Out of all the states in the union, Texas has some of the strictest drug possession laws and penalties. While other places have taken a lenient view of drugs, especially marijuana, Texas is a place where you may face stiff fines and long prison sentences for possessing drugs.
The penalties for drug possession in Texas vary depending on the type of drug in question. According to the Texas Health and Safety Code, the state separates controlled substances into four different categories, plus an additional category specifically for marijuana.
Marijuana possession may lead to jail time
If you get a conviction for possessing marijuana, the severity of your sentence depends on how much marijuana you had. For example, a conviction for possessing less than two ounces of marijuana is a Class B misdemeanor. Possessing between 4 ounces and 5 pounds is a felony that may lead to time in a state jail. If you possess thousands of pounds of marijuana, you may end up with a sentence of life in jail and a $50,000 fine.
Convictions for other types of drug possession lead to harsh sentences
While marijuana has its own category as a controlled substance in Texas, other drugs fall into one of four designations. For example, drugs in Penalty Group 1 include opiates and Methamphetamine. A conviction for possessing less than 1 gram of a Group 1 drug may lead to up to two years in jail and thousands of dollars in fines. Penalties for possession of drugs in other groups are similar. However, there is a higher threshold for drugs in Group 3 (stimulants, some narcotics, and depressants); you may only get a Class A misdemeanor conviction for possessing up to 28 grams of these drugs.
