Sentence Enhancements for Drug Crimes Involving Children

In Oklahoma, committing drug crimes that involve children leads to increased jail time and penalties. Specifically, the criminal sentence for the underlying crime will be doubled or tripled, with other restrictions imposed. This is known as a sentence enhancement.

Drug court judges may impose sentence enhancements for people who use minors to distribute or transport drugs, for people who distribute drugs near schools, and for people who possess or buy drugs near schools or in the presence of young children. The enhancements emphasize the state’s focus on keeping drugs away from children under age 18 – both for safety reasons and to prevent kids from using them intentionally.

Using a minor to distribute, dispense, or transport controlled dangerous substances with the intent to distribute, dispense, or cultivate them carries a sentence enhancement of twice the usual penalty and twice the fine. Distributing a controlled dangerous substance to a person under age 18 carries the same enhancements. Using a minor to transport or sell controlled substances carries enhancements of a felony charge and twice the penalty and fine. If the minor involved is under age 15, the person convicted may be imprisoned for twenty-five years and fined $100,000. Not knowing a person’s age is not a defense.

Oklahoma law focuses on making schools and other places where young people gather be drug-free zones. Sentence enhancements punish people who distribute, dispense, or possess with intent to distribute or dispense controlled substances within 2,000 feet of a school, recreational center, park, public housing, or child care facility. First offenders serve twice the sentence and pay twice the fine. They must serve a minimum of 50% of their sentence before they can be eligible for parole. Second-time or multiple offenders are sentenced in accordance with Oklahoma’s “habitual offender” law and must serve 85% of their sentence before they can be eligible for parole.

Similarly, possessing or purchasing a controlled substance within 1,000 feet of a school, recreational center, park, public housing, or child care facility results in a sentence enhancement of a felony charge, twice the sentence and fine, and 50% of sentence served before parole eligibility. Second-time or multiple offenders receive three times the sentence and fine. They must serve 90% of their sentence before parole eligibility and will be fined no more than $10,000. Possession or purchase of a controlled substance in the presence of a child under age 12 carries these enhancements as well.

Accused of a drug crime? Clint Patterson, Esq., of Patterson Law Firm, a former Tulsa prosecutor now using his trial experience and expert-level knowledge of drug and alcohol-testing science to defend Oklahomans, assesses his clients’ best options for defenses and sentencing. To schedule a case evaluation, visit Patterson Law Firm online or call Clint’s office at (918) 550-9175.