Can You Be Arrested for Having a Pipe on You In Kentucky?

Kentucky, along with most states, has strengthened its drug laws and penalties over the last several decades as part of the national “War on Drugs”. In more recent years, many states have considered, and even passed laws decriminalizing marijuana which allows the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes, and even making it legal to possess marijuana for recreational purposes. Kentucky is not one of them. Possession of marijuana, along with a long list of other controlled substances, remains illegal in Kentucky. Although you may know that, you may not know that possession of paraphernalia is also illegal in Kentucky.  For example, did you know that you can be arrested for having a pipe on you in Kentucky?

In the Commonwealth of Kentucky it is illegal to possess paraphernalia of any kind. In order to avoid being arrested and convicted for this offense, however, you must know how the word “paraphernalia” is defined. Kentucky Revised Statute 218A.500 defines paraphernalia as:

“Drug paraphernalia” means all equipment, products and materials of any kind which are used, intended for use, or designed for use in planting, propagating, cultivating, growing, harvesting, manufacturing, compounding, converting, producing, processing, preparing, testing, analyzing, packaging, repackaging, storing, containing, concealing, injecting, ingesting, inhaling, or otherwise introducing into the human body a controlled substance in violation of this chapter.

That same definition goes one to provide a number of examples of objects and items that are presumptively considered to be paraphernalia for the purposes of the offense “possession of paraphernalia”. Among the examples provided is the following:

“Objects used, intended for use, or designed for use in ingesting, inhaling, or otherwise introducing marijuana, cocaine, hashish, or hashish oil into the human body, such as: metal, wooden, acrylic, glass, stone, plastic, or ceramic pipes with or without screens, permanent screens, hashish heads, or punctured metal bowls; water pipes; carburetion tubes and devices; smoking and carburetion masks; roach clips which mean objects used to hold burning material, such as marijuana cigarettes, that have become too small or too short to be held in the hand; miniature cocaine spoons, and cocaine vials; chamber pipes; carburetor pipes; electric pipes; air-driven pipes; chillums; bongs; ice pipes or chillers.”

Clearly, you can be arrested for having a pipe on you in Kentucky. The offense of “possession of paraphernalia is charged as a Class A misdemeanor and carries a maximum sentence of one year in jail if convicted.

If you have been charged with possession of paraphernalia, or any other drug related crime, in Kentucky it is important that you consult with an experienced Kentucky criminal defense attorney as soon as possible.