Legal Question in Criminal Law in Florida

Precursor Chemicals & Drug Charges

Precursor Chemicals & Drug Charges

"Precursor chemical" or "precursor drug" is a law enforcement term used to describe a chemical used in the manufacture or synthesis of controlled substances. For example, ephedrine (a legal drug) can be used to manufacture methamphetamine, so ephedrine would be considered a precursor.

Precursor chemicals have legitimate commercial uses, but the federal government (and some state governments) has placed restrictions on their importation, purchase, and sale because they have the potential to be used in the manufacture of designer drugs, club drugs, or processing of other illegal drugs.

Recent federal sting operations carried out by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) under the Chemical Diversion and Trafficking Act (CDTA) have resulted in arrests of:

* People buying larger amounts of precursor chemicals than allowed by law, often over the Internet

* People buying smaller amounts of chemicals, under the limits of reporting requirements, but buying too frequently (called "smurfing�)

* Pharmaceutical or chemical company employees selling chemicals without proper information gathering or reporting

* Chemical brokers who help buyers find chemical sellers, possibly the owners of Web sites

* Truckers or others who transport the chemicals

The maximum penalty for acquiring a precursor chemical is 20 years in prison, in addition to penalties a person may be facing for drug manufacturing and distribution of a controlled substance.