Administering drugs to commit a felony is a serious criminal offense under California law. If you intentionally administer a controlled substance to incapacitate or manipulate a person for criminal purposes, you could face serious legal consequences. California law strictly prohibits the unauthorized distribution or administration of controlled substances and offers little leniency for any crimes related to the distribution and administration of drugs. The penalties you can face depend on your intent and the outcome of your actions.

What does it mean to administer drugs to commit a felony? What drugs facilitate this? And what are the penalties associated with this crime? The information below addresses these questions. Read on to better understand the crime.

An Overview of Administering Drugs to Commit a Felony

According to Penal Code 222, you commit a crime if you administer drugs to another person with the intent to carry out, enable, or facilitate a felony. This law targets the deliberate use of substances, namely:

  • Chloroform — This substance is a sweet-smelling, volatile liquid once used as an anesthetic. Offenders use it because it can quickly render people unconscious on inhalation, especially in abductions or sexual assault cases.
  • Ether — Diethyl ether, like chloroform, is a volatile anesthetic that will render a person unconscious almost instantly when inhaled. It is also used like chloroform, where it quickly incapacitates its victim without the victim knowing it.
  • Laudanum — This is an opium tincture mixed with alcohol, historically used for pain relief and sedation. It has sedative properties that can offer deep relaxation or sleep and is, therefore, a go-to option for people looking to subdue their victims for a long time. Laudanum is used in crimes where longer-term control is required, like in thefts where the victim must remain unconscious or immobile longer than substances like chloroform or ether permit.
  • Poisonous substance — Any substance that can cause injury, illness, or death when ingested, inhaled, or absorbed is also included in the list. Offenders go for poisons in covert crimes like murder, in which the effects of the poison are not noticed immediately. Offenders take advantage of the substance not being immediately noticeable to mislead investigators or have time to escape.
  • Any controlled substance — This includes narcotics, stimulants, depressants, hallucinogens, and other substances regulated due to their potential for abuse and harm. However, these substances are used by criminals to change victims' consciousness, impair victims' judgment, or prevent victims from resisting the criminals physically. Infamously, drugs like GHB and Rohypnol, also known as 'date rape drugs,' become the drug of choice for the offenders. These drugs render victims vulnerable and helpless. These drugs manipulate the victim’s state to steal from or assault the victims and possibly commit other crimes.
  • Stupefying substances — The term "stupefying substances" is overly broad and covers any substance that dulls the senses, impairs cognitive function, or renders one unconscious. This category incorporates newer or developing substances with similar effects. Like controlled substances, stupefying substances disorient or incapacitate victims, allowing bad actors to commit various offenses.
  • Noxious substance — This is any substance that may not be lethal or sedating but would cause a person to suffer great physical discomfort or distress, like strong irritants or allergens. These substances can be used to commit crimes to distract, force, or incapacitate the victim with discomfort. This can incentivize crimes like burglary or theft in which the offender can leave a victim in discomfort, which is enough to render them temporarily incapacitated. This then allows the offender to act without interference.’

A defendant’s intent is at the heart of administering drugs to commit a felony case. For a judge or jury to find you guilty under PC 222, you must have supplied the substance with the intent and purpose of committing or aiding in a felony. This intent separates these actions from lawful or accidental uses, including medical treatment or unintended exposure.

This statute applies to various scenarios. You will be criminally liable under this statute if you spike someone’s drink at a gathering to commit theft or inject a sedative with criminal motives. The law also covers criminal drug use and administering gas or aerosol to incapacitate someone for a felony.

Courts may even infer intent from the circumstances even when your purpose is not immediately apparent. In a situation where you do administer drugs, if there is evidence showing the administering was done in the circumstances associated with crimes like robberies and kidnappings, then the legal system will treat that as part of some broader criminal plan.

Penalties for Administration of Drugs to Commit a Felony

If convicted of PC 222, you would be imprisoned for 16 months, 2 years, or 3 years.

