Drug Charges in Alabama: Your Best Defense Starts With Elliott Owen Lipinsky

Facing a drug charge in Alabama can feel like the ground just shifted under your feet. Prosecutors take these cases seriously, and the statutes have sharp edges. The right lawyer matters. Clients across Selma, Montgomery, and West Alabama call Elliott Owen Lipinsky because he knows the law cold, moves fast to protect your rights, and builds a defense that can stand up in court and not just at the bargaining table.

What Alabama Can Charge You With

Alabama criminalizes a wide range of conduct tied to controlled substances. That includes possession of a controlled substance, possession of marijuana in two degrees, distribution and possession with intent to distribute, manufacturing, trafficking, sale to a minor, paraphernalia, and DUI drugs. The statutes are specific, and they carry real prison exposure and heavy fines, with extra penalties based on weight, location, and prior record.

Possession and Marijuana Offenses

Unlawful possession of a controlled substance other than marijuana is a Class D felony. A conviction requires proof that you knowingly possessed a Schedule I through V substance or obtained it by fraud, such as altering a prescription. The classification matters because Class D felonies have their own sentencing rules and collateral consequences.

Marijuana has its own framework. Possession for personal use only is a second-degree offense and is charged as a Class A misdemeanor. First degree covers possession for other than personal use, or personal use after a prior second degree conviction. First degree is usually charged as a felony under the statute. The details of personal use, previous record, and quantity will shape the charge and the strategy.

Distribution and Possession With Intent

Distribution covers selling, furnishing, giving away, delivering, or distributing a controlled substance. It is a Class B felony. Alabama law also recognizes possession with intent to distribute based on weight thresholds for specific drugs, even if no sale is observed. For example, more than eight grams of cocaine or methamphetamine can support an intent charge. At the same time, particular heroin or fentanyl mixtures trigger lower thresholds. Possession with intent remains a Class B felony, but the proof and the weight ranges give the defense room to challenge.

Suppose the State claims the distribution happened on a school campus or within three miles of it, or within three miles of a public housing project. In that case, the court must add an extra five years that cannot be suspended or probated. If an adult distributes to a minor, the charge jumps to a Class A felony with no probation. Location and age turn a tough case into an even tougher one, which is why early investigation is vital.

Manufacturing Charges

Manufacturing in the second degree covers unlawfully manufacturing a Schedule I through V substance or possessing precursor chemicals with the intent to manufacture. It is a Class B felony. Suppose the State proves the second-degree offense plus two or more aggravators, such as possession of a firearm or use of booby traps. In that case, the charge becomes first-degree manufacturing, a Class A felony. The line between first and second degree depends on facts that the defense can test through motions and discovery.

Trafficking and Weight Thresholds

Weight or dosage unit counts drive trafficking. The statute treats trafficking as a Class A felony for sentencing purposes, with mandatory minimum prison terms and hefty fines that scale up with quantity. Key thresholds include more than 2.2 pounds of cannabis, 28 grams or more of cocaine, 28 grams or more of methamphetamine or amphetamine, and 4 grams or more of heroin or other listed opiates. Alabama also enhanced fentanyl trafficking. One gram or more of fentanyl triggers trafficking with steep step-ups at 2, 4, and 8 grams. A firearm in a trafficking case adds five years on top of everything else. These thresholds are technical, which makes precise lab work, chain of custody, and independent analysis essential to your defense.

Paraphernalia and DUI Drugs

Paraphernalia charges target items used to grow, prepare, ingest, or package drugs. They can be charged as misdemeanors and can escalate based on the circumstances. DUI drugs is separate and focuses on whether a driver was under the influence of a controlled substance to a degree that rendered safe driving impossible. That is an impairment standard, not a lab number standard, so the defense turns on the stop, the field evaluations, the blood or urine testing, and the officer’s observations.

How Elliott Lipinsky Attacks These Cases

Drug prosecutions often rise or fall on two questions. Did the police find the drugs lawfully, and can the State prove you possessed them? Elliott challenges the stop, the search warrant, the consent, the vehicle or home entry, and the seizure. He scrutinizes the chain of custody and the lab methods. He also targets constructive possession, which requires evidence of control and intent, not just proximity. Alabama courts have repeatedly held that mere presence near contraband is not enough. Those rulings give a strong defense foothold when the State relies on weak inferences.

Weight and location require equal focus. Elliott pushes for complete discovery on laboratory protocols and sample handling. He demands surveillance, maps, and measuring records when the State claims a school or housing zone enhancement. He examines whether the State’s alleged intent to distribute is supported by credible facts or only by a scale reading without context. Sentencing exposure also gets early attention, including how the Alabama split-sentence statute, the felony class ranges, and the Demand Reduction Assessment Act actually apply to your case.

What Conviction Exposure Really Looks Like

Felony classes carry set ranges. Class A can reach life, Class B runs up to twenty years, Class C up to ten years, and Class D up to five years. Alabama courts can impose split sentences within statutory limits in many cases, and drug convictions usually carry an extra mandatory assessment that can sometimes be reduced with approved treatment. The law is complicated enough that a one-page sentencing chart will not tell you where you truly stand. A careful review of your history, the charge, any enhancements, and local sentencing standards is the only honest way to estimate risk.

Why Clients Across Alabama Choose Elliott Owen Lipinsky

If you are serious about your defense, you want a lawyer who treats your case like a trial from day one. Elliott does that. He preserves body-cam and surveillance immediately, serves preservation letters to stop evidence from disappearing, interviews witnesses. At the same time, memories are fresh, and lines up independent experts when the lab work is the battleground. He pushes back on school zone and housing project add-ons when the map does not hold up. He brings the facts to the judge in apparent, forceful motions and puts the State to its burden in every hearing. That is how leverage is created and how cases are won or resolved on your terms.

What To Do Right Now

Do not talk to the police without counsel. Save receipts and prescriptions. Do not post about your case. Call The Law Offices of Elliott Owen Lipinsky as soon as possible. The sooner you call, the more we can do.