Although California recently legalized recreational and medical marijuana, law enforcers are still stringent about its sale, transportation, use, and cultivation. Being arrested and charged with a drug crime in Bakersfield can be embarrassing, and you risk facing severe charges that could result in incarceration, fines, community service, immigration repercussions, and collateral consequences. The California Criminal Lawyer Group understands what is at stake and can work aggressively to achieve the best possible case outcome. We have many years of criminal defense representation experience and can use our knowledge to fight for your future, life, freedom, and rights. We recognize that fighting your criminal charges effectively requires understanding the case facts, and we have prepared a comprehensive article on various California marijuana laws.

Possessing Marijuana for Personal Use

In 2016, California voters initiated Proposition 64, which legalized persons over 21 to possess small quantities of bhang for personal and recreational use. Adults aged 21 and above can legally possess concentrated hashish of up to eight grams.

However, HS 11357 constitutes a criminal offense to:

  • Possess an amount exceeding these quantities.
  • For a minor below 21 to have any marijuana amount.
  • Possess marijuana at a K–12 school.

Possessing at Least an Ounce of Marijuana

Simple possession exceeding 28.5 grams of dried marijuana or eight grams of hashish is a misdemeanor. The criminal charge is punishable by a six-month county jail sentence and a $500 fine.

However, suppose you are a minor charged with simply possessing excessive quantities of marijuana. In that case, you will face a California infraction requiring you to complete four hours of drug education or counseling and up to 10 hours of community service for 60 days.

Possession of Concentrated Cannabis by a Minor

HS 11357 also makes it illegal for an individual under 21 to possess any quantity of marijuana unless per the state’s medical marijuana law.

Its penalties are as follows:

  • Penalties not exceeding $100 if you are above the age of majority.
  • Four hours of drug education and performing community service for ten hours if you are a first-time offender.

If you are below 18 and have a previous conviction, you will face six hours of drug counseling and twenty hours of community service.

Pot Possession on School Grounds

Finally, HS 11357(c) prohibits the possession of concentrated cannabis inside or on the grounds of a K-12 school while the institution is open after school programs or during school hours.

It is a California misdemeanor for an adult. A first-time offense attracts a maximum fine of $250. For a minor below 18, the crime is an infraction that carries drug treatment and community service.

California's Medical Cannabis Laws

Medical marijuana is a term used to refer to the use, possession, and cultivation of marijuana for medical purposes. Individuals who are terminally ill or undergo painful or long-term signs linked to specific diseases, like epilepsy, glaucoma, AIDS, and cancer, mostly use medical marijuana as a treatment or pain alleviation method. As a general truth, medical cannabis is the same as standard marijuana.

Medical hashish laws are constantly changing and differ with geographical locations. Federal and state laws make it an offense to consume, grow, sell, or possess cannabis. According to the United States Supreme Court, it is illegal to use, sell, or possess cannabis, even for medical purposes.

An increasing number of states have authorized cannabis for medical and recreational use, thereby avoiding criminal penalties for physicians who prescribe the drug or the sick who use it within the limits specified by state law.

California was the first to authorize medical cannabis in 1996 when it passed Proposition 215, also called the Compassionate Use Act. The law permits the possession and growing of cannabis for medical use following a doctor’s prescription. Twenty years later, Proposition 64 was passed, authorizing recreational cannabis. Although recreational cannabis is authorized, California’s cannabis laws remain effective for public health and safety.

The strict amounts for recreational cannabis use do not permit any abuse. Medical cannabis consumers, with a physician's recommendation, can possess as much marijuana as their sickness requires.

In addition, those below 21 years can use and grow medical cannabis with a physician’s prescription and, if below 18 years, a guardian's approval.

Who is Authorized to Use Medical Cannabis?

Under the Compassionate Use Act (CUA), an eligible patient can lawfully have a medical cannabis ID card if a physician has prescribed it or allowed marijuana to treat a severe medical condition.

Defining a Caregiver

You fit into the category of a primary caregiver based on the following criteria:

  • The patient assigned you that role, and
  • You are consistently in charge of the patients, health, housing, or safety.

