Heading towards the plane, or at customs?
Is it possible that the airport security guy thought it might be the sort of aerosol that’s not safe to fly with?
I was told (by a police officer) that it’s illegal in Texas to carry prescription drugs outside of your home unless they’re in their original container.
That’s an incredibly stupid rule. My mother takes about 6 prescription drugs with her meals. When she goes out to eat, she doesn’t bring all those bottles with her, she brings her dinner pills.
Guns are not illegal contraband for the legal possessor, much like prescriptions.
I argue this with judges all of the time who look at me like I have three heads and then cite all of the cases that allow for prosecution based upon constructive possession by a felon near a gun.
Taken to its logical conclusion, it is absurd. I have beer in the fridge. If kids come over to the house, should juvenile petitions be drafted against them for constructive possession of booze?
And, keeping with the spirit of the thread, if I have prescription medication on the counter, aren’t all of the children guilty of constructively possessing these items? Or keeping with the “contraband” restriction, I have a machine gun on the table. Assume the kids are older and understand what these items are. Constructive possession?
Kids steal booze and pills from their parents all the time, because they do, in fact, have constructive possession. I’m not sure what side that argues for, though.
When they take possession of them (i.e. consume or personally remove from shared living space) then the constructive part disappears.
The moral of the story is that the state has a giant hammer it can use to beat down anyone with the temerity to demand actual justice… because the purpose of the law is not to provide justice, but to provide statistics for the prosecutor’s next election campaign.
I did a quick Google of schedule 5 drugs. It isn’t a particularly long list, most of them seem to be cough medicines with low levels of codeine ( it is a long list when they list every brand and formulation ). Or anti-diarrheals and painkillers with low levels of codeine. Plus Lyrica and a couple of other uncommon meds I’ve never heard of.
Which leads me to wonder what medication the kid got caught with. Cause if it was a bottle of cough syrup I can understand the police reaction.
In terms of traveling, I just take all the medicines I might possibly need ( OTC and prescription) and throw them all in a vitamin or herbal supplement bottle. I can tell them all apart and I know what they are. If I’m in a paranoid mood I could even throw a handful of the vitamin or supplement tablets on top, but I usually don’t bother.
I have had a couple of situations where I was singled out for a very intensive non-random TSA search (once when I accidentally left a full bottle of apparently very scary water in my carry-on*, and once when I had lost my ID when traveling and needed to travel without one.) And both times I had multiple bottles of OTC products/ supplements in my carry on.
And the agents performing the intensive search ( it’s always done in your sight and they ask you to watch because, I assume, they don’t want to be accused of theft ) didn’t give any of these items so much as a second glance. I’m surprised that they would even question prescription medication, they are looking for specific items that are a security threat and would think performing secondary searches looking for low level drug violations would slow them down and distract them from their main mission.
- the reaction of the agent was so extreme it was amusing in retrospect. “ a look of sheer terror followed by “Step back Ma’am, and keep your hands where I can see them”
As I posted above, I think the key is suspected intent to distribute. Someone having one each of 6 different pills in a container isn’t likely to be suspected. However, having 20-30 of one pill not in the original bottle for a night out for dinner is suspect.
As for transporting drugs outside their original container, in Maine, it’s illegal to possess drugs (even one) not in their original container:
"A person is not authorized to possess his or her own prescription drug unless the drug is “in the container in which it was delivered by the person selling or dispensing the drug.” 17-A M.R.S. section 1107-A (2), 22 M.R.S. section 2383-B (1). There is only one circumstance in which a person is authorized to possess his or her own prescription drug outside its original container, and that is “when [the drug is] in use.” Id. As soon as a prescription drug is removed from its original pill bottle, the person who possesses it commits a crime unless the drug is, at that point, “in use.” Obviously, if a person takes a pill directly from the bottle and swallows it, the drug is “in use” during that process. But what if the person is supposed to take a pill every 4 hours and doesn’t want to carry the pill bottle around? What if the person puts a couple of pills in his or her pocket before heading off to work? The pertinent statute says a drug may be considered “in use” when it has been placed in “reasonable repackaging for more convenient legitimate medical use.” Id. But placing a pill in a pocket does not involve repackaging, so the person would arguably commit unlawful possession while the drug is in his or her pocket. There is an affirmative defense available to some who are prosecuted for possessing their own prescription drug in unauthorized circumstances, but to successfully use the defense the person must prove by a preponderance of the evidence that he or she “possessed a valid prescription for the drug… and…at all times…intended the drug to be used only for legitimate medical use in conformity with the instructions provided by the prescriber and dispenser.” 17-A M.R.S. section 1107-A (4).
