What makes a drug "dealer"?

In My Humble Opinion
1

Inspired by this thread about kinding the stash of your child.

As I said in that thread, in college (many years ago) several of us would pool our money together to get a volume discount on pot. Occasionally, I or another of my friends, would front some of the money for somebody who didn’t have cash at the moment, or because we knoew people who would be running out soon, and we could get our money back.

The most I ever personally bought at one time was 1/2 a pound. I probably put up my own money for less than half of it. I never made a profit – in fact more often than not I would short myself rather than my friends when dividing things up by weight, if the total weight came out a little short.

I know, had I ever been caught, this fine distinction would have been lost on the cops, and I would have been in serious trouble. Nevertheless, I don’t think I was a dealer.

What do you think?

2

make that **finding[B/] the stash…

3

That, my firend is one of lamest and worst cases of rationalizing I’ve heard in the last 5 years, and that includes what I said to the cops after I was handcuffed.

To answer your question, yes you were a dealer, it doesn’t matter if you were just divying it up among friends, you were still dealing it out.

4

Sounds rather accusatory, doesn’t it?
If you split a carton of cigarettes or a case of beer with a friend or three, does it make you a tobbaconist or beer distributor, respectively?

Splitting a bushel of apples from an orchard with neighbors doesn’t make me a grocer, either, even if I do it every week.

There is an “unofficial allowance” made for splitting bulk amounts of anything with other people (before people consider you a “retailer”), which is exactly what yojimboguy was talking about.

Now if you’ve got strangers and “friends of friends” calling you for business (esp regularly), then you’re a dealer.
The only reason I can think that someone would label what yojimboguy describes is to vilify the fact that it’s pot we’re talking about, and not beer, tobacco, or something else that’s “accepted” in the community.

5

That last line should be “label what yojimboguy describes as dealing…”

6

Criminey! Of course you weren’t a drug dealer, yojimbo. Anyone who’s ever smoked enough dope to warrant buying any (as opposed to stealing a joint off an older brother) has likely held enough to get in some trouble over at some point. Not necessarily a half pound, but an ounce or so anyway. As with toilet paper, frozen chicken, Bic Pens or just about anything else, buying in bulk makes economic sense.

Now stop talking and pass the love. :smiley:

7

**Baron **, I almost agree with you except for this line from the OP:

That’s not just dividing it up amongst friends who pooled their money; it’s buying extra to sell to people who wouldn’t be going in on the purchase…sounds like dealing to me.

8

The thing that counts, unfortunately, is what the cops and the prosecutor say. Standards vary from state to state, but in these parts, if you bought enough to last you most of the year in order to get a much better price (instead of paying the sucker price for a 1/4 ounce every time you run out,) the law boys say “possession with intent to sell.” It doesn’t matter if you didn’t make any money on the the deal when you and three others guys bought a quarter pound, you’re a dealer (in the eyes of the law.)

Here some facts. Draw your own conclusions. Most drug busts happen during routine traffic busts. (Do you really need to carry today?) Most people arrested for drugs are asked to turn in their dealers. (Did you sell, even a little?) Some cars on the street plainly proclaim the driver’s taste for breaking the drug laws. (Is that your car?)

The best way to stay out of drug trouble, of course, is to stay clean. A drug bust in your youth can severely limit your career opportunities for a long time. If you don’t like the drug laws, work to change them. Ignoring them, though, can be very hazardous, indeed.

9

Sounds like one of them hippie pot cooperatives to me.

10

Apparently, you’re a dealer selling dime bags with ties to <deep breath>:

Abu Nidal Organization (ANO)

Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG)

Alex Boncayao Brigade (ABB)

Anti-Imperialist International Brigade (AIIB)

see Japanese Red Army

Arab Revolutionary Brigades

see Abu Nidal Organization (ANO)

Armed Islamic Group

Army for the Liberation of Rwanda (ALIR)

Aum Shinrikyo

see Aum Supreme Truth (Aum)

Aum Supreme Truth (Aum)

Basque Fatherland and Liberty (ETA)

Black September

see Abu Nidal Organization (ANO)

Continuity Army Council

see Continuity Irish Republican Army (CIRA)

Continuity Irish Republican Army (CIRA)

Dev Sol

see Revolutionary People's Liberation Party/Front (DHKP/C)

Devrimci Sol (Revolutionary Left)

see Revolutionary People's Liberation Party/Front (DHKP/C)

Egyptian Islamic Jihad

see Al-Jihad

Ellalan Force

see The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)

Euzkadi Ta Askatasuna

see Basque Fatherland and Liberty (ETA)

