Ala. Code
Code of Alabama

Ala. Code § 20-2-2 (2026)

Definitions.

✓ official Alabama Legislature (ALISON) text, current July 2026
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When used in this chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the following meanings, respectively, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

(1) ADMINISTER. The direct application of a controlled substance, whether by injection, inhalation, ingestion, or any other means, to the body of a patient or research subject by:

a. A practitioner or, in his or her presence, his or her authorized agent.

b. The patient or research subject at the direction and in the presence of the practitioner.

(2) AGENT. An authorized person who acts on behalf of or at the direction of a manufacturer, distributor, or dispenser. The term does not include a common or contract carrier, public warehouseman, or employee of the carrier or warehouseman.

(3) CERTIFYING BOARDS. The State Board of Medical Examiners, the State Board of Health, the State Board of Pharmacy, the State Board of Dental Examiners, the State Board of Podiatry, and the State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners.

(4) CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE. A drug, substance, or immediate precursor in Schedules I through V of Article 2 of this chapter.

(5) COUNTERFEIT SUBSTANCE. Substances which, or the container or labeling of which, without authorization, bears the trademark, trade name, or other identifying mark, imprint, number, or device or any likeness thereof of a manufacturer, distributor, or dispenser other than the person who in fact manufactured, distributed, or dispensed the substance.

(6) DELIVER or DELIVERY. The actual, constructive, or attempted transfer from one person to another of a controlled substance, whether or not there is an agency relationship.

(7) DISPENSE. To deliver a controlled substance to an ultimate user or research subject by or pursuant to the lawful order of a practitioner, including the prescribing, administering, packaging, labeling, or compounding necessary to prepare the substance for that delivery.

(8) DISPENSER. A practitioner who dispenses.

(9) DISTRIBUTE. To deliver other than by administering or dispensing a controlled substance.

(10) DISTRIBUTOR. A person who distributes.

(11) DRUG.

a. Substances recognized as drugs in the official United States pharmacopoeia, official homeopathic pharmacopoeia of the United States, or official national formulary or any supplement to any of them.

b. Substances intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease in man or animals.

c. Substances (other than food) intended to affect the structure or any function of the body of man or animals.

d. Substances intended for use as a component of any article specified in paragraphs a., b., or c. Such term does not include devices or their components, parts, or accessories.

(12) IMMEDIATE PRECURSOR. A substance that the State Board of Pharmacy has found to be and by rule designates as being the principal compound commonly used or produced primarily for use and that is an immediate chemical intermediary used or likely to be used in the manufacture of a controlled substance, the control of which is necessary to prevent, curtail, or limit manufacture.

(13) MANUFACTURE. The production, preparation, propagation, compounding, conversion, or processing of a controlled substance, either directly or indirectly, by extraction from substances of natural origin or independently by means of chemical synthesis or by a combination of extraction and chemical synthesis, and includes any packaging or repackaging of the substance or labeling or relabeling of its container; except, that this term does not include the preparation, compounding, packaging, or labeling of a controlled substance by either of the following:

a. A practitioner as an incident to his or her administering or dispensing of a controlled substance in the course of his or her professional practice.

b. A practitioner or his or her authorized agent under his or her supervision for the purpose of or as an incident to research, teaching, or chemical analysis and not for sale.

(14) MARIJUANA. All parts of the plant Cannabis sativa L., whether growing or not, the seeds thereof, the resin extracted from any part of the plant, and every compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of the plant, its seeds or resin. The term does not include the mature stalks of the plant, fiber produced from the stalks, oil or cake made from the seeds of the plant, any other compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of the mature stalks (except the resin extracted therefrom), fiber, oil or cake, or the sterilized seed of the plant which is incapable of germination. Marijuana does not include hemp as defined in Section 2-8-381.

(15) NARCOTIC DRUG. Any of the following, whether produced directly or indirectly by extraction from substances of vegetable origin or independently by means of chemical synthesis or by a combination of extraction and chemical synthesis:

a. Opium and opiate and any salt, compound, derivative, or preparation of opium or opiate.

b. Any salt, compound, isomer, derivative, or preparation thereof which is chemically equivalent or identical with any of the substances referred to in paragraph a., but not including the isoquinoline alkaloids of opium.

c. Opium poppy and poppy straw.

d. Coca leaves and any salt, compound, derivative, or preparation of coca leaves and any salt, compound, isomer, derivative, or preparation thereof which is chemically equivalent or identical with any of these substances, but not including decocainized coca leaves or extractions of coca leaves that do not contain cocaine or ecgonine.

