or less is a first-degree misdemeanor under section 893.13(6)(b), Florida Statutes. More than twenty grams is a third-degree felony, and so is possession of most other controlled substances. The amount and the substance set the stakes.
Because section 893.135 defines trafficking by weight, not by a sale. The quantity alone triggers the mandatory minimum, even for a first offense.
They can try, under a constructive-possession theory, but the State must prove you knew the substance was there and had the ability to control it. When others had equal access, that proof is much harder to make.
Often there is a path. Diversion or drug court in Duval County can end in a dismissal for many first-time charges. Whether it fits depends on the facts, so it is worth reviewing the options before entering any plea.
The call is free and confidential. Whether it is a traffic citation or a felony, the sooner a defense begins, the more can be done. Graham W. Syfert answers his own phone.
Call 904-383-7448Graham W. Syfert, Esq., P.A. · Jacksonville, Florida
Serving Duval, Clay, Nassau, and St. Johns Counties