A person who possesses a Schedule I controlled substance is punished as a Class I felon, unless the controlled substance is MDPV and the amount possessed is 1 gram or less, in which case the crime is punished as a Class 1 misdemeanor. North Carolina law provides that a person who commits a Class I felony must receive a sentence between 3 and 12 months, depending on the person’s prior convictions. A person with no prior convictions must receive a community punishment, but the court is permitted to sentence a person with prior convictions to active jail time. A person who commits a Class 1 misdemeanor receives a sentence between 1 day and 120 days, depending on their prior convictions. A person with no prior convictions cannot receive more than a 45-day sentence, and this sentence must be community punishment. However, it is possible for a person with one or more prior convictions to receive active jail time as a punishment.
A person who possesses a Schedule II, III, or IV controlled substance is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor, unless the amount possessed “exceeds four tablets, capsules, or other dosage units or equivalent quantity of hydromorphone or if the quantity of the controlled substance, or combination of the controlled substances, exceeds one hundred tablets, capsules or other dosage units, or equivalent quantity,” in which case the crime is punished as a Class I felony. In addition, if “the controlled substance is methamphetamine, amphetamine, phencyclidine, or cocaine and any salt, isomer, salts of isomers, compound, derivative, or preparation thereof,” the crime is punishable as a Class I felony.
A person who possesses a Schedule V controlled substance is guilty of a Class 2 misdemeanor. The punishment for a Class 2 misdemeanor ranges from 1-60 days, depending on prior convictions. A person with no prior convictions can be sentenced to up to 30 days, but this punishment must be community punishment.
A person who possesses a Schedule VI controlled substance is guilty of a Class 3 misdemeanor, unless the amount of the controlled substance is more than ½ ounce of marijuana, in which case the crime is punished as a Class 1 misdemeanor, or more than 1 ½ ounce of marijuana, in which case the crime is punished as a Class I felony. Punishment for a Class 3 misdemeanor ranges from 1-20 days, depending on whether the person has any prior convictions. A person with no prior convictions must receive community punishment, but a person with prior convictions can receive active jail time as punishment. However, the controlled substance possession statute provides that if the crime is punished as a Class 3 misdemeanor, the sentence of imprisonment must be suspended.