(16) OPIATE. Any substance having an addiction-forming or addiction-sustaining liability similar to morphine or being capable of conversion into a drug having addiction-forming or addiction-sustaining liability. The term does not include, unless specifically designated as controlled under this section, the dextrorotatory isomer of 3-methoxy-n-methylmorphinan and its salts (dextromethorphan). Such term does include its racemic and levorotatory forms.

(17) OPIUM POPPY. The plant of the species Papaver somniferum L., except its seeds.

(18) PERSON. Individual, corporation, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, or association or any other legal entity.

(19) POPPY STRAW. All parts, except the seeds, of the opium poppy, after mowing.

(20) PRACTITIONER.

a. A physician, dentist, veterinarian, scientific investigator, or other person licensed, registered, or otherwise permitted to distribute, dispense, conduct research with respect to, or to administer a controlled substance in the course of professional practice or research in this state.

b. A pharmacy, hospital, or other institution licensed, registered, or otherwise permitted to distribute, dispense, conduct research with respect to, or to administer a controlled substance in the course of professional practice or research in this state.

(21) PRODUCTION. The manufacture, planting, cultivation, growing, or harvesting of a controlled substance.

(22) STATE. When applied to a part of the United States, the term includes any state, district, commonwealth, territory, insular possession thereof, and any area subject to the legal authority of the United States of America.

(23) ULTIMATE USER. A person who lawfully possesses a controlled substance for his or her own use or for the use of a member of his or her household or for administering to an animal owned by him or her or by a member of his or her household.

(Acts 1971, No. 1407, p. 2378, §101; Acts 1976, No. 699, p. 965, §1; Acts 1989, No. 89-242, p. 342, §3; Act 2001-971, 3rd Sp. Sess., p. 873, §2; Act 2016-293, p. 730, §5; Act 2019-502, §1.)

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 34 cases (5 in the last 5 years), 1981–2026 · leading case: Ankrom v. State, 152 So. 3d 397 (Ala. 2013).
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Ankrom v. State, 152 So. 3d 397 (Ala. 2013). · cites it 2× “Code 1975, § 26-15-2(2), which refers to Ala.Code 1975, § 20-2-2(4), which in turn refers to, among other Code sections, Ala.”
Ex Parte Presley, 587 So. 2d 1022 (Ala. 1991). · cites it 4× “2 pounds of that substance, as it is defined in Ala.Code 1975, § 20-2-2(15): "Marihuana. All parts of the plant Cannabis sativa L.”
Ex Parte Coker, 575 So. 2d 43 (Ala. 1991). · cites it 2× “Any building, warehouse, physician's office, hospital, pharmaceutical house or other structure used in whole or in part for the sale, storage and/or dispensing of any controlled substance as defined in section 20-2-2 as amended. I, Willis V. Bell, Legislative Reference Service,…”
Collier v. State, 413 So. 2d 396 (Ala. Crim. App. 1981). · cites it 2× “Alabama Code Section 20-2-2(15) (1975) defines marihuana as follows: "All parts of the plant Cannabis sativa L.”
Ex Parte Roberts, 662 So. 2d 229 (Ala. 1995). · cites it 2× “§ 20-2-2(15); see also, Ex parte Presley, 587 So.”
Presley v. State, 587 So. 2d 1016 (Ala. Crim. App. 1990). · cites it 7× “Marijuana, or “marihuana,” is defined in Ala.Code 1975, § 20-2-2(15), as: “All parts of the plant Cannabis sativa L.”
Walker v. State, 428 So. 2d 139 (Ala. Crim. App. 1982). “Section 20-2-2. As used in the Controlled Substances Act, "furnishes" means to provide or supply and connotes a transfer of possession.”
Ellis v. State, 428 So. 2d 142 (Ala. Crim. App. 1982). · cites it 3× “1982), we stated: “It is well established that the burden is upon the appellant to establish and bring himself within any exclusion which is found not in the enacting clause defining a crime but rather in a subsequent clause or statute. Specifically, he must establish that the…”
Ex Parte Colbert, 615 So. 2d 1218 (Ala. 1992). · cites it 6× “Colbert appealed, maintaining among other things that "the prosecution failed as a matter of law to prove that [he] attempted to manufacture MDMA where the proof showed an attempt to manufacture MDMA for [his] own use and where the definition of manufacture [Ala.Code 1975, §…”
Campbell v. State, 479 So. 2d 1294 (Ala. Crim. App. 1985). · cites it 2× “Specifically, he must establish that the marihuana seized from his residence contained excludable matter falling within the definition of such under § 20-2-2(15)...." The judgment of the trial court should be affirmed.”
Tolbert v. State, 552 So. 2d 164 (Ala. Crim. App. 1989). · cites it 2× “" Ala.Code, § 20-2-2(15) (1975). Joseph Gary Wallace, a criminalist with the Department of Forensic Sciences, testified that he examined all of the plant material in State's Exhibit # 9 and determined that the plant material was marijuana.”
Bohannon v. State, 564 So. 2d 859 (Ala. Crim. App. 1988). · cites it 2× “2 pounds of marijuana, as the term is defined in § 20-2-2(15). Pursuant to Ex parte Bohannon, we reverse Bohannon’s conviction for trafficking.”
Show all 34 citing cases →
— Ala. Code § 20-2-2(13) — 1 case
Adams v. State, 124 So. 3d 750 (Ala. Crim. App. 2013).
— Ala. Code § 20-2-2(14) — 2 cases
Ex Parte Colbert, 615 So. 2d 1218 (Ala. 1992). “Colbert appealed, maintaining among other things that "the prosecution failed as a matter of law to prove that [he] attempted to manufacture MDMA where the proof showed an attempt to manufacture MDMA for [his] own use and where the definition of manufacture [Ala.Code 1975, §…”
Darryl Bain v. State of Alabama (Appeal from Tuscaloosa Circuit Court: CC-23-379) (Ala. Crim. App. 2024).
— Ala. Code § 20-2-2(15) — 17 cases
Ex Parte Presley, 587 So. 2d 1022 (Ala. 1991). “2 pounds of that substance, as it is defined in Ala.Code 1975, § 20-2-2(15): "Marihuana. All parts of the plant Cannabis sativa L.”
Collier v. State, 413 So. 2d 396 (Ala. Crim. App. 1981). “Alabama Code Section 20-2-2(15) (1975) defines marihuana as follows: "All parts of the plant Cannabis sativa L.”
Ex Parte Roberts, 662 So. 2d 229 (Ala. 1995). “§ 20-2-2(15); see also, Ex parte Presley, 587 So.”
Presley v. State, 587 So. 2d 1016 (Ala. Crim. App. 1990). “Marijuana, or “marihuana,” is defined in Ala.Code 1975, § 20-2-2(15), as: “All parts of the plant Cannabis sativa L.”
Ellis v. State, 428 So. 2d 142 (Ala. Crim. App. 1982). “1982), we stated: “It is well established that the burden is upon the appellant to establish and bring himself within any exclusion which is found not in the enacting clause defining a crime but rather in a subsequent clause or statute. Specifically, he must establish that the…”
— Ala. Code § 20-2-2(16) — 1 case
Patterson v. State, 6 So. 3d 35 (Ala. Crim. App. 2008).
— Ala. Code § 20-2-2(19) — 1 case
Evers v. State, 434 So. 2d 804 (Ala. Crim. App. 1982).
— Ala. Code § 20-2-2(3) — 1 case
Cochran v. Alabama Bd. of Med. Examiners, 159 So. 3d 735 (Ala. Civ. App. 2013).
— Ala. Code § 20-2-2(4) — 2 cases
Ankrom v. State, 152 So. 3d 397 (Ala. 2013). “Code 1975, § 26-15-2(2), which refers to Ala.Code 1975, § 20-2-2(4), which in turn refers to, among other Code sections, Ala.”
Kailing (N.D. Ala. 2026).
— Ala. Code § 20-2-2(5) — 1 case
Wells v. State, 93 So. 3d 155 (Ala. Crim. App. 2011).
— Ala. Code § 20-2-2(6) — 1 case
State v. Hankins, 155 So. 3d 1043 (Ala. Crim. App. 2013).
— Ala. Code § 20-2-2(8) — 1 case
Evers v. State, 434 So. 2d 804 (Ala. Crim. App. 1982).
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