(The Center Square) – The Washington State Supreme Court found that one of its lower trial courts violated a citizen s rights when it held him past the 72-hour involuntary hold
Simple Possession of Drugs Ruled Legal in Washington State
Simple possession of any drug is now legal in the State of Washington. Yakima County Prosecutor Joe Brusic says the State Supreme Court ruled Thursday the state law that makes possession of drugs illegal is unconstitutional. The court today released the following information; Simple Possession of Drugs. Washington’s strict liability drug possession statute, RCW 69.50.4013, makes possession of a controlled substance a felony exceeds the State’s police power and violates the due process clauses of the state and federal constitutions. Unintentional, unknowing possession of a controlled substance is the sort of innocent, passive nonconduct that falls beyond the State’s police power to criminalize. The affirmative defense of “unwitting possession,” is insufficient to save Washington’s strict liability drug possession statute. The statute cannot be saved by a judicially added mens rea element.