Don’t scoff at the possibility that a person could be charged for carrying his or her own prescription medications loose in a pocket. There is at least one prosecutorial district in Maine where at least one assistant district attorney will not hesitate to bring a charge against a person for that conduct. In September of 2012, a story appeared in the Bangor Daily News about a man who was prosecuted for possessing a single oxycodone pill, in his home, outside the pill’s original container. Although the defendant had a prescription for the medication, the expiration date had passed. The Superior Court Justice hearing the case questioned whether a person could be guilty of possessing a drug that was prescribed to him. The Bangor Daily News quoted the assistant district attorney handling the case as claiming he’d prosecuted “hundreds” of similar cases. This assistant district attorney operates on the theory that if your prescription was expired on the date of the alleged conduct, you no longer “possessed a valid prescription” at that time and therefore cannot avail yourself of the affirmative defense. It is not clear whether: (a) the passage of the expiration date printed on a prescription pill bottle renders the prescription no longer “valid” within the meaning of the controlling statute; or (b) whether the person “possessed a valid prescription” for the drug, for affirmative defense purposes, as long the drug at issue was legitimately prescribed for that person in the first place. What is clear is, at least in this one prosecutorial district, you could find yourself on the other side of the “v.” from “State of Maine” if you aren’t careful."
https://edfolsomlaw.com/2013/01/illegal-possession-of-your-own-prescription-drugs/
As for the TSA:
Can you pack your meds in a pill case and more questions answered
One of the more popular questions we get from travelers is: “Can I travel with my medication?” The answer is yes, with some qualifiers. Here are a few tips that you might find helpful.
Pills
It is not necessary to present your medication to, or notify an officer about any medication you are traveling with unless it is in liquid form (See next bullet).
Medication in liquid form is allowed in carry-on bags in excess of 3.4 ounces in reasonable quantities for the flight. It is not necessary to place medically required liquids in a zip-top bag. However, you must tell the officer that you have medically necessary liquids at the start of the screening checkpoint process. Medically required liquids will be subject to additional screening that could include being asked to open the container.
You can bring your medication in pill or solid form in unlimited amounts as long as it is screened.
You can travel with your medication in both carry-on and checked baggage. It’s highly recommended you place these items in your carry-on in the event that you need immediate access.
TSA does not require passengers to have medications in prescription bottles, but states have individual laws regarding the labeling of prescription medication with which passengers need to comply.
Medication is usually screened by X-ray; however, if a passenger does not want a medication X-rayed, he or she may ask for a visual inspection instead. This request must be made before any items are sent through the X-ray tunnel.
Nitroglycerin tablets and spray (used to treat episodes of angina in people who have coronary artery disease) are permitted and have never been prohibited."
https://www.tsa.gov/travel/travel-tips/can-you-pack-your-meds-pill-case-and-more-questions-answered
What’s interesting is that the way I read it, while the TSA may not be able to do anything other than detain you, by local law you may be charged with illegal possession and transport. Wooooo! Fun!
Then there’s traveling to another country which may have different laws than the U.S.
"Traveling Abroad with Medicine
Many travelers must carry their medicines with them across international borders to treat chronic or serious health problems. However, each country has its own guidelines about which medicines are legal. To avoid medicine-related issues during your travel, follow these tips from CDC Travelers’ Health.
If you’re planning to bring your prescription or over-the-counter medicine on your trip, you need to make sure your medicine is travel-ready.
Many travelers must carry their medicines with them across international borders to treat chronic or serious health problems. However, each country has its own guidelines about which medicines are legal. Medicines that are commonly prescribed or available over the counter in the United States could be considered unlicensed or controlled substances in other countries. For example, in Japan, some inhalers and certain allergy and sinus medications are illegal. Also, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has strict narcotics laws that have landed many travelers in prison.
While rules vary from country to country, there can be serious consequences if you violate the laws of the country you’re visiting. These consequences can range from confiscation (removal) of your medicine, which could harm your medical treatment, to stiff penalties, including imprisonment on charges for drug trafficking. To avoid medicine-related issues during your travel, follow these tips from CDC Travelers’ Health."
Okay, so the TSA guy above who challenged someone for having pills in a daily pill holder was, in fact, just being a jerk and slowing down the screening.
Heading towards the plane IIRC (it was about ten years ago). He knew what they were, though. Totally normal inhalers that loads of people must carry on planes all the time. He was just being a total arsehole. I hope he doesn’t do it all the time or he could well have caused a death. I was also questioned in depth once about my medicine in a daily dispenser box, but usually they’re ignored, so it just depends on who you get. I carry a prescription with me when going abroad now just in case, even though it means actually getting one printed up especially because they’re all electronic.
Years ago a TSA agent nearly kept me from making my flight over a misspelling. An employee had booked the flight, and spelled my middle name “Steven” instead of “Stephen”. The agent took me aside and wasted close to 30 minutes asking me about why I was flying that day and other minutiae. At some point I laughed (because it was hilarious) and he told me that I might not be flying that day!
That TSA agent should have lost his job. Anyone with 3 brain cells after a 10 second explanation can see what happened and it is absolute idiocy to question you for 30 minutes over it.
What sort of terrorist plot involves misspelling common names which have dual spellings?
to the OP: I seriously doubt that it’s illegal to have in your possession medicine that’s prescribe for someone else. My DH often picks up my meds from the pharmacy and brings them home to me and I’m sure lots of other people do it too.
Since this is a legal question, let’s move it to IMHO.
Colibri
General Questions Moderator