Drug Possession Laws in Georgia

Possessing a controlled substance without authorization is a felony in Georgia. For Schedule I or narcotic Schedule II drugs: less than 1 gram is punished 'by imprisonment for not less than one nor more than three years'; 1 to under 4 grams, one to eight years; 4 to under 28 grams, one to 15 years (larger amounts are trafficking). Possession of Schedule III, IV or V drugs is one to three years (one to five for a third or later conviction). Using or possessing drug-related objects (paraphernalia, excluding needles and syringes) is a misdemeanor. A first-time possession defendant may, once, receive conditional discharge: probation without a judgment of guilt, with dismissal on successful completion.

Georgia's rule on court-appointed lawyers: Applicants must complete and sign an application and verification and are interviewed at the detention center or the public defender's office. Income standards under O.C.G.A. § 17-12-2, as stated by the public defender office: for misdemeanors, probation violations and county or municipal offenses, a person who 'earns less than 100 percent of the federal poverty guidelines'; for juveniles, those 'whose parents earn less than 125 percent of the federal poverty guidelines'; for felonies, 'less than 150 percent of the federal poverty guidelines' — each with an exception for people with other resources that could reasonably pay for a lawyer, and no one with income above 150 percent of the federal poverty level is considered indigent. Application fee: Georgia law requires every person who applies for public defense services 'to pay the Public Defender Office a single fee of $50'; 'The court shall waive this fee if it finds that you are unable to pay the fee or that hardship will result if the fee is charged.' Attorney fees for court-appointed representation may also be imposed by the court at sentencing. O.C.G.A. §§ 15-21A-6(b), 17-12-2 (as quoted by the Chatham County Public Defender Office, Eastern Judicial Circuit)

Lawyers set their own fees, and Georgia has rules on how they may charge. See hiring a criminal defense lawyer in Georgia for fee rules, how to check a lawyer's license and free help.

Each state sets its own rules for sealing or expunging records. See Georgia expungement and record sealing rules.