What is the responsibility for storing and selling drugs in 2021?

List of drugs related to narcotic and psychotropic drugs

To understand exactly what the law prohibiting the possession and sale of narcotic and psychotropic drugs means, you need to know which drugs belong to this group. Prohibited substances include:

• LSD;
• heroin;
• poppy straw;
• amphetamine;
• marijuana;
• opium;
• hashish;
• cocaine;
• desomorphine, etc.

All substances that can cause clouding of consciousness or distortion of reality as a result of their use are prohibited.

Concept and corpus delicti

The discovery of drugs on a suspect is considered by law to be illegal possession. Regardless of the period during which a citizen has been in possession of drugs, he is an offender. The police can detect the presence of prohibited drugs or substances not only in the suspect’s personal belongings or in his home, but also in places where he regularly visits.

Possession of drugs means possession of illegal drugs, which can be found not only in a citizen’s pockets, but also in his home, at work, wherever he has access.

An integral part of bringing the culprit to criminal liability is the inclusion of seized drugs or substances in the general register.

What punishment faces drug pawners?

If you ask a law-abiding average person how, in his opinion, the sale and transfer of narcotic substances takes place (a criminal offense in accordance with Article 228.1 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation), then his imagination will most likely flash footage of Hollywood action scenes with the transfer of suitcases and the stern faces of the “usurper” drug lords. But times change, and current realities have become completely different.

Once upon a time, the buyer had to personally meet with the drug dealer to get a “portion,” but now this method is a thing of the past - drugs can be ordered without leaving home and picked up at the next door. A drug “stash” is a small sealed bag (approximate dimensions: 8x4) that easily fits in the palm of your hand. A magnet is attached to such a package, with the help of which the package can be attached to any metal structures. Also, the location of the drug is photographed and provided with a detailed description.

What tricks do drug addicts use?

Drugs can be hidden in the subway, in a park, on a tree, or attached to drainpipes. Sometimes they are hidden near monuments or in public toilets. Don’t be surprised if you go out onto the balcony at night and find a man digging for something near a tree - this is a drug addict who has come to get his drug. Even several bookmarks can be left in the yard at once. In winter, drugs are hidden in flower pots (at the entrance), under railings, in electrical panels and in the slopes of window sills.

There is even such a job as a “mortgagor”. The distributor does not want to substitute himself and appear in different places - he hires young girls and boys. Now pay attention, parents! You must understand and not forget that your child may become a victim of a drug dealer. Perhaps the child was simply happy about the easy money, putting himself at risk.

DO NOT TRUST ALL ADVERTISEMENTS! The job of a pawnbroker may be called, for example, “anonymous courier,” and “employers” promise a big salary. The seller-mortgagor-buyer is at great risk of getting caught, so one can easily imagine their fear of police officers driving past them.

Years in prison

A pawnbroker caught with 50 g of the substance or heroin will sit behind bars for 15-20 years. It is not the drug dealer who is at risk, but the pawnbroker. The pawnbroker will go to jail, and the distributor will continue his business and hire a new employee. Parents should talk to their child about the risks of these situations so that he does not fall for the tricks of drug dealers.

How is a mortgage holder selected?

The search for an employee takes place via the Internet - the so-called “employer” posts a vacancy, candidates leave their resumes. Drug addicts themselves often work on Darknet sites; such workers are unreliable. Therefore, preference is given to abstainers. Even the legal Internet is teeming with vacancies - on the same Avito. You can often see the sentence: “A healthy and responsible employee is required, the salary is high; We look at your documents and your appearance.”

The employee must place bookmarks in a certain area - 2-3 hours a day. The pawnbroker requires a deposit of 5 thousand rubles or a passport. There is only one way to contact an employer - through instant messengers.

And our house... Is it so safe?

Under no circumstances open the door to strangers and warn your neighbors if you realize that your house is being mortgaged. Be sure to notify the police if you see something being buried in front of a tree or if there are suspicious people in the entrance. It is best (if possible) to photograph or videotape the action of a suspicious person.

Sometimes a drug addict may not even pay attention to the people around him - he will dig up the drug, despite the fact that people are passing by or someone is standing on the balcony.

How to understand that your house has become a place of mortgages:

• exposed cable channels;
• packages and pieces of paper scattered around the entrance (8x4);
• broken door closer;
• Strangers often call the intercom asking you to open the door;
• unfamiliar and inadequate people looking for something;
• open electrical panels;
• dug up soil near trees, in pots, pots turned over.

A person may receive a lot of money for working as a pawnbroker, but what will it bring him if his life is in constant fear? Is there really such a strong desire to buy a new iPhone or other fancy toys, because of which you will have to pay with imprisonment for 20 years?

