Drug manufacturing is the creation of a particular drug from its inception such as a meth lab operation. It also includes circumstances in which a person is charged with breaking down and packaging the drug. For example, heroin or cocaine usually arrives in the United States in a very pure form and is broken down and combined with other substances to increase the volume so that its value and availability on the street increase.
While there is no separate federal law dealing with drug manufacturing, there are different subsections of the statute that address trafficking, distribution, and manufacturing all of which carry very serious penalties. For this reason, anyone accused should consult with a Maryland federal drug manufacturing attorney to build the strongest defense possible for their case. An experienced federal drug lawyer in Maryland can assist in guiding the accused through the legal process and keeping them in the loop on what to expect at each step.
Defining Drug Manufacturers
Generally, defining drug manufacturers starts with the lowest level, the drug possessors and distributors. The investigation begins with somebody at the possession level; perhaps somebody who was charged with possession of a small amount of marijuana.
The individual could be a young person with a normal lifestyle, a student, or a person with a regular job who does not want to experience the consequences of possession of a small amount of a controlled dangerous substance. Law enforcement recognizes that and offers the person an opportunity to have their charges dropped if they identify the person who sold them that particular controlled dangerous substance.
That leads to law enforcement talking to the distributor of the substance who might then turn over the manufacturer. The chain starts at the bottom and goes up from there. That is how these particular drug cases tend to evolve.
Does Manufacturing Also Extend to Those Supplying the Materials?
Yes, drug manufacturing includes any level of the process when a prosecutor attaches a conspiracy, an attempt charge, or an accessory charge to any of the drug manufacturing charges for anyone involved in any phase of the manufacturing process. So even if someone didn’t play a central role in manufacturing the substance, a federal drug manufacturing lawyer in Maryland should still be contacted.
Endangering Human Life
Endangering human life while illegally manufacturing controlled dangerous substances is a very broad law, as it is designed for people who are drug mules. Usually, people are asked by drug manufacturers or distributors to swallow drugs to bring them across borders undetected. This is a situation where someone’s life is endangered for the purpose of the distribution or manufacture of drugs.
Endangering human life can also be found in other dangerous capacities such as being shot or killed in the process of transporting drugs for a larger manufacturer from one place to the next. Endangering human life is when someone else’s life is put in danger in furtherance of the crime of distribution or manufacturing the dangerous substance.
State vs. Federal Laws
It depends on the kind of charge alleged against the individual. For example, it is not illegal in many states in the United States to grow or manufacture a particular controlled dangerous substance; so those people are not breaking the law. In many cases, that law applies to marijuana.
However, most of the states in the United States have not adopted similar laws. A person who is manufacturing in the state where it is legal is not charged with manufacturing unless they can be tied to the offense of distributing that drug to a place where it is illegal. If they have the knowledge and intent to manufacture and distribute that drug in another state, they can be charged even though they reside in a state where it is legal to manufacture that drug.
Importance of an MD Federal Drug Manufacturing Lawyer
Due to the severity of this offense and the various accessory charges that can also apply, anyone alleged to have manufactured drugs needs to consult with a Maryland federal drug manufacturing attorney as soon as possible. An experienced lawyer can begin investigating the claims made by the prosecution and help guide the individual as successfully as possible through the legal process.
