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California Health & Safety Code 11360: Sale of Marijuana

Southern California Marijuana Sales Attorneys

Health & Safety Code 11360 HS makes it a felony to sell, give away or transport marijuana, or to offer to do so, within the state of California. The penalties for sale of marijuana in California include up to four years in state prison. If, however, the person gives away or transports no more than an ounce of marijuana, the penalty is not more than a $100.00 fine.

Some counties tend to take marijuana sales more seriously than others. Riverside county, Ventura County and Orange County are more tough on marijuana cases in general, and marijuana sales case in particular. San Bernardino and Los Angeles Counties are somewhat more lenient as to marijuana charges.

Most Health and Safety Code 11360 Marijuana Sales cases arise from two sorts of incidents: (1) a suspect unwittingly sells pot to an undercover police officer, or (2) police observe the suspect sell pot to a civilian third party. We will discuss each in turn.

Undercover Agents

Police departments throughout Southern California routinely engage in undercover operations, stings and controlled buys in an effort to catch suspects selling marijuana. Undercover officers contact sellers through Craigslist ads, on street corners and by infiltrating communities of marijuana users and cultivators. Often times, the undercovers go to great lengths to "fit the part" and come across as genuine pot users. Undercover buys account for most of the Health & Safety Code 11360 Sale of Marijuana Arrests.

Observing Marijuana Sales

If the police receive information that a suspect is selling marijuana, they will typically set up a surveillance at the site where the sales are taking place. This may be the suspect’s residence, a school, a park or some other public location. The cops will conceal themselves. They watch until they see what appears to be a hand-to-hand transaction. Then they move in and detain both the apparent seller and the apparent buyer.

In detaining and searching the seller, the police hope to find him with a remaining stash of weed, and some cash. In detaining and searching the buyer, the cops are hoping to find in his possession some marijuana that is of the same kind and packaging as the seller’s remaining stash. Sometimes they will offer the buyer a break if he will admit to having just purchased the marijuana from the seller.

Mere Offers to Sell are Sufficient

A suspect can violate Health and Safety Code 11360 HS merely by offering to sell marijuana to a third party. Suppose, for example, an undercover officer approaches a dealer and proposes to buy a pound of weed for a certain amount of money. The dealer agrees, but doesn’t currently have the weed and so he offers to complete the sale later in the week. The dealer can immediately be arrested just for offering to sell marijuana, even though the sale never actually took place.

The Age of the Buyer Can Affect Punishment

Health and Safety Code 11361 imposes harsher penalties if a person sells marijuana to a minor. If the minor is over the age of 14, the seller faces up to five years in prison. If the minor is under 14, the seller faces up to seven years in state prison.

Fighting a Health & Safety Code 11360 HS Case

Even in an undercover case, or a case where the police claim to have observed a marijuana sale, the evidence may not be cut and dry. A skilled marijuana defense lawyer can often spot and exploit potential defenses in the case—such as entrapment, credibility problems with the officers, and lack of corroboration. Such defenses may allow your attorney to get the charges reduced, dismissed, or the penalties lessened.

If you have been charged with HS 11360 or any marijuana-related offense, we invite you to contact us to evaluate your case. Whether or not you ultimately hire our firm, we would be happy to give you our input as to the best strategy for fighting the charges.

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