Fourteen people were arrested this week in Utah in what law enforcement is calling a major drug trafficking bust. The individuals were believed to be making at least $300,000 a month dealing cocaine and heroin along the Wasatch Front.

Law enforcement officials reportedly found both cocaine and heroin when they made the arrests, as well as an unspecified amount of cash and guns. These alleged drug traffickers were mostly charged with investigation of drug possession with intent to distribute. It is possible to distribute an illegal drug, possess an illegal drug, or both.

Distribution involves producing, manufacturing or dispensing an illegal drug. It can also mean possessing with the intent to produce, manufacture or dispense. The type of substance being distributed determines the charge given to an accused person:

Schedule I or II drugs = second-degree felony
Schedule III or IV drugs = third-degree felony
Schedule V drugs = class A misdemeanor

The list of Scheduled drugs in Utah is quite extensive, so we haven’t listed them in their entirety.

Drug possession is classified as a crime when a person possesses a controlled substance illegally, i.e. without an authorized prescription. A forged prescription doesn’t make it okay, either. As with distribution, the type of drug possessed determines what level of crime a person is charged with. Incidentally, a person found possessing 100 pounds or more of marijuana is guilty of a second-degree felony.

If you have any questions concerning drug charges you’re facing, whether they involve drug trafficking or other drug involvement, you should contact a Utah criminal defense attorney immediately. An attorney can advise you on everything from whether or not to make a statement to how to behave if your case goes before a jury. Let a criminal defense attorney fight for you in court.