Parents! Be carefull. Do not leave your children unattended, have preventive conversations with them. Explain that suspicious individuals who “recruit” pawnbrokers can operate even near the school.

Talk to your child before the drug dealer does it for you.

Storage and distribution

Article 228 of the Criminal Code of Russia describes the responsibility for storing drugs in significant, large and especially large quantities. Resolution 1002, which sets out the classification by type of prohibited substance, will help to establish these boundaries more precisely.

If we are talking about marijuana, a large dose is 0.1-5 g. For poppy straw this is no more than 0.0005 g, a similar figure for heroin.

If a citizen is found in possession of a substance whose weight is significantly lower than the prescribed norms, he can avoid criminal liability. More often than not, such cases end in administrative punishment.

Until 2021, Article 228 provided for punishment for possession of narcotic substances with or without the purpose of sale. The new bill does not imply such a provision; we are talking only about the illegal possession of prohibited substances without subsequent sale.

Responsibility

Possession of drugs can be punishable by both fines and imprisonment. The court's decision depends not only on the testimony given in court by witnesses and the accused, but also on the type of psychotropic substance.

Administrative responsibility

If the amount of drugs found does not exceed the minimum established by law, the court may impose administrative liability. The fine is 4-5 thousand rubles or arrest for up to 15 days. Such rules apply to stateless persons. The only difference is that foreign citizens are deported from the country.

If the suspect independently decides to hand over the drugs to the police, he will be exempt from criminal liability regarding drug possession.

Criminal liability

Article 228 of the Criminal Code provides for the imposition of fines in the amount of 40 thousand rubles or the confiscation of three monthly salaries from the accused. Also provided for are 480 hours of correctional labor and imprisonment for up to 36 months.

The same violation, but on a particularly large scale, is punished more harshly. The culprit faces 3 to 10 years in prison and fines of up to half a million rubles.

The court can decide which type of punishment is fairer for the citizen. Fines may not be imposed, as well as restrictions on freedom.

If the suspect handed over all the drugs, helped find stash houses and revealed accomplices, he can avoid criminal liability. If these actions occurred after the arrest, the accused can only count on a reduced sentence.

Responsibility of minors for drugs

Responsibility of minors for drugs

Criminal liability of minors for drugs, according to the general rule, begins when they reach the age of 16 years. But in some cases, teenagers from 14 years of age can be brought to criminal liability (Article 20 of the Criminal Code, Part 2). The law clearly states for which crimes and at what age responsibility begins. For example, for the illegal production, storage, acquisition, transportation and sale of psychotropic or narcotic drugs, a criminal case can be opened against the offender only if he is already 16 years old (Article 228 of the Criminal Code), but for extortion or theft of drugs, responsibility begins with a 14-year-old age (Article 229).

Article for distribution of drugs by minors

Articles 228 and 229 provide for liability for crimes the distinctive feature of which is the subject of the attack: psychotropic and narcotic substances. There is a definition of which means are classified as prohibited, the production, storage and other manipulations of which are prosecuted in the manner prescribed by law.

Psychotropic substances are characterized by a powerful depressive or stimulating effect on the central nervous system and are of natural and synthetic origin. The term “narcotics” includes certain medications and special substances obtained from plants or synthetically, the specific effect of which is to stimulate, inhibit or excite the nervous system. The consequence of their consumption is drug addiction, leading to physical and moral degradation of the individual. Drug trafficking by minors is criminally prosecuted in Russia.

Possession of drugs by minors

Responsibility for possession of drugs by minors begins at the age of 16. Illegal acquisition and storage of narcotic drugs without the purpose of selling on a large scale entails, in accordance with Article 228 of the Criminal Code, punishment in the form of a fine of up to 40 thousand rubles, imprisonment for up to 3 years, or correctional labor for up to 2 years. The same acts on an especially large scale are punishable by imprisonment for a term of 3 to 10 years with or without a fine of up to 500 thousand rubles.

A person guilty of storing or purchasing drugs is released from punishment if he voluntarily surrenders the drugs and assists law enforcement agencies in solving the crime. The seizure of drugs during an arrest or investigation is not considered voluntary surrender.

Illegal possession is understood as the actual possession of psychotropic or narcotic drugs by a person who does not have legal grounds for it, regardless of the place and duration of storage.

Large size of a narcotic drug - exceeding 10 or more times the average single dose. Particularly large size - exceeding the average dose by 50 or more times. The size of average single doses of drugs is approved by the Government of the Russian Federation.

Distribution of drugs to minors

Distribution of drugs to minors is a crime falling under the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. Illegal acquisition, storage, production, shipment and transportation of narcotic drugs for the purpose of sale is punishable by imprisonment for a term of 4 to 8 years. The same acts committed on a large scale, repeatedly or by prior conspiracy by a group of persons are punishable by imprisonment for a term of 8-15 years. For the sale of drugs to minors, liability is imposed from the age of 16.

