{"id":515,"date":"2012-07-27T01:28:39","date_gmt":"2012-07-27T01:28:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/vtjuryinstructions.org\/?page_id=515"},"modified":"2025-04-02T21:20:25","modified_gmt":"2025-04-02T21:20:25","slug":"prescription-drugs","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/vtjuryinstructions.org\/?page_id=515","title":{"rendered":"Prescription Drugs"},"content":{"rendered":"<ul>\n<li>CR40-411.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vtjuryinstructions.org\/criminal\/MS40-411.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Possession of depressant, stimulant, or narcotic drug<\/a>, 18 V.S.A. \u00a7 4234(a)(1) (05\/05\/06)<\/li>\n<li>CR40-421.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vtjuryinstructions.org\/criminal\/MS40-421.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Possession of depressant, stimulant, or narcotic drug (100x dose)<\/a>, 18 V.S.A. \u00a7 4234(a)(2) (05\/05\/06)<\/li>\n<li>CR40-431.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vtjuryinstructions.org\/criminal\/MS40-431.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Possession of depressant, stimulant, or narcotic drug (1,000x dose)<\/a>, 18 V.S.A. \u00a7 4234(a)(3) (05\/05\/06)<\/li>\n<li>CR40-441.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vtjuryinstructions.org\/criminal\/MS40-441.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Possession of depressant, stimulant, or narcotic drug (10,000x dose)<\/a>, 18 V.S.A. \u00a7 4234(a)(4) (05\/05\/06)<\/li>\n<li>CR40-451.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vtjuryinstructions.org\/criminal\/MS40-451.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Selling or dispensing depressant, stimulant, or narcotic drug<\/a>, 18 V.S.A. \u00a7 4234(b)(1) (04\/01\/25)<\/li>\n<li>CR40-461.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vtjuryinstructions.org\/criminal\/MS40-461.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Selling or dispensing depressant, stimulant, or narcotic drug (100x dose)<\/a>, 18 V.S.A. \u00a7 4234(b)(2) (04\/01\/25)<\/li>\n<li>CR40-471.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vtjuryinstructions.org\/criminal\/MS40-471.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Selling or dispensing depressant, stimulant, or narcotic drug (1,000x dose)<\/a>, 18 V.S.A. \u00a7 4234(b)(3) (04\/01\/25)<\/li>\n<li>CR40-601. <a href=\"http:\/\/vtjuryinstructions.org\/?page_id=1109\">Obtaining a regulated drug by deceit<\/a>, 18 V.S.A. \u00a7 4223(a)(1) (10\/19\/13)<\/li>\n<li>CR40-701.\u00a0 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.vtjuryinstructions.org\/criminal\/MS40-701.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Manufacturing, selling, or dispensing (etc.) non-controlled drug or substance on representation that drug or substance is controlled<\/a>, 18 V.S.A. \u00a7 4228(a)(1) (05\/05\/06)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>Reporter&#8217;s Notes<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>Mental Element<\/em>. Note that, in 2024, the legislature created a new definition of \u201cknowingly\u201d that applies exclusively to 18 V.S.A. \u00a7\u00a7\u00a04233a (selling or dispensing fentanyl), 4233b (selling or dispensing xylazine), and 4234(b) (selling or dispensing depressant, stimulant, or narcotic drugs other than fentanyl, heroin, or cocaine). <em>See<\/em> 2024, No. 125 (S.58). This definition does not apply to other sections of Title 18.\u00a0The model instructions for \u00a7\u00a04234(b) that appear on this page incorporate this new definition of \u201cknowingly.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>\u201cDispensing.\u201d\u00a0<\/em>\u00a0The word \u201cdispense\u201d is defined under 18 V.S.A. \u00a7 4201(7) to include \u201cdistribute, leave with, give away, dispose of, or deliver.\u201d\u00a0 It is the committee\u2019s understanding that \u201cdispensing\u201d a regulated drug necessarily involves a transfer to another individual.\u00a0 One who disposes of regulated drugs by flushing them down the toilet is not thereby guilty of dispensing.\u00a0 While it may be a crime to possess the drug, it is not a crime to dispossess oneself of the drug so long as the dispossession does not involve selling or dispensing.\u00a0\u00a0<u>State v. Harris<\/u>, 152 Vt. 507, 509 (1989).<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><em>Depressant, Stimulant, or Narcotic Drugs<\/em>.\u00a0 The statute prohibits possession, selling, or dispensing a depressant, stimulant or narcotic drug, other than heroin or cocaine.\u00a0 There are lengthy statutory definitions for \u201cdepressant or stimulant drug\u201d under 18 V.S.A. \u00a7\u00a04201(6), and for \u201cnarcotic drug\u201d under \u00a7 4201(16).\u00a0 The model instructions provide a choice of how to instruct on whether the charged substance fits into the statutory definitions.\u00a0 The State must prove to the jury that the defendant possessed the substance that is charged.\u00a0 In some cases the court will decide whether the charged substance is one that is regulated by the statutes.\u00a0 This determination is best done by stipulation.\u00a0 If there is a real question about the issue, the model instructions allow for reading the statutory definition to the jury, and letting the jury decide whether the charged substance falls within the statute.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>CR40-411.\u00a0 Possession of depressant, stimulant, or narcotic drug, 18 V.S.A. \u00a7 4234(a)(1) (05\/05\/06) CR40-421.\u00a0 Possession of depressant, stimulant, or narcotic drug (100x dose), 18 V.S.A. \u00a7 4234(a)(2) (05\/05\/06) CR40-431.\u00a0 Possession of depressant, stimulant, or narcotic drug (1,000x dose), 18 V.S.A. &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/vtjuryinstructions.org\/?page_id=515\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":505,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-515","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vtjuryinstructions.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/515","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vtjuryinstructions.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vtjuryinstructions.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vtjuryinstructions.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vtjuryinstructions.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=515"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/vtjuryinstructions.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/515\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1798,"href":"https:\/\/vtjuryinstructions.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/515\/revisions\/1798"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vtjuryinstructions.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/505"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vtjuryinstructions.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=515"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}