O.C.G.A. § 16-12-243 (2019)
(Effective October 1, 2024.) Inspection of seller or distributor locations
The Commissioner of Agriculture, acting through special agents or enforcement officers, and other law enforcement agencies may conduct random, unannounced inspections at locations where consumable hemp products are sold or distributed to ensure compliance with this article. Individuals under the age of 21 years may be enlisted to test compliance with this article; provided, however, that such individuals may be used to test compliance with this article only if the testing is conducted under the direct supervision of such special agents or enforcement officers of the Department of Agriculture or a peace officer and if written parental consent for such individuals has been provided. Any other use of individuals under the age of 21 years to test compliance with this article or any other similar provisions shall be unlawful, and the person or persons responsible for such use shall be subject to the penalties prescribed in this article.
History
Code 1981, § 16-12-243, enacted by Ga.
L. 2024, p. 455, § 18/SB 494, effective October 1, 2024.
CHAPTER 13 CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES Sec.
Article 1 General Provisions Sec.
Drug related objects. Conditional discharge for possession of controlled substances as first offense and certain nonviolent property crimes; dismissal of charges; restitution to victims. Penalty for abandonment of dangerous drugs, poisons, or controlled substances. Approval by Food and Drug Administration as prerequisite to sale of controlled substances and dangerous drugs. Immunity from arrest or prosecution for persons seeking medical assistance for drug overdose.
Article 2 Regulation of Controlled Substances PART 1 SCHEDULES, OFFENSES, AND PENALTIES
Short title. Definitions. Administration of article; standards and schedules. Nomenclature for controlled substances. Establishment of schedules of controlled substances. Schedule I. Schedule II. Schedule III. Exempt anabolic steroids. Schedule IV. Schedule V. Nonnarcotic substances excluded from schedules of controlled substances. Authority for exemption of
over-the-counter Schedule V controlled substances. Purchase, possession, manufacture, distribution, or sale of controlled substances or marijuana; penalties. Manufacture, delivery, distribution, possession, or sale of noncontrolled substances; civil forfeiture. Manufacture, distribution, or possession with intent to distribute of imitation controlled substances; civil forfeiture. Possession of substances containing ephedrine or pseudoephedrine; restrictions on sales of products containing those ingredients. Products containing pseudoephedrine. Possession of substances with intent to use or convey such substances for the manufacture of Schedule I or Schedule II controlled substances. Prohibition on purchase and sale of marijuana flavored products. Possession of a pill press, tableting machine, encapsulating machine, or other controlled substance counterfeiting materials. Trafficking in cocaine, illegal drugs, marijuana, or methamphetamine; penalties. Trafficking in ecstasy; sentencing; variation. Transactions in drug related objects; civil forfeiture; penalties. Transactions in drug related objects; evidence as to
Sec.
whether object is drug related; civil forfeiture; penalties. Possession and use of drug related objects. Use of communication facility in committing or facilitating commission of act which constitutes felony under chapter; penalty. Manufacturing, distributing, dispensing, or possessing controlled substances in, on, or near public or private schools. Manufacturing, distributing, dispensing, or possessing with intent to distribute controlled substance, marijuana, or counterfeit substance near park or housing project; establishment of drug-free zones. Manufacturing, distributing, dispensing, or possessing with intent to distribute controlled substance or marijuana in, on, or within drug-free commercial zone. Attempt or conspiracy to commit offense under this article. Promulgation of rules relating to registration and control of controlled substances; registration fees. General registration requirements. Factors considered in determining whether to register manufacturer or distributor. Grounds for suspending or revoking registration; disposition of controlled substances; notification to bureau. Procedure for denying, suspending, revoking, or limiting registration; automatic suspension. Manufacturers, distributors, and dispensers to maintain records of controlled substances.
Sec.
Distribution of Schedule I and II substances. Prescriptions. Unauthorized distribution and dispensation; refusal or failure to keep records; refusal to permit inspection; unlawfully maintaining structure or place; penalty. Unauthorized distribution; penalties. Penalties under other laws. Powers of enforcement personnel. Administrative inspections and warrants. Injunctions. Cooperative arrangements with federal and other state agencies. Declared items of contraband; forfeiture. Burden of proof; liability of enforcement officers in lawful performance of duties. Judicial review of administrative determinations, findings, and conclusions. Programs and research on prevention of abuse of controlled substances; confidentiality of research; exemption from penalties. [Reserved] Pending proceedings. Orders and rules promulgated prior to July 1, 1974. Weight or quantity of controlled substance or marijuana not essential element of offense. Construction of article. Penalty for violation of article; restitution to the state for cleanup of environmental hazards; other remedies. Opioids; notification of addictive risks. PART 2
PRESCRIPTION DRUG MONITORING PROGRAM DATA BASE
Program to record prescrip-
Sec.
tion information into electronic data base; administration and oversight. Funds for development and maintenance of program; granting of funds to dispensers. Information to include for each Schedule II, III, IV, or V controlled substance prescription; compliance. Privacy and confidentiality; use of data; security program. Electronic Database Review Advisory Committee; members; terms; officers; procedure; compensation. Rules and regulations. Liability; review of PDMP data when filling certain prescriptions; cause of action for civil damages. Violations; criminal penalties. Exceptions.