Illegal acquisition of a drug - buying it or taking possession of it in another way - exchange, receiving as a gift, on loan, in payment of a debt, appropriation of what was found, etc. Illegal acquisition of narcotic drugs also includes the collection of narcotic plants and their parts or crop residues after their cleaning in unprotected areas.

Illegal sale refers to distribution by sale, gift, loan or payment of debt, etc. Transportation of a drug from one place to another can be carried out by transportation by any type of transport or shipment - by mail, luggage, with the help of animals or birds. Responsibility for transportation occurs regardless of whether the person is the owner of the drug or has received it for temporary storage. Carrying drugs is usually considered a type of storage.

Underage drug use

Drug use by minors leads to administrative liability in accordance with Russian legislation. Art. 6.9 and 20.20 of the Code of Administrative Offenses provide for liability for the use of narcotic and psychotropic drugs without a doctor’s prescription. Under the same article, liability arises for the use of other dangerous or potentially dangerous intoxicating substances that have a destructive effect on the central nervous system. A guilty person over 16 years of age faces administrative arrest for 15 days or a fine of 4-5 thousand rubles. If a minor under the age of 16 is found guilty of drug use, then his parents or their substitutes are responsible by law. Article 20.22 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation provides for a fine of parents in the amount of 1500-2000 rubles. If a minor uses drugs, a criminal case is initiated to establish who sold the drugs to the child.

In order to timely detect the fact of drug use by children, parents and teachers should know the signs of drug intoxication in a teenager. These include:

• appearance and behavior reminiscent of alcohol intoxication in the absence of the smell of alcohol;
• causeless joy, talkativeness, aggressiveness and other emotions that do not correspond to the situation, indicating a change in consciousness;
• change in speech, its acceleration or, conversely, slowing down, slurred sounds;
• dilated or constricted pupils, cloudy eyes;
• pale skin;
• dry mouth or excessive salivation;
• lethargy, relaxation, slow movements or increased motor activity with excessive gesticulation;
• impaired coordination of movements.

Frequent changes in mood, increased irritability, depression, as well as increased absenteeism, cases of lying, theft, and other behavior previously unusual for a child may indicate drug use.

Reduction of punishment for drug possession: latest news

On the one hand, the law provides for severe punishment for the possession and sale of prohibited substances. On the other hand, there is a group of citizens who are seriously ill and in need of such drugs. This fact cannot be excluded.

For this case, there is a note in the article that says that you can hand over drugs of your own free will. This makes it possible to avoid punishment.

A law-abiding citizen can discover prohibited substances and bring them to the police, but it would be more correct to call a squad to the location of the prohibited substances. Employees of the executive body will be able to record the location and take fingerprints from the packages, which will greatly facilitate the search for violators.

If the suspect answers yes when asked about possession of illegal drugs when he is arrested, he will still have to appear in court.

If a drug addict decides to stop using illegal drugs, he can voluntarily take them to the police, thereby freeing himself from criminal liability. In this case, a decision is made to replace the punishment with treatment of the citizen for addiction.

You can avoid liability only in case of voluntary surrender of drugs or if a disease associated with addiction is discovered. A citizen will not be able to avoid punishment by notifying the authority about his addiction, because long-term treatment.

After rehabilitation, the suspect will be under surveillance for several more years. If new violations are discovered, he will be prosecuted.

Turning yourself in will also help mitigate the punishment. The legislation also provides for a special procedure that requires certain attention and compliance with certain rules.

Who can be punished for fake news about coronavirus?

The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, in its Review of judicial practice in resolving disputes related to the application of legislation to combat coronavirus (approved by the Presidium of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation on April 30, 2020), recognized that not all fakes should be held accountable by citizens under the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

Thus, criminal liability arises precisely for the dissemination of knowingly false information about coronavirus under the guise of reliable information. The following may indicate that false information is being made credible:

• links to competent sources and research;
• links to supposedly reliable statistics;
• references to non-existent laws and regulations;
• links to statements by public figures, etc.

Also, giving fakes the appearance of reliable information will be evidenced by the use of fake documents, video and audio recordings, or documents and recordings related to specific events.

Another prerequisite for criminal prosecution is awareness of the unreliability of disseminated information. Responsibility for fake news about coronavirus comes only in cases where an individual knows for certain that he is disseminating false information.

If a citizen reposts false information on his page, the objectivity of which he does not doubt, he will not bear responsibility. It will be considered that he himself acted under the influence of delusion and had no malicious intent to commit a crime.