Is Attempted Drug Possession Subject to Mandatory Jail Sentences Specified In Possession Statute?
State of Ohio v. Jomo K. Taylor, Case no. 2006-0568 2nd District Court of Appeals (Montgomery County) ISSUE: When a criminal defendant is found guilty of attempting to possess a quantity of an illegal drug that would constitute a first-degree felony if the attempt had been successful, is that defendant subject to sentencing under the state’s general felony sentencing statute (and therefore eligible for possible judicial release), or must the defendant be sentenced to a mandatory prison term under the statute applicable to offenders who actually possess illegal drugs? BACKGROUND: R.C. 2925.11 is the Ohio statute that defines and sets penalties for the offense of possession of illegal drugs. The statute assigns various degrees of severity to violations ranging from a misdemeanor to a first-degree felony based on the type and amount of drugs possessed by the defendant. The possession statute explicitly requires state courts to impose a mandatory prison sentence on any offender found guilt
