Kentucky Laws
In Kentucky individuals are prosecuted for marijuana possession, sale,
and cultivation. Repeated offenders and high amounts of marijuana can
result in increased charges. Distributing, possessing, or selling
marijuana on or within a specific distance of school or park property
can also increase charges. Marijuana is not recognized as legal for any
purpose, neither personal nor medical. Because medical marijuana is not
legal in the state of Kentucky, all those possessing any amount of
marijuana will be prosecuted.
Possession
A first-time offender of possession will have lesser charges than that
of an individual who has previously been charged with marijuana
possession. A first offense of possessing fewer than eight ounces of
marijuana is considered a Class A Misdemeanor and is punishable by a
five hundred-dollar fine with or without incarceration up to one year.
Any subsequent offenses of possessing fewer than eight ounces is
considered a felony offense and can result in imprisonment between one
and five years with or without a fine between one thousand and ten
thousand dollars.
Cultivation
A first offense of cultivating five plants or fewer is considered a
Class A Misdemeanor and is punishable by a five hundred-dollar fine
with or without incarceration up to one year. Any subsequent offenses
of cultivating five plants or fewer or cultivating five plants or more
are considered felony offenses. Both of these offenses earn the same
punishment of a fine between one thousand and ten thousand dollars with
or without incarceration between one and five years. Any subsequent
cultivation of five or more plants is punishable by five to ten years
of incarceration with or without a one thousand- to a ten
thousand-dollar fine.
Trafficking and Selling
Trafficking and selling falls into the same category of charges in
Kentucky. Selling or trafficking fewer than eight ounces is considered
a Class A Misdemeanor, whether or not it be a first or subsequent
offense. Penalties for this crime include a fine of five hundred
dollars with or without incarceration of one year.
Trafficking or selling between eight ounces and five pounds of
marijuana is a felony offense -- as well as all other selling or
trafficking offenses -- and carries the penalties of one to five years
of incarceration with or without a fine between one thousand and ten
thousand dollars. Selling or trafficking five pounds or more or the
first offense of selling any amount to a minor are penalized by five to
ten years of jail time with or without a fine of one thousand to ten
thousand dollars.
Subsequent sales to minors are punished by a fine between one thousand
and ten thousand dollars with or without imprisonment between ten and
twenty years. Selling or trafficking any amount of marijuana within one
thousand yards of or on park or school property is punishable by one to
five years of incarceration with or without a fine between one thousand
and ten thousand dollars.
Driving
Driving under the influence of marijuana is treated the same as driving
under the influence of other illegal drugs. Any minors who are charged
with have their driver's licenses suspended between one and two years.