These days more drugs, like cannabis, are becoming legal in Pennsylvania and across the U.S. Unfortunately, many people often forget that even if a drug is legal in the state, it doesn't make it legal under federal law. Moreover, employers can still require that their employees be drug-free and subject to drug tests. Athletes are also subject to random drug tests, particularly in college, to ensure their eligibility to participate in high school and college-level sports. In a pinch, many people will turn to friends or acquaintances who may furnish or sell drug-free urine to others to pass a drug test. But if you get caught giving someone your drug-free urine or selling drug-free urine to others to pass a drug test, or if you attempt to use drug-free urine to pass your own drug test, you can face charges under Pennsylvania law.
If you or your child already have a conviction for furnishing or using drug-free urine, you may already understand how having a criminal record can affect your life. That record can impact your ability to get into college, play high school or college sports, receive scholarships, or follow a career path that requires state licensing or a criminal background check. Even a juvenile record can impact a child's future. Fortunately, you may have options to clean up a criminal record in Pennsylvania.
The best way to clean up your record in Pennsylvania is typically to expunge it. However, few people will qualify to expunge a criminal record under the state's stringent requirements. But you may still have other options to clean up a conviction for furnishing drug-free urine through the state's Clean Slate and Act 5 sealing options.
Charges for Furnishing Drug-Free Urine
You may face charges for furnishing drug-free urine if you sell or give it to someone else, knowing they will use it to evade or deceive a drug test. The statute states:
(a) Unlawful sale or attempt.--A person commits a misdemeanor of the third degree if he offers for sale, sells, causes to be sold or gives drug-free urine for the purpose of or with the intent or knowledge that the urine will be used for evading or causing deceitful results in a test for the presence of drugs.
18 Pa. Stat. § 7509 (1997). But it is also illegal to attempt to substitute drug-free urine for yours in an attempt to evade the results of a drug test.
(b) Use or attempt.--A person commits a misdemeanor of the third degree if he uses or attempts to use drug-free urine as provided in subsection (a) for the purpose of evading or causing deceitful results in a test for the presence of drugs.
18 Pa. Stat. § 7509 (1997).
Penalties for Furnishing Drug-Free Urine in Pennsylvania
Selling or providing drug-free urine to someone to evade a drug test is a third-degree misdemeanor in Pennsylvania. But using or attempting to use drug-free urine to evade a drug test is also a third-degree misdemeanor. See 18 Pa. Stat. § 7509 (1997). You'll face up to a year in jail and a $2,500 fine if convicted.
Sealing Your Record for Invasion of Privacy Through Clean Slate
For a long time, record sealing in Pennsylvania wasn't very common. Many people either didn't know they were eligible to seal their records, or the process was simply too challenging to navigate. As a result, the Pennsylvania legislature created a new option to clean up a criminal record known as Clean Slate. Under the new Clean Slate legislation, the state will automatically seal your record after five to ten years if you qualify. You may qualify for automatic sealing if:
- Your conviction was for a summary offense, a second-degree misdemeanor, or a third-degree misdemeanor,
- Your conviction was for an ungraded misdemeanor conviction punishable by no more than two years in prison, or
- You were found not guilty, or the state dropped the charges against you, resulting in no conviction.
The state will automatically seal a qualifying summary conviction after five years and a misdemeanor after ten. However, your waiting period may vary if you have a juvenile conviction for using or providing drug-free urine. In fact, if you have a misdemeanor juvenile conviction, you may also be eligible to expunge your record after you turn 18. But your qualifications for expungement can depend on the severity of the offense and how long it's been since you completed your sentence or supervision. That's why you need an experienced attorney from our skilled Criminal Defense Team at the LLF Law Firm.
Sealing Your Record for Invasion of Privacy with an Act 5 Petition
Not everyone will qualify for automatic Clean Slate sealing, but you may still have another option to clean up your record. Under Pennsylvania's Act 5, you can petition the court to seal your record. While the process is not automatic, Act 5 applies to a wider range of convictions and people than Clean Slate. You may qualify to petition the court to seal your record under Act 5 if:
- You wait ten years after completing your sentence,
- You haven't faced any additional arrests or convictions that can. Be punished by a year or more in jail, or
- You have a misdemeanor, whether graded or ungraded, punishable by no more than five years of incarceration.
Hire the LLF Law Firm's Sealing and Expungement Team
If you've got a conviction for furnishing or using drug-free urine to avoid a drug test and you think it's time to clean up your record, we can help. The skilled Criminal Defense Team at the LLF Law Firm has been helping people in Pennsylvania expunge and seal their criminal records for years. Find out how they can help you. Give the LLF Law Firm a call at 888-535-3686 to schedule your consultation today, or contact them online.