What are Medical Cannabis Patients and Caregivers Authorized to Do?

Medical cannabis laws in California legally allow the possession, growing, transporting, and administering of medical cannabis if the cannabis is intended for:

  • The patient’s use and
  • The dosage of cannabis is reasonably associated with the patient's ongoing medical needs.

Under no circumstances, nonetheless, can they

  • Sell cannabis, or
  • Possess or grow beyond the reasonable amount linked to the patient's medical needs.

Medical Cannabis Dispensaries

California regulation authorizes medical marijuana distribution through the following non-profits:

  • Medical hashish dispensaries.
  • Cooperatives.
  • Collectives.

Strict requirements are in place in California for the operation of hashish dispensaries. However, lawfully operating dispensaries can offer medical marijuana to patients and primary caregivers with an ID card at a cost.

After the passing of Proposition 64, it is unclear whether medical cannabis dispensaries will still operate constantly or will be integrated into the newly created market for authorized recreational marijuana.

Federal Cannabis Law

Title 21 of the United States Code is the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).

Under this federal act, marijuana is classified as a Schedule 1 controlled substance. The government acknowledges that it has the potential to be highly abused and has no recognized medical purpose at present.

The CSA supersedes California law. Therefore, when you offer for sale, cultivate, transport, or gift someone cannabis, you break federal law by obeying California’s medical or recreational cannabis legalization law.

Federal Law Penalties and Sentencing

Bhang-related offenses are severely punished under federal law. A few examples will demonstrate this fact.

A first-time offender for simple possession of cannabis sativa will:

  • Pay a fine of one thousand dollars, and
  • Spend a year in federal prison.

Cultivation, possession for sale, and sales of less than fifty pounds of cannabis or fifty plants carry the following penalties:

  • A maximum of five years in federal prison, and
  • A fine of no more than $250,000.

Fines and incarceration periods increase if you are convicted of huge cannabis quantities or subsequent crimes.

Additionally, once convicted of a federal drug crime, you may even be instructed to refund the federal government its fair costs incurred during the investigation and prosecution of the charge.

When Do Federal Charges For Marijuana Occur?

For practicality, you are not likely to be charged under the federal legal code if your use or cultivation of marijuana is for your own use, especially in compliance with Prop 64.

Does Federal Law Apply to Federal Property Located in California?

Yes, users of medical and recreational cannabis should understand that federal law, instead of California law, is in effect on federal property within the state.

The federal property includes:

  • Federal buildings,
  • Post offices,
  • Public airports,
  • Federal courthouses and
  • National parks.

If a violation of the cannabis law occurs on federal property, it may be punishable under federal law.

In addition, federal fines are mainly more significant for drug offenses on federal property than for others that occur elsewhere but are prosecuted under federal law.

Marijuana Cultivation Law

HS 11358 (cultivation of pot), as amended by Prop 64, permits most persons aged 21 and above to grow a maximum of six (6) cannabis plants. Growers should cultivate cannabis indoors, except where growing outside is allowed under local laws.

No matter the type of cultivation, whether outdoors or indoors, the cannabis herbs should be grown:

  • In a safe location and
  • Inaccessible to children.

A person below 21 who cultivates any quantity of cannabis commits a California infraction. If you are a minor, the court will order you to participate in drug education and community service. A defendant aged 18 but below 21 who illegally grows cannabis will be fined not more than $100.

In addition, for adults, growing more than six marijuana plants remains an offense. If you plant, grow, cultivate, harvest, or process a quantity exceeding six living marijuana herbs, you shall be prosecuted with a California misdemeanor and can face:

  • A six-month county jail sentence.
  • A fine not exceeding five hundred dollars.

Cultivating at least six cannabis herbs can be prosecuted as a felony if you:

  • Have a severe violent felony on your criminal record.
  • Are a registered sex offender.
  • Have more than two previous convictions for growing over six cannabis plants.
  • Broke specific California environmental regulations through marijuana cultivation ventures.

Possession of Marijuana for Sale

Prop 64 authorized the sale of cannabis; however, this only applies to a business that obtains and operates in compliance with local and state licenses.

Consequently, possessing cannabis and planning to sell it while unlicensed constitutes an offense under HS 11359.