Fatah Revolutionary Council

see Abu Nidal Organization (ANO)

Federation of Associations of Canadian Tamils (FACT)

see The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)

First of October Antifascist Resistance Group (GRAPO)

Former Armed Forces (ex-FAR)

see Army for the Liberation of Rwanda (ALIR)

Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya

HAMAS (Islamic Resistance Movement)

Harakat ul-Mujahidin (HUM)

Hizballah (Party of God)

Interahamwe

see Army for the Liberation of Rwanda (ALIR)

Irish Republican Army (IRA)

see Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA)

The Islamic Group (IG)

see Al-Gama'at al-Islamiyya

Islamic Jihad

see Al-Jihad

Islamic Jihad for the Liberation of Palestine

see Hizballah (Party of God)

Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU)

Jaish-e-Mohammed (JEM) (Army of Mohammed)

Japanese Red Army (JRA)

Al-Jihad

Jihad Group

see Al-Jihad

Kach and Kahane Chai

Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK)

Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LT) (Army of the Righteous)

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)

Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF)

The Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK or MKO)

Muslim Iranian Students Society

see The Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK or MKO)

National Council of Resistance

see The Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK or MKO)

National Liberation Army (ELN)--Colombia

The National Liberation Army of Iran

see The Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK or MKO)

New People's Army (NPA)

Orange Volunteers (OV)

Organization of the Oppressed on Earth

see Hizballah (Party of God)

Palestine Islamic Jihad (PIJ)

Palestine Liberation Front (PLF)

People Against Gangsterism and Drugs (PAGAD)

The People's Mujahedin of Iran (PMOI)

see The Mujahedin-e Khalq Organization (MEK or MKO)

Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP)

Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command (PFLP-GC)

Al-Qaida

Real IRA (RIRA)

Red Hand Defenders (RHD)

Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC)

Revolutionary Justice Organization

see Hizballah (Party of God)

Revolutionary Organization 17 November (17 November)

Revolutionary Organization of Socialist Muslims

see Abu Nidal Organization (ANO)

Revolutionary People's Liberation Party/Front (DHKP/C)

Revolutionary People's Struggle (ELA)

Revolutionary United Front (RUF)

Sangillan Force

see The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)

Sendero Luminoso (Shining Path, SL)

Talaa'al-Fateh

see Al-Jihad

True IRA

see Real IRA (RIRA)

Tupac Amaru Revolutionary Movement (MRTA)

United Self-Defense Forces/Group of Colombia (AUC)

World Tamil Association (WTA)

see The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)

World Tamil Movement (WTM)

see The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)

Groups Listed in Prior Editions of Patterns of Global Terrorism.

3rd October Organization

see Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia (ASALA)

15 May Organization

Algerian Terrorism

Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia (ASALA)

Al-'Asifa

see Al-Fatah

Chukaku-Ha (Nucleus or Middle Core Faction)

Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP)

Al-Fatah

Force 17

Irish Republican Army (IRA)

Jamaat ul-Fuqra

Khmer Rouge

Lautaro Popular Rebel Forces (FRPL)

see Lautaro Youth Movement (MJL)

Lautaro Youth Movement (MJL)

Manuel Rodriguez Patriotic Front (FPMR)

Morazanist Patriotic Front (FPM)

National Liberation Army (ELN) - Bolivia / Nestor Paz Zamora Commission (CNPZ)

The Orly Group

see Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia (ASALA)

Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO)

Party of Democratic Kampuchea

see Khmer Rouge

Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-Special Command (PFLP-SC)

Popular Struggle Front (PSF)

Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA)

see Irish Republican Army (IRA)

Provos

see Irish Republican Army (IRA)

Puka Inti (Sol Rojo, Red Sun)

Red Army Faction (RAF)

Red Brigades (BR)

Sikh Terrorism

Sol Rojo

see Puka Inti (Sol Rojo, Red Sun)

Tupac Katari Guerrilla Army (EGTK)

Al Ummah

United Popular Action Movement (MAPU/L)

see Lautaro Youth Movement (MJL)

Zviadists

I hope you’re happy with yourself, you drug-dealing, terrorist-supporting bastard.

Actually, I’m just joking. You don’t sound like a dealer, not to mention the whole idea of a pot-dealer sounds ludicrous, and I absolutely hate those latest reefer madness ads.

11

Asknott, it’s a tough call. If my friends had procured something relatively difficult to find that I’d be interested in, I’d be upset if they didn’t think of me.

It’s a tricky distinction. Obviously, the authorities don’t care to make this distinction, but we’re a little more enlightened :slight_smile: . It’s something I’ve seen many times, and it depends.

