October 16, 2017By Brian Manchester

Have you or someone you know been charged with Acquiring a Controlled Substance by Fraud in Pennsylvania? The charge of Acquiring a Controlled Substance by Fraud in Pennsylvania can have very serious consequences that can include up to fifteen years in prison and thousands in fines. At minimum you face up to one year in jail.

In Pennsylvania, it is illegal to use a fake or forged prescription to obtain, or try to obtain prescriptions from a pharmacy. The acquisition or obtaining of possession of a controlled substance by misrepresentation, fraud, forgery, deception or subterfuge is the crime under the drug statutes. The severity of the offense is determined by the prescription drug that was obtained depending on the drugs schedule level determined by the Department of Health.

Schedule I or II which is a narcotic drug, is guilty of a felony and upon conviction thereof shall be sentenced to imprisonment not exceeding fifteen years, or to pay a fine not exceeding two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000), or both or such larger amount as is sufficient to exhaust the assets utilized in and the profits obtained from the illegal activity

Any other controlled substance or counterfeit substance classified in Schedule I, II, or III, is guilty of a felony and upon conviction thereof shall be sentenced to imprisonment not exceeding five years, or to pay a fine not exceeding fifteen thousand dollars ($15,000), or both.

Schedule IV, is guilty of a felony and upon conviction thereof shall be sentenced to imprisonment not exceeding three years, or to pay a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars ($10,000), or both.

Schedule V, is guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction thereof shall be sentenced to imprisonment not exceeding one year, or to pay a fine not exceeding five thousand dollars ($5,000), or both.

If you are a doctor or a nurse and are charged with facilitating, helping, or acquiring a Controlled Substance by Fraud in Pennsylvania, you could have your professional license suspended or revoked completely, by your respective boards.

If you are charged with Acquiring a Controlled Substance by Fraud in Pennsylvania, do not talk to the police or prosecutors without an attorney. What you say will be taken out of context and used against you. If the police try to question you, exercise your sixth Amendment and tell them you want a lawyer. Do not consent to any searches of your house, computer, or phones without a proper warrant.

Once you have retained a competent Criminal Defense Attorney they will review all of the allegations being made by the police and prosecutors, including any evidence that they claim to have. Your attorney should gather the evidence or witnesses to show if you are innocent and/or just made an honest mistake, such as you may not have known that the prescription you had was fake or forged.

It is extremely important to contact an experienced law firm right away if you or someone you know is facing criminal charges in Pennsylvania. If you, your son, daughter, or loved one in Pennsylvania has been arrested for a crime in state or federal court in Pennsylvania you need legal representation Here at Manchester and Associates we represent people across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. For a free consultation we can be contacted at 1-800-243-4878.

Posted in: Crimes , Criminal Defense Blog

Tags: Crimes, Criminal Defense, Fraud,