Drug Paraphernalia Defense in CaliforniaCalifornia Health & Safety Code § 11364

What counts as a violation of Health & Safety Code § 11364?

Health & Safety Code § 11364 makes it a crime for a person to unlawfully possess an opium pipe or any device, contrivance, instrument, or paraphernalia used for unlawfully injecting or smoking (1) a controlled substance, or (2) a controlled substance that is a narcotic drug classified in Schedule III, IV, or V.

To be convicted for this offense, the prosecution is required to prove all of the following

• Unlawful possessionby the defendant of an instrument used to smoke or inject a narcotic
  
  
• Knowledgeby the defendant that the object was present
  
  
• Defendant’s knowledgethat the instrument’s purpose was for the illegal ingestion of a narcotic substance.

Health & Safety Code § 11364 does not apply to the following

• hypodermic needles or syringes that have put in containers for safe disposal that meet  state and federal standards for disposal of sharps waste
• the possession solely for personal use of hypodermic needles or syringes

What is the punishment for a violation of Health & Safety Code § 11364?

A conviction for this crime is a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in a county jail and a maximum fine of $1,000.