Any advice on this scenario would be appreciated.

Def. caught with Xanax in a cigarrete box. Claims (of course) to have a prescription, but not on him. Arrested & filed on. Brings in letter from Doc. saying has been prescribed this at one time. I know that we need more info & proof from the Doc.

Question is, how do you get around the problem of a person that has a valid prescription. My take is that if you have a 30 day script from the doctor, you shouldn't have any left 3-4 mos from now. But truth be told, most people have meds in their cabinets left over from some illness. Granted, maybe not dangerous/abusable drugs, but none the less...

The law says "....unless the person obtains the substance directly from or under a valid
prescription or order of a practitioner acting in the course of professional practice."

Given that, if a person has at some point had a prescription for a drug, how would you prove that the pills he had on him were NOT obtained under a valid presc? How do you counter the argument that I had a couple left over, just like many people have right now?

Hope this Q makes sense.

My leftover prescription meds are in the prescription bottles they came in. They also make these cute little pill containers to keep your traveling medicines in.

I would issue a grand jury subpoena to the Doctor for the patient's medical records to get the most complete information if you aren't satisfied with his general explanation. You might also just call the doctor's office to confirm he actually wrote the letter. (suspicious minds) If you can find out where the scrip was filled, they should have records too.

other than that, if the prescription was recent and it is only a few pills....I wouldn't lose any sleep over it.

I would do several things. I would subpoena the Dr's records, I would specifically via duces tecum seek to ascertain if the Dr. had given the suspect any samples of the medication (that should be noted on his medical records) and I would seek to ascertain where suspect filled the prescription.

You do all this to check the milligram size and/or manufacturer of the pill in question. There may be some chance that the pill in question is either the same or of a different strenth (i.e. milligram) or from a different manufacturer (generic vs. non-generic) of the medication, and these inquiries may answer you question as to whether defendant was in legitimate possession. The prescription from the Dr. (indicated in the Dr's records hopefully, should answer the question as to milligrams) but the pharmacy records would be necessary to determine manufacturer.

If the Dr.'s records don't indicate where the prescription was filled, then you have one more avenue. If the defendant is employed, and has health insurance including prescriptions, then you may be able to subpoena those records to find out who a payment was made to for a xanax prescription, when, milligram size and manufacturer.

Thanks to both of you. I guess I should have mentioned that this is a misdemeanor level poss. case. But questions arose when talking w/the defense attorney and I wanted some opinions from the good side (the def. atty is actually a pretty good guy, but...).

I agree about the cig. box, and such. However, the question still remains: If defendant was prescribed a drug 3 years ago, and decide to carry it around today, does that constitute a crime? After all, he/she did come to obtain it through a valid legal prescription.
If Defendant was an abuser of this type of drug and started getting it off the street, so long as he/she carried around 1-2 of the original prescription, and popped the street tabs, how do you prove it?

I may be trying to make an issue out of something that isn't there. My feelings on what happened in my case is that Defendant has been prescribed 1 drug, then another, then another, for whatever reason, i.e. the first ones weren't working, and the doctor is legitimataly trying different ones. If defendant is now taking zoloft, but had xanax left overs, it appears to be ok for him to carry them around? Because it was from a valid prescription? Seems like a big loophole.

I agree with Jana, in that if the defendant had a valid prescription, don't lose too much sleep over it. If you do want to investigate further, and/or prove the suspect is not telling the truth, then look at the milligram size and manufacturer. These two items either will or will not match the pharmacy info, and that will answer your question as much as it can be answered. Based on the facts that the prescription is three years old and that he has them in his cig pack, I wouldn't be too surprised if they didn't match the prescription records. Instead of a subpoena, just ask the defense attorney to provide the bottle for your examination. That might answer these questions.

I think the law technically states that the prescription drug is to be carried in the prescription bottle, but many folks I know, particularly older folks, carry the devices Jana mentioned that separates dosages of different drugs to make sure the right drugs are taken at the right time on the right day. I don't think a jury would care to convict for not carrying the drug in the prescription bottle if he had a valid prescription.

I guess the other inquiry is how the drugs got discovered in the first place. Was it pursuant to an arrest, if so, for what? How did the officer come to search the cig pack?

Thanks again. Consent was given after driver stopped for DWI. Passanger allowed search of his bag. Found then. Starting to agree w/the "don't lose much sleep" answer. I think the Def. is lying and suspect that the out of town doctor might be trying to cover for him. Just don't think will be able to prove past the valid prescription issue. Going to issue some subpoena's for the Med. Records and see if anythings shakes out.

Reason for asking was that I got into a debate w/the Def. Atty and wanted some outside input.

Thanks for the time.