Possessory Offenses (From Drug Abuse and the Law Sourcebook, P 6.1-6.54, 1988, Gerald F Uelmen and Victor G Haddox, -- See NCJ-118803)

• NCJ Number: 118807
• Author(s): G F Uelmen; V G Haddox
• Date Published: 1988
• Length: 76 pages
• Sale Source: Clark Boardman Company, Ltd
• Publication Type: Training (Aid/Material)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This chapter examines elements of the crime of drug possession as they relate to the defense and prosecution of such a charge.

Abstract

The "elements" of a crime must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt by the prosecution. The elements of drug possession include control over a usable quantity of the substance together with knowledge of its presence and knowledge that it is a controlled substance. These elements can be proven by direct evidence. More often, however, proof of some or all of the elements of drug possession can be proven by circumstantial evidence, whereby one fact is inferred from another based on logic and human experience. Sometimes an "inference" is given the force of a statutory presumption, which means the court will instruct the jury that one fact can be inferred from another beyond a reasonable doubt. The jury is not required to draw the inference, however. The defense attempts to create a reasonable doubt as to whether one of the elements of drug possession exists by presenting an affirmative defense. An affirmative defense such as the defense of insanity must be proven by the defendant by a preponderance of the evidence.