Defining Possession

Possession can be either constructive or actual.

You have actual possession when your person, your clothing, or something you are holding, like a purse or bag, contains bhang.

You do not have to touch, hold, or have cannabis sativa on your person to possess it. It is enough to be charged, provided you can control it through an agent or are entitled to do so. It is called constructive possession.

Penalties and Consequences of Violating HS 11359

The crime is a California misdemeanor, with the following potential penalties:

  • A six-month jail term.
  • Fines of no more than $500.

However, HS 11359 becomes a California felony if the following facts exist:

  • You were previously convicted of severe violent felonies, like murder, a sex offense against a minor below 14, a sexually violent crime, a sex offense that carries sex offender registration responsibility, or gross vehicular manslaughter while drunk.
  • You possessed cannabis for sale regarding a known or attempted sale to a minor.
  • You have at least two previous misdemeanor convictions for cannabis possession for sale.
  • If convicted of a violation of HS 11359, you may spend a minimum of 16 months and a maximum of three (3) years in jail.

Circumstantial evidence determines the motive to sell bhang while unlicensed. The evidence can consist of:

  • A vast quantity of cannabis.
  • The possession of items like scales and baggies.
  • Marijuana split into multiple containers and baggies.
  • Presence of money or ammunition.
  • The police officer believed the cannabis was intended for sale.

Summary Probation

Sometimes, the judge can impose summary (misdemeanor) probation instead of a jail sentence. However, you must abide by the following terms and conditions:

  • Paying restitution.
  • Participating in group or individual therapy.
  • Submitting to drug testing.
  • Periodic progress reports with the court.
  • Community service.
  • Searching your property or person with or without a warrant.

Sale and Transportation of Marijuana

Under California's cannabis-authorized regulations, you can trade commercial marijuana as a member of the legalized marijuana industry after obtaining a license from the California Bureau of Marijuana Control.

California HS 11360 is the statute that bans selling, giving away, importing, or transporting cannabis with the intent to sell.

If you are unlicensed to sell or transport cannabis, you will be charged with a California misdemeanor that attracts the following consequences:

  • A period not exceeding six months in jail or
  • A maximum fine of $1,000.

You will face an infraction if you are under 18 and sell or transport cannabis. It is also an infraction to give away or transport for sale 28.5 grams of cannabis while unlicensed.

However, selling or transporting cannabis for sale while unlicensed is a California felony if you:

  • Have a previous conviction for a serious violent felony, like murder, a sex offense against a minor below 14, or a sex offense that requires sex offender registration.
  • Have two or more previous convictions for California HS 11360 sale and transportation of cannabis.
  • Have deliberately sold, attempted to sell, recommended to sell, or provided cannabis to an individual below 18.
  • Imported or attempted to import cannabis into the Golden State or transported or engaged in transportation out of the state with the motive to sell concentrated hashish exceeding 4 grams or above 28.5 grams.

In these circumstances, you will spend a maximum of four years in prison.

Finally, transporting cannabis without the motive to sell it or gifting others cannabis is not an offense in California if all the following statements are accurate:

  • You gave away or transported concentrated hashish exceeding a quantity of eight grams or 28.5 grams, and
  • You offered cannabis to a person aged 21 and older.

Selling or Giving Cannabis to an Underage Child

Under California HS 11361, it is a felony for a person aged 18 or older to offer to sell cannabis to a child. This regulation remains in effect under Prop 64 (cannabis legalization).

HS 11361 also states it is a California felony to make a child illegally:

  • Transport,
  • Possess,
  • Sell,
  • Gift,
  • Provide,
  • Administer,
  • Peddle,
  • Make sales preparations, or
  • Furnish any type or amount of cannabis sativa.

Sentences for breaking HS 11361 are served in state prison instead of county jail.

If the involved child is under fourteen, you will spend three to five years in California state prison. If the juvenile is above 14 but below 18, your penalty will be a maximum of five (5) years in California state prison.