Even if you did not manage to commit the felony you were planning to commit, you could still be convicted under PC 222 for administering drugs with malicious intent. This law targets that very act of drugging somebody to assist or facilitate the commission of a felony. It does not matter if your criminal plan is successful. It is your intent and actions that result in legal consequences.

Consider a scenario where you plan to sedate someone during a burglary. The law does not care if the drug fails to work or if law enforcement intervenes before you can even start the burglary. You are still liable. The law does not look at whether you managed to rob or assault. It is focused on your deliberate choice to use drugs as a tool for crime. That means if your scheme fails, you will still go to prison for administering the substances with the intent to commit a felony.

The severity of the penalties depends upon several critical factors that the court will consider when deciding the appropriate punishment. First and foremost, the nature of the intended felony takes center stage. Crimes of a more serious nature, including sexual assault or kidnapping, usually result in lengthy prison terms than less serious felonies.

Moreover, the penalties depend on how much harm you cause. In case the administration of drugs causes severe physical injury, long-term psychological trauma, or any other grave consequences for the victim, then the court will impose heavier sentences. On the other hand, if the victim suffered little to no harm, you likely face less harsh penalties, depending on different circumstances.

Your criminal history further shapes the outcome. Enhanced penalties often occur when there is a pattern of prior convictions, most often drug-related or violent. However, if you have a clean record and show no prior misconduct, the court may consider that and lessen the degree of punishment.

There are also mitigating and aggravating factors, which are key in sentencing decisions. Mitigating circumstances include genuine remorse, cooperation with law enforcement, and acting under duress. However, aggravating factors, like targeting a vulnerable victim, planning extensively for the crime, or showing no regard for the victim's well-being, are likely to result in harsher consequences.

Other Consequences of a Conviction

The court could also require you to pay fines and restitution alongside a prison sentence. The amount depends on the circumstances of your case, for example, how bad the felony in question was, how much harm you caused, and other aggravating or mitigating factors.

Fines are punitive and deterrent, discouraging you from engaging in similar behavior in the future and discouraging others from engaging in similar behavior.

Restitution aims to make the victim whole again for their loss. That could include paying for medical treatment, counseling, lost income, or other expenses that arise directly from your actions. Restitution lifts the financial burden from victims who have suffered harm to help them recover from that harm. However, restitution does not flow to the state like a fine does. It is directed to the injured party.

Defenses Attorneys Could Use to Fight the Charges

You need to secure the services of an experienced criminal defense attorney who will challenge the charges against you. They will develop strategic defense approaches, scrutinize the evidence, challenge the notion of intent, and work to mitigate or dismiss the accusations.

Here is a look at some of the defenses attorneys use in administering drugs to commit a felony charges:

Lack of Intent

Your attorney can defend you against charges by arguing you lacked the specific intent to perpetrate the crime. They might assert that your actions were not criminal. Some of the non-criminal reasons could be administering the drug because you thought it would help the victim rather than hurt.

Your lawyer could argue that you did not know what you were administering was a controlled or intoxicating agent when you used the substance. Your attorney could argue you administered the drug because of a misunderstanding or misuse, absent any felonious intent, like thinking it was a harmless supplement. Attorneys could also assert that the administration was accidental or that you did not deliberately commit the act knowingly. Your attorney could present evidence of your character, showing you have never harbored any criminal intent.

This defense requires evidence, which could include witness testimony. People can testify about your benign intentions, participation, or consistent, non-criminal behavior. Psychologists, for example, and psychologists might serve as expert witnesses to testify that, at the time, you were not in a mental state to form the intent to commit a crime.

Your lawyer, in cross-examination, would challenge the prosecution’s portrayal of your actions as falling short of meeting the burden of proof. He/she will question the circumstances of the drug administration to cast doubt on your criminal intent. Your attorney would assert that your actions were within normal, non-criminal interactions.

You Were Falsely Accused

If you have been accused falsely under PC 222, your attorney will challenge the evidence in your defense. Attorneys will scrutinize the evidence for reliability, authenticity, or relevance and may reveal tampering, misinterpretation, or outright error.

