(a) It is an offense to knowingly manufacture, deliver, sell, or possess with the intent to sell, deliver or manufacture an imitation controlled substance.

Attorney's Note

Under the Tennessee Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
class E felony1 to 6 yearsup to $3,000
class A misdemeanorup to 11 monthsup to $2,500
For details, see Tenn. Code § 40-35-111
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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 39-17-453

  • Agent: means an authorized person who acts on behalf of or at the direction of a manufacturer, distributor, or dispenser. See Tennessee Code 39-17-402
  • Controlled substance: means a drug, substance, or immediate precursor in Schedules I through VII of §. See Tennessee Code 39-17-402
  • Distribute: means to deliver other than by administering or dispensing a controlled substance. See Tennessee Code 39-17-402
  • Drug: means :
    (A) Substances recognized as drugs in the United States Pharmacopoeia, official Homeopaths Pharmacopoeia of the United States, or official National Formulary, or any supplement to any of them. See Tennessee Code 39-17-402
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Manufacture: means the production, preparation, propagation, compounding, conversion or processing of a controlled substance, either directly or indirectly by extraction from substances of natural origin, or independently by means of chemical synthesis, and includes any packaging or repackaging of the substance or labeling or relabeling of its container, except that "manufacture" does not include the preparation or compounding of a controlled substance by an individual for the individual's own use or the preparation, compounding, packaging, or labeling of a controlled substance by:
    (A) A practitioner as an incident to administering or dispensing a controlled substance in the course of professional practice. See Tennessee Code 39-17-402
  • Owner: means a person, other than the defendant, who has possession of or any interest other than a mortgage, deed of trust or security interest in property, even though that possession or interest is unlawful and without whose consent the defendant has no authority to exert control over the property. See Tennessee Code 39-11-106
  • Person: means an individual, corporation, governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership or association or any other legal entity. See Tennessee Code 39-17-402
  • Property: means anything of value, including, but not limited to, money, real estate, tangible or intangible personal property, including anything severed from land, library material, contract rights, choses-in-action, interests in or claims to wealth, credit, admission or transportation tickets, captured or domestic animals, food and drink, electric or other power. See Tennessee Code 39-11-106
  • Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
  • United States: includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • written: includes printing, typewriting, engraving, lithography, and any other mode of representing words and letters. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(b) No person shall, for the purpose of causing a condition of intoxication, inebriation, elation, dizziness, excitement, stupefaction, paralysis, or the dulling of the brain or nervous system, or disturbing or distorting of the audio or visual processes, intentionally smell, inhale, inject, ingest or consume in any manner whatsoever an imitation controlled substance.
(c) No person shall, for the purpose of violating subsection (b), use, or possess for the purpose of so using, an imitation controlled substance.
(d) For purposes of this section:

(1)

(A) “Imitation controlled substance” means a pill, capsule, tablet, or substance in any form whatsoever if it:

(i) Is not a controlled substance enumerated in this part;
(ii) Is subject to abuse;
(iii) Purports, by express or implied representations, to act like a controlled substance that is a stimulant or depressant of the central nervous system; and
(iv) Is not commonly used or recognized for use in that particular formulation for any purpose other than as a stimulant or depressant of the central nervous system; or
(B)

(i) The chemical structure of the substance is a derivative or analogue of the chemical structure of a controlled substance; and
(ii) The substance is not commonly used or recognized for use in that particular formulation for any purpose other than as a stimulant or depressant of the central nervous system.
(2) “Imitation controlled substance” does not include a pill, capsule, tablet, or substance in any form whatsoever if it is marketed or promoted, or sold as permitted by the United States food and drug administration.
(e)

(1) In determining whether a pill, capsule, tablet, or substance in any other form whatsoever, is an imitation controlled substance, there shall be considered, in addition to all other relevant factors, comparisons with accepted methods of marketing for legitimate nonprescription drugs for medicinal purposes rather than for drug abuse or any similar nonmedicinal use, including consideration of the packaging of the drug and its appearance in overall finished dosage form, promotional materials or representations, oral or written, concerning the drug, and the methods of distribution of the drug and where and how it is sold to the public.
(2) In determining whether any person intends to manufacture, sell, give or distribute an imitation controlled substance, it may be inferred from, in addition to all other relevant evidence, whether any distribution or attempted distribution of such pill, capsule, tablet or substance in any other form whatsoever included an exchange of or a demand for money or other property as consideration, and, if so, whether the amount of such consideration was substantially greater than the reasonable value of such pill, capsule, tablet or substance in any other form whatsoever, considering the actual chemical composition of such pill, capsule, tablet or substance in any other form whatsoever and, where applicable, the price at which over-the-counter substances of like chemical composition sell. Such inference shall be transmitted to the jury by the trial judge’s charge.
(f)

(1) A violation of subsection (a) is a Class E felony. In addition to any period of incarceration imposed, there shall be imposed a fine of not less than two thousand dollars ($2,000) and not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000).
(2) A violation of subsection (b) or (c) is a Class A misdemeanor. In addition to any period of incarceration imposed, there shall be imposed a fine of not less than two hundred fifty dollars ($250) and not more than two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500).
(g) The building and premises of any business in or upon which a violation of this section is committed by an employee, agent or owner of such business is declared to be a public nuisance and shall be subject to abatement as provided in title 29, chapter 3.
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