When most people think of illegal drugs, they think of marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and the like. However, there has been a significant increase in the abuse of another kind of controlled substance: prescription drugs. One of the great dangers of prescription drugs is that people can get hooked on them. Those who have suffered tremendous pain after an accident may get used to the sensation they feel after taking their prescribed medicine, and may be desperate to acquire the pills long after their physician has stopped prescribing them.
In the state of Florida, it is illegal for a person to be in possession of prescription drugs without permission from a doctor. The penalties for breaking this law are severe. Conviction on prescription fraud carries a sentence of up to 5 years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
According to Florida law, a person has committed prescription drug fraud if it is proven that they have:
-Forged prescriptions
-Altered prescriptions to increase the amount to be obtained
-Obtained prescriptions from multiple doctors
-Stolen blank prescription pads
If you have been arrested for prescription fraud, your first call should be to a lawyer. Police and prosecutors are especially keen on getting convictions on this crime. They have used the legitimate public concern over the surge in illegal prescription drug possession and trafficking to maintain their arrest and conviction rates. The authorities have a number of tricks and techniques to get you to say something that may incriminate you. That is why you should exercise your Fifth Amendment right to remain silent and say nothing until your lawyer arrives.
Once there, your lawyer will advise you on the questions you have to answer and counsel you on how to answer them. If the arrest has shaken you up and made it impossible for you to think clearly, then you need not say anything. Your lawyer can speak for you.
William Hanlon criminal lawyer in Clearwater FL has the skill, dedication, experience, and toughness to represent you. One of the first actions your lawyer will take is to look at the evidence the police have against you. If the evidence passes a certain legal threshold, then they will be able to take the case forward and you will need to start putting together your defense.
Your lawyer will be eager to hear your side of the story. They will want to know all that happened since the police first made contact with you. This will be the starting point of your defense strategy.
The overzealousness of the police may be the best defense you have. If the pharmacist you went to determines that your prescription is not legitimate, they may call the police straightaway. Police have been known in these situations to instruct the pharmacist to fill the prescription. They may have then gone to the pharmacy and waited for you to come out so they could arrest you.
It is illegal for a pharmacist to fill a prescription they know to be fraudulent, even if it is done at the behest of the police. It is likewise illegal for police officers to solicit people to commit crimes. If things played out in the sequence described above, your defense may be based on the fact that you were not arrested in a lawful manner.
No matter the particulars that led to your arrest, your lawyer will be able to put together the evidence and the relevant parts of law to formulate a strong and robust defense. Your lawyer will be able to point out shortcomings of evidence, weakness in argument, and impropriety of investigative procedure in the prosecution’s case. This can lead to an outcome that is favorable to you
