A Travis County POCS lawyer — POCS being shorthand for Possession of a Controlled Substance under the Texas Health and Safety Code — handles cases ranging from misdemeanor marijuana to felony possession with intent to deliver. RRK Law takes calls from people facing a fresh arrest, an upcoming first court setting, or a bond modification need.
Texas drug law is built around penalty groups. Penalty Group 1 includes most opiates, cocaine, methamphetamine, and PCP. Penalty Group 2 includes ecstasy, hashish concentrates, and some hallucinogens. Penalty Group 3 includes many prescription depressants and stimulants. Penalty Group 4 includes certain compounds with other ingredients. Marijuana is treated separately. Penalties scale with the penalty group AND the amount.
Nothing on this page is legal advice. Whether a particular POCS case is best resolved by suppression, by negotiation, by drug treatment, or by trial depends on how the substance was found, how it was tested, and how it was charged.
Need help now? Call RRK Law: (512) 436-2779 — free consultation for Austin, Travis County, and Williamson County.
How Texas penalty groups work
Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 481 organizes controlled substances into penalty groups (Penalty Group 1, 1-A, 1-B, 2, 2-A, 3, and 4). The penalty group plus the weight (or, for certain substances, the dosage units) determines the punishment range. Penalty Group 1 substances at less than one gram are typically a state jail felony; one to four grams is a third-degree felony; four to 200 grams is a second-degree felony; 200 grams to 400 grams is a first-degree felony; and above that the punishment range expands further. Possession of a Penalty Group 1-B substance is charged under §481.115 'Penalty Group 1 or 1-B' and follows the same weight-based punishment scale as Penalty Group 1.
Penalty Group 1-B (Texas Health and Safety Code §481.1022) covers fentanyl, alpha-methylfentanyl, and fentanyl derivatives. Texas created Penalty Group 1-B in 2021 through Senate Bill 768, and House Bill 6 (effective September 1, 2023) expanded §481.1022 to reach additional specified opiates and increased several manufacture-or-delivery penalties under §481.1123. Because the governing fentanyl statutes changed in 2023, a current POCS analysis should confirm whether the charged substance is being treated as Penalty Group 1 or Penalty Group 1-B and apply the law in effect on the date of the alleged offense.
Possession with intent to deliver carries higher punishment ranges than simple possession at the same weight. The State usually relies on circumstantial evidence — quantity, packaging, scales, ledgers, cash, communications — to argue intent to deliver.
Marijuana and concentrate cases are handled separately. Under Health and Safety Code §481.121, marijuana possession runs from Class B misdemeanor at small amounts to felony at larger amounts. Concentrate possession is treated as a different penalty group and the math changes.
Common defenses in POCS cases
Search and seizure. Many POCS cases turn on whether the stop, search, or arrest complied with the Fourth Amendment and Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Articles 14 and 18. Motions to suppress focus on the basis for the stop, the consent or warrant supporting the search, and whether any inventory search was lawful.
Possession vs. presence. "Possession" under Texas law requires actual or constructive possession — care, custody, control, or management. Mere presence near contraband is not, by itself, possession. Cases involving multiple occupants of a car or apartment frequently require the State to link the substance to a specific defendant beyond the bare fact of presence.
Lab testing. The substance must be tested by a qualified laboratory and the results must be admissible. Chain of custody, lab analyst qualifications, and the testing methodology all matter. Defects can affect the weight or admissibility of the result.
Diversion, treatment, and deferred options
Some POCS cases qualify for pretrial diversion, deferred adjudication, drug court, or treatment-based dispositions. Eligibility depends on the charge, the penalty group, prior criminal history, and local prosecutor practices. A first-time low-weight possession case is often resolvable without a final conviction; a higher-weight or repeat case is harder.
Deferred adjudication under Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Chapter 42A allows the case to be resolved without a conviction if the defendant successfully completes the deferred term. Successful completion may also support a later nondisclosure (record sealing) petition under Government Code Chapter 411 for certain offenses.
Drug court programs, where available, combine close supervision, treatment, and frequent testing in exchange for an eventual reduced or dismissed disposition. Eligibility is fact-specific and requires admission to the program.
Local procedure in Travis County
After booking at Travis County jail in downtown Austin, magistration sets bond and conditions. POCS bond conditions often include drug testing, treatment-program attendance, travel restrictions, and search conditions. Conditions imposed at magistration are difficult to change without a real basis.
The first court setting is in the Travis County Criminal Justice Center in downtown Austin. Felony POCS cases run through the District Courts; misdemeanor POCS cases run through the County Courts at Law. The State usually requires lab confirmation before the case can be tried; the time it takes for lab results varies and can affect the case timeline.
Discovery includes the offense report, body camera footage, the inventory of seized property, the lab report (when available), and any prior statements. Defense counsel typically requests these early and identifies suppression issues before the first announcement.
How RRK Law handles a Travis County POCS case
Call (512) 436-2779. The first call confirms bond and conditions, identifies the penalty group and weight alleged, and sets the document set the defense needs.
The intake gathers the charging document, the magistrate's order, the inventory of seized property, and any lab report already issued. Discovery and preservation requests follow, including a request for the body camera footage and the lab analyst's case file.
Strategy depends on the suppression posture (was the stop and search lawful), the possession posture (does the State have to link the substance to the defendant), and the lab posture (is the testing solid). The right approach comes from the actual record, not from generic projections.
What does POCS stand for in Texas?
POCS is short for Possession of a Controlled Substance under Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 481. It applies to substances organized into penalty groups (Penalty Group 1, 1-A, 1-B, 2, 2-A, 3, and 4) and is charged based on the penalty group and the weight (or dosage units) involved.
Is a Penalty Group 1 felony always a long prison sentence?
Not always. Penalty Group 1 possession ranges from a state jail felony at less than one gram (180 days to 2 years in a state jail facility) up to a first-degree felony or higher at larger weights. Many lower-weight cases resolve with probation, deferred adjudication, or treatment-based dispositions where the facts and prior history justify it.
What if the drugs were not mine?
Texas law requires the State to prove possession — actual or constructive care, custody, control, or management of the substance — beyond a reasonable doubt. Mere presence near contraband is not the same as possession. Cases involving multiple occupants of a car or residence often require the State to link the substance to a specific defendant with additional evidence.
Can a Texas POCS case be sealed or removed from my record?
Some POCS cases qualify for an expunction (where the case was dismissed or resulted in acquittal) or for an order of nondisclosure that seals the record from public view (after successful completion of deferred adjudication for eligible offenses). Eligibility depends on the charge, the outcome, prior history, and the controlling Government Code Chapter 411 provisions.
Are these calls confidential even if I do not hire the firm?
Yes. Rule 503 protects confidential communications made to obtain legal services, and its definition of "client" includes a person who consults a lawyer with a view to obtaining those services, even if the firm is not retained. Keep the consultation limited to people whose participation furthers the legal consultation or is reasonably necessary to transmit the communication; the presence of an unnecessary third party can defeat confidentiality or support a waiver argument.
Related RRK Law resources
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The Law Offices of RRK, LLC represents Austin and Central Texas clients on personal injury, family law, and criminal defense matters. Free consultations. Call (512) 436-2779 or visit rrklawoffice.com.