Xanax is a prescription drug that is legally prescribed by doctors and mental health professionals to treat depression, mild to moderate anxiety and mild panic disorders. Depending on the dosage amount, it will come in small white pills, yellow or blue pills or white bars. Xanax is a short acting drug whose effects are felt fairly quickly. It can be prescribed in a low dose, white or yellow, as a daily drug or in one of its higher doses, blue or white, for an “as needed” drug for an extended period of time. It can not be refilled without a doctor consult or visit.
Xanax has a variety of street names, depending on the type of pill that is being described. The white bars are often called tombstones. Yellow pills are called school buses and blue pills are commonly called footballs. The smallest dose, little white pills will be referred to as white girls or white boys.
Illegal use of Xanax has become more and more common over the past ten to twenty years. Through means of prescription fraud or forgery, it has become easier to obtain Xanax to sell on the street. People use Xanax as a recreational drug because it can cause feelings of relaxation and happiness. It is also used because the effects come on very quickly, providing users with an instant high. People will at times crush and snort Xanax pills or take them with alcohol to wash them down in order to increase the euphoric effect.
Taking Xanax that has been obtained illegally or that is legally prescribed for another person is against the law in NJ. It does not matter if the person is a member of your family trying to help ease your anxiety by offering you a small white Xanax pill from their prescription. It is illegal for them to distribute and for you to take Xanax that has been legally prescribed by a doctor for another person.
If you are in possession of Xanax and you do not have a prescription for it from a doctor or other mental health professional, such as a physician’s assistant, you have broken the law in NJ. Possession of Xanax is a third degree crime. You are faced with five years of prison if convicted of this offense.
If you are attempting to sell or distribute illegally obtained Xanax or Xanax that has been legally prescribed to you, you are guilty of a crime of the second degree or first degree, depending on how much Xanax you are trying to sell. You can, if convicted, face up to twenty years in jail.
Additionally, if you have obtained these Xanax pills through use of a stolen prescription pad or tablet, then you can also be charged with prescription fraud under NJ law and be subject to those punishments and penalties as well.
Have you or a loved one been charged with the possession, sale or distribution of Xanax? Let the experienced lawyers at Villani & DeLuca help you navigate these charges and work with you to obtain the best outcome. Serving the Ocean County and Monmouth County areas, and located in convenient Point Pleasant Beach, NJ, the firm’s criminal defense attorneys are here to meet your legal needs.
