Dangerous Drugs for Sale FAQs

The Arizona Criminal Justice Commission keeps track of all Arizona narcotics arrests. The Commission also publishes a report each year, providing the number of prosecutions for each substance. According to the Commission’s 2022 report, law enforcement arrests the most people for methamphetamine, fentanyl, heroin, and prescription painkillers.

Arizona law prohibits the possession of narcotics as well as the possession of narcotics for sale (drug dealing). The difference between these two crimes comes down to what the defendant intended to do with the drugs in their possession. Notably, police don’t need to witness you make a sale to arrest you for selling drugs; it may be enough that you have a large amount of drugs on you.

Arizona has incredibly strict laws when it comes to sentencing for drug crimes. Under Arizona Revised Statutes § 13-3407, possessing any dangerous drug for sale aside from methamphetamine is a Class 2 felony, which is punishable by between four to ten years in prison for a first-time conviction. However, if you have one prior felony conviction, your potential sentence increases to between six and 18.5 years in prison. And, if you have two prior felony convictions, you’ll face a sentence between 14 to 28 years in prison.

Arizona police officers make more arrests for methamphetamine than any other drug. In response, lawmakers passed specific penalties that apply to anyone convicted of possessing meth for sale. Under A.R.S. § 13-3407, a first-time offense for selling methamphetamine carries a sentence between five to 15 years, with a presumptive sentence of ten years in prison.

Yes, anyone convicted of a felony drug crime is ineligible to purchase, own or possess a firearm unless and until their right to carry a firearm has been restored. Possession of a firearm by a prohibited person is a Class 4 felony, which carries a minimum sentence of 1.5 years in prison and a maximum sentence of three years in prison.