Your lawyer will present your alibi, evidence that you were in the wrong place at the wrong time, putting you physically in a position where you could not have committed the crime. They will question the credibility of your accusers, exposing any bias, inconsistencies, or unreliability of their testimonies.

Your attorney will explore the motive behind the accusation. Your attorney will argue that you had no reason to commit this act and that your accusers had other motivations behind the allegations. Some of the motives include a personal vendetta like revenge or jealousy. They will gather evidence or testimonies contradicting the prosecution’s narrative, including surveillance footage or witness accounts.

Your attorney will also, during cross-examination, bring out contradictions or fabrications in the accuser's story that may imply the accusation was out of malice or personal gain. They will investigate the accuser for past false claims or any benefit the accuser could gain from your conviction and present it in court. This will help cast doubt on their claims.

Character witnesses will also testify on your behalf. With this defense, your attorney could also focus on any legal or ethical incidents law enforcement might have committed that unintentionally followed the false accusation. These could include legal or technical errors or a violation of your rights.

The Alleged Victim Consented

Your case could hinge on whether the alleged victim consented to the administration of the substance if it were alleged that he/she consented. You need compelling evidence, including witness statements from people who saw consent or text messages, emails, or other involved communications clearly expressing consent. Even an admission from the alleged victim acknowledging consent might prove decisive, depending on their current stance or any changes in their narrative.

The defense has to show the consent was informed and voluntary. The alleged victim must be shown to have understood fully the nature and effects of the substance and to have agreed willingly and without coercion or influence of other substances that could have affected their judgment. Your attorney could argue that whatever non-consent assertions are based on a misunderstanding or a misreading of the situation.

California law requires careful attention to legal details. Consent will not protect you under PC 222 if you intend to use the situation to commit another crime. In other words, your attorney must prove the consent was valid and not a part of a broader illegal scheme.

This defense strategy poses significant challenges. More importantly, you should establish that your actions aligned with the consent and were not used for unlawful purposes. The defense becomes more complex if the alleged victim asserts that he/she did not consent or that he/she was misled about the effects of the substance. It may prove challenging to substantiate this claim without strong corroborative evidence or witnesses.

You Were Coerced

You can claim duress if you acted under coercion. You have to prove that someone threatened to harm you immediately and severely, leaving you little or no other choice than to comply. You also must show that the danger was imminent, so it was impossible to avoid it without committing the act. Furthermore, the harm you sought to prevent must outweigh the gravity of the offense. That is, any reasonable person would have opted to administer the drug out of fear of harm to himself/herself or any of their loved ones, which was great and immediate.

Moreover, courts must find that you had no safe escape and did not voluntarily put yourself in danger of coercion. For example, this defense could be undermined if you have joined a criminal enterprise willingly.

What Happens to Your Case if You Committed the Actual Felony?

If you commit a felony while administering drugs to facilitate the felony, you will be prosecuted for the drug-related offense and the underlying felony charges. That means you could be charged with other crimes, specifically burglary, sexual assault, theft, or kidnapping, depending on the facts of the case.

Prosecutors treat these charges separately, but they will be included in your charge sheet since they are related to the drug case. Each charge addresses the specific aspects of your actions. Prosecutors will focus on drug administration and the following criminal conduct. Usually, a combination of offenses can result in significantly higher penalties.

Find a Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney Near Me

Administering drugs to commit a felony is a grave offense with life-changing implications. These charges impose serious legal consequences, including significant fines, prison time, and lasting damage to your reputation. In these cases, the prosecution relies predominantly on circumstantial evidence, witness testimony, and expert opinion to establish its claim. An experienced attorney can challenge this evidence and identify weaknesses in their assertions. Your defense attorney’s strategy can mean winning or losing your case.

For every case we handle at The LA Criminal Defense Law Firm, we bring years of experience and an intimate knowledge of California law. We understand the importance of the stakes and work with the conviction and fortitude needed to get the best possible result. Once you engage us, we will investigate, gather evidence, and build a strong defense specific to your case. You deserve a defense team prioritizing your rights and fighting for your freedom. Contact us today at 310-935-1675 for a free case assessment.