One other thing to consider, as yojimbo said, is that you don’t generally make any money, or even lose some–pot has a relatively low markup for the most part. Again, not that the authorities care.

12

Well, maybe. I saw it as putting in some more bucks to buy enough to get the discount. This was during the 70’s at the University o Illinois – just about everybody I knew smoked pot. If they didn’t want some at the moment, they’d want some in another 2-3 weeks. And as I said, I either broke even or lost money doing this. I NEVER marked up the price. I NEVER sold to “friends of friends”. And I wasn’t a “regular” supplier. As often as I made the buy, some other friend would too, and they would collect my share, or front money for me.

As KidCharlemagne says, it really was more or less a hippie pot cooperative.

It’s been more than 20 years since I did this, and I wouldn’t do it again. Not because I think it’s wrong, but because the culture and the penalties have changed. Somewhere in the mid 80’s pot smoking went from overt to covert, because of that shithead Reagan.

And since I’m no longer convinced “It can’t happen to ME”, I don’t take the kind of chances I used to do without thinking.

And as I said, I understand clearly that a prosecutor would not accept the “hippie pot cooperative” explanation.

13

Asterion,

Oh My God!

MY pot money may have been used to purchase the box cutters!

Actualy not, because it was too long ago. But truly, I would have preferred my money to go heartless international corporations than international smugglers, but what can ya do? I was working within the system. :slight_smile:

14

Well, I just thought I’d bring that up. I don’t believe a word of those ads, especially when it comes to pot.

Actually, I’m all for blanket legalization of pot. I have no interest in using it, but locking people up for petty possession seems too extreme to me.

15

I won’t trouble the board with a direct link, but you can google “pot laws” and come up with groups who are working to change the way the system works. They’re actually making progress in some places. Nevada, for example.

–Nott

16

AskNott, you are right about Nevada making progress. They are about to vote on whether or not up to 3 ounces of Cannabis will be legal. It looks as if its going to be close too.

17

Morally? No. (Giving some to friends of friends would blur over the line, but you say that never came up)

Legally? I don’t know, but I wouldn’t especially like to chance it myself :slight_smile:

18

I thought it was as simple as quantity. Have greater than X amount of a drug in your posession and it’s assumed that you’ve got too much for personal use. Hence, you’re dealing it.

(For instance, to take it to the extreme, if I have a warehouse filled with mary jane in my back yard, no-one’s going to listen to my excuse “I wasn’t going to sell it!” when they arrest me for dealing.)

19

Yet more rationalization.

Try that one on the cops when you get arrested and see how far it gets you, or rather, how many years it gets you.

20

You may not consider yourself a drug dealer, but there are so many variables and circumstances that it could be a bit of a lottery.

First you haven’t drawn up any conditions upon the discovery of the cannabis.

Lets say you were caught out on a speeding offence and further inspection of your car revealed an amount of the drug.

If this was already in a state of current use then you would likely get a warning, possibly a summons, maybe a relatively small fine, but you would then be on record for that offence if it came to notice again.

If it was in packages of uniform amounts, or multiples of uniform amounts then someone is going to be very interested, the actual quantity is less important below say 8 or 9 ounces than the means of storage.

If you were searched as a result of an overall police investigation of another dealer then you could be in some bother.Your name may be dropped into the hat to try get someone a reduced prison sentence, and that person could say anything they wanted.

Police would look for other evidence of dealing, bank accounts, computors, maually held records, mobile phones and pagers, frequent changes of phones, cars and less easily accountable ways of cleaning up money such as betting slips, lottery tickets(you buy winning tickets at more than the value of the prize).
If you have any connections with known criminals, even low level ones this may prompt further suspicion, and in any case, the police will almost certainly be interested in where you obtained the drugs, using the threat of serious charges to counter the possibility on non-disclosure on your part.

Your advancing of money to buy drugs on behalf of another is certainly dealing, its just that in your case it is at a very low level, and it could be interpreted in all sorts of ways just to put pressure on you.

I’m afraid that you should be far more careful and less sympathetic, you should always look at the possible consequencies for yourself and balance those against the favours you are doing for others.
Think about what might happen if you have a simple fall out or differance of opinion with someone who owes you even a small amount of money, all kinds of crap could happen that you cannot predict.

In short, if you should look on this as something you do for yourself only, if someone else wants cannabis they should get it themselves, and if you want to roll a few friends a joint every now and then then fair enough, as long as the favour is returned, but be very careful if you do anything that could be construed as distribution, which even if it is not for profit can attract charges completely separate from those of drug dealing.