On April 13, 2023, Governor Jay Inslee signed ESB 1209, which creates a new crime is related to the use of tableting and encapsulating machines in connection with controlled substances.

Under the new law, it is a class C felony, punishable by up to five years in prison, a $10,000 fine, or both, for any person to possess, purchase, deliver, sell, or possess with intent to sell a tableting or encapsulating machine knowing, or under circumstance were the person reasonably should know, that it will be used to manufacture, compound, convert, produce, process, prepare, or otherwise introduce into the human body a controlled substance other than cannabis.

Pills on the streets are being laced with fentanyl more and more often. Pill presses make it extremely easy for bad actors to make these lethal pills. These pill presses can create up to 3000 deadly pills per hour.

The crime is classified as a seriousness level II crime, meaning a person convicted of this crime with no relevant criminal history would face a standard sentence range between 0 and 90 days imprisonment.

Encapsulating machine is defined as any manual, semiautomatic, or fully automatic equipment that can be used to fill shells or capsules with powdered or granular solids or semisolid material to produce coherent solid contents.

Tableting machine is defined as any manual, semi-automatic, or fully automatic equipment that can be used to compact, compress, or mold powdered or granular solids or semisolid material to produce fused coherent solid tablets.

Local Attorneys Althauser Rayan Abbarno, LLP

To learn more or meeting with our criminal defense attorneys with Althauser Rayan Abbarno in Centralia or Olympia, call (360) 736-1301 or visit CentraliaLaw.com