Prescribing or ordering dangerous drugs. Possession, manufacture, delivery, distribution, or sale of counterfeit substances. Violations. Article 4
Sale, Possession, Transfer, or Inhalation of Model Glue
“Model glue” defined. Intentional inhalation of model glue; application of article to anesthesia. Possession, sale, or transfer of model glue. Sale or transfer of model glue to minors. Maintenance of records of sales to minors. Effect of article on laws or ordinances of counties and municipalities. Penalty for violation of article; separate offenses. Article 5
Dangerous Drugs
Sanctions Against Licensed Persons for Offenses Involving Controlled Substances or Marijuana
Sec.
Article 3
Short title. Definition of terms. Dangerous drug. Sale, distribution, or possession of dangerous drugs. Revocation of dangerous drug permit; forfeiture. Labeling prescription containers of dangerous drugs. Written prescriptions for dangerous drugs; content; signature. Drugs to be kept in original container; exception. Use of fictitious name or false address when obtaining drugs. Applicability of article to practitioner of the healing arts. Obtaining or attempting to obtain dangerous drugs by fraud, forgery, or concealment of material fact.
Definitions. Notification of conviction of licensed individual to licensing authority; reinstatement of license; imposition of more stringent sanctions. Applicability of administrative procedures. Article as supplement to power of licensing authority. Period of applicability of article. Article 6 Kratom
(Effective until January 1, 2025.) Definition. (Effective January 1, 2025.) Definitions. (Effective until January 1, 2025.) Possession by indi-
Sec.
vidual under age 18; penalty. (Effective January 1, 2025.) Possession by individual under age 21; sale; penalty.
Annotations
Cross references. Requirement that certain wholesale distributors of controlled substances and dangerous drugs provide price and quantity information, § 26-4-115.1. Authority of director of investigation to retain narcotics agents on contractual basis, § 35-3-9. Suspension or termination of public employee convicted of drug offense, § 45-23-4. Ineligibility for public employment of person convicted of drug offense, § 45-23-5. Editor’s notes. By resolution (Ga. L. 1983, p. 590), the General Assembly directed the Composite State Board of Medical Examiners (now Georgia Composite Medical Board) to develop and adopt rules and regulations to curb the abuse of prescription amphetamine and amphetamine-like drugs for the treatment of obesity and
Sec.
(Effective until January 1, 2025.) Required labeling. (Effective January 1, 2025.) Content of kratom; required labeling.
other nonrelated acceptable medical treatments. By resolution (Ga. L. 1990, p. 985), the General Assembly created the Joint Steering Committee for the Georgia General Assembly’s Conference on Children of Cocaine and Substance Abuse. Administrative rules and regulations. Rules and Regulations for Drug Abuse Treatment and Education Programs, Official Compilation of the Rules and Regulations of the State of Georgia, Rules of Department of Community Health, Healthcare Facility Regulation, Rule 111-8-19-.01 et seq. Law reviews. For article, “A Report from the Front in the War on Drugs,” see 7 Georgia St. U.L. Rev. 1 (1990). For comment, “Solving the Problem of Prenatal Substance Abuse: An Analysis of Punitive and Rehabilitative Approaches,” see 39 Emory L.J. 1401 (1990).
JUDICIAL DECISIONS Evidence was insufficient to support conviction of possessing cocaine. - When (1) defendant’s only connection to cocaine that was found in a jacket was that the defendant picked up the jacket after the jacket had been lying outside on an air conditioner in close proximity to a juvenile who was suspected in drug transactions and an unidentified woman, and (2) there was no evidence as to who placed the jacket on the air conditioner, the evidence against the defendant was entirely circumstantial
and did not exclude every other hypothesis except guilt; therefore, the evidence was insufficient under former O.C.G.A. § 24-4-6 (see now O.C.G.A. § 24-14-6) to support the defendant’s conviction of possessing cocaine in violation of the Georgia Controlled Substances Act, O.C.G.A. § 16-13-20 et seq. Stephens v. State, 258 Ga. App. 774, 575 S.E.2d 661, 2002 Ga. App. LEXIS 1503 (2002), cert. denied, No. S03C0590, 2003 Ga. LEXIS 271 (Ga. Mar. 10, 2003).
RESEARCH REFERENCES Am. Jur. Proof of Facts. Entrapment to Commit
Narcotics
Offense, 12 POF2d 237. Injuries from Drugs, 7 POF3d 1.
Am. Jur. Trials. Defense of Narcotics Cases, 8 Am. Jur. Trials 573. ALR. Defense of necessity, duress, or coercion in prosecution for violation of state narcotics laws, 1 A.L.R.5th 938.
Illegal drugs or narcotics involved in alleged offense as subject to discovery by defendant under Rule 16 of Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, 109 A.L.R. Fed. 363.
ARTICLE 1 GENERAL PROVISIONS