While HS 11361 penalties are severe, your criminal defense attorney can help you beat the charges. They can collect and analyze evidence to develop the most effective legal strategy. They can argue that:

  • You gave or induced the minor to use cannabis sativa, but you genuinely believed they were 18.
  • You did not sell, give, or provide cannabis to a minor.
  • Police entrapment.

California Laws for Concentrated Cannabis

In 2018, it was passed into law in California for persons aged 21 and above to possess and use 8 grams of concentrated marijuana.

However, possessing more than eight (8) grams of concentrated marijuana is a California misdemeanor with a penalty of serving a jail term not exceeding six months.

Selling concentrated hashish and cannabis is allowed in California for a person with a marijuana state license. For the unlicensed, having hashish in any form with the motive to sell is a crime. It is also illegal to transport it for sale.

Concentrated marijuana is split resin, in raw or purified form, extracted from a marijuana herb. It is usually referred to as hash or hashish. It is also known as:

  • Cannabis resin,
  • Honey oil,
  • Hash oil,
  • Rosin oil or
  • Wax.

The resin has cannabis’s hallucinogenic component, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).

It can be in various shapes. Imported cannabis is often in the form of bricks. On the other hand, locally grown concentrated hashish can be in liquid, irregular pieces, or a half-solid form.

Regulations For Medical Use of Concentrated Hashish

Under California law, individuals entitled to medical cannabis can lawfully possess concentrated hashish for their own use. They can also cultivate it without chemical-free solvents like butane.

Persons entitled to medical cannabis are not held liable for the eight (8) grams restriction, which a recreational user must adhere to.

Penalties For Violating Concentrated Cannabis Law

The penalties are divided into categories as follows:

Simple Possession

Possessing at most eight grams of concentrated cannabis is legal.

For many individuals, the illegal possession of more than eight (8) grams of marijuana for their own use is a California misdemeanor.

If found guilty of this crime, you can serve no more than six months in county jail and pay a $500 fine.

Possession with a Motive to Sell

Possessing cannabis or marijuana to sell is a crime unless you hold a license to sell cannabis products. If found guilty, you shall serve a sentence not exceeding six months in jail.

Nevertheless, possession of concentrated hashish with the intention of sale while unlicensed is a California felony for:

  1. An individual with a previous conviction for a serious violent felony or a sex offense that requires sex offender registration requirement.
  2. A person with at least two previous convictions of cannabis or concentrated marijuana possession to sell.
  3. Someone who possesses concentrated hashish associated with a known sale or with the motive to sell to someone below 18.

Legal Defenses

Your arrest for this crime does not necessarily mean you will be found guilty and sentenced.

Legal defenses to accusations of possessing or producing cannabis include:

  • You did not know cannabis was there.
  • The marijuana belonged to another person.
  • You did not think it was cannabis.
  • You are lawfully entitled to possess marijuana for medical use.
  • You are a caregiver for a patient entitled to medical cannabis.
  • Hashish was found through an unlawful search and seizure.

Valid defenses to accusations of importing cannabis or illegal transport, sale, or possession of it with a motive to sell are as follows:

  • The cannabis was meant just for your consumption.
  • Insufficient evidence of your intent to sell or import the marijuana.
  • There is not enough evidence that a sale occurred.
  • Police entrapment or misconduct.

Immigration Consequences After a Criminal Conviction

Both selling cannabis and possessing it with a sale motive are considered aggravated felonies under the Immigration and Nationality Act. It does not matter whether you are found guilty under federal or California law.

If convicted of an aggravated felony, you risk facing immigration repercussions like deportation.

For an undocumented immigrant, contacting a knowledgeable criminal defense lawyer is wise, particularly if police agents accuse you of an offense associated with cannabis.

Find a Skilled Drug Crimes Defense Attorney Near Me

Marijuana laws are constantly changing and can be confusing. At California Criminal Lawyer Group, we can guide you throughout the legal process and work toward achieving a case dismissal or the most favorable outcome. Every case is unique, and we treated them so. If you face a marijuana charge, contact us at 661-750-8230 for a free case review with one of our Bakersfield knowledge attorneys. We can start by listening to you to collect and analyze evidence and develop strategies to build your defense. We are committed to offering sound legal representation that efficiently and effectively addresses your legal needs.