What Should I Know About Fentanyl Trafficking Charges in NYS?

The opioid crisis continues to take thousands of lives each year, and the newest target for law enforcement agencies and legislatures is fentanyl. Punishments for just possessing this drug are harsh, but the penalties for a fentanyl trafficking charge can be far more severe. If you are facing such a charge, you need to take it seriously and begin forming a defense against it. You should contact a New City drug trafficking attorney who is ready to help you poke holes in the prosecution’s case and protect your rights.

What Are the Punishments for Fentanyl Trafficking?

Because fentanyl is being specifically targeted by law enforcement, you can be sure that you will not get off lightly if charged with trafficking. Even if you had a clean record before this, a first-time offense for carrying fentanyl can result in:

• A jail sentence of five to 40 years
• Fines of up to $5 million

Fines can rise even higher for groups that are charged with trafficking or anyone who has a criminal record. If you are carrying enough fentanyl to look like you could be selling or distributing, punishments are even more severe. You could be looking at:

• 10 years to life in prison
• Fines of up to $10 million

You could also be hit with other charges on top of this, including state charges of conspiracy and federal charges.

Not everyone deserves to be locked up for years or rendered destitute by fines due to a mistake or the actions of an overzealous prosecutor or police officer. You have the right to defend yourself against these charges and your attorney can help you do that.

How Can a Drug Trafficking Attorney Help Me?

Your experienced drug trafficking attorney will do everything that they can to defend you from these charges. Usually, our first approach is to attempt and get the evidence against you thrown out by questioning the search that turned up the fentanyl. We can:

• Say that there was no probable cause for a stop, if fentanyl was found in your car at a traffic stop
• Say that fentanyl found in your home cannot be used as evidence because the authorities did not have a warrant to search your home

If your constitutional rights were violated in a search, the products of that search have to be thrown out. We can also defend you by saying that:

• You reasonably believed that you had a prescription for the drugs
• You did not know drugs were in your possession
• You had a good-faith belief that the drugs were legal

Every case is different, but we will find the best possible strategy for defending you.

Schedule Your Legal Consultation Today

If you have been charged with fentanyl trafficking, you cannot simply hope that it all works out for the best. Contact the Law Office of Kevin T. Conway and schedule a consultation. We can look at the facts of your case and tell you more about how we can support you as you contend with these serious criminal charges.