Judge in Floyd case opens door for an acquital.

[progressive hunter]

Passing a counterfeit $20 in Minnesota is a misdemeanor...IF they can prove intent.

To my knowledge it's a federal crime.

You are correct.

What are the penalties for using counterfeit money?

The penalties for using counterfeit money are fines of $15,000 or more and 15 years in prison. Penalties for unknowingly using counterfeit money vary by state but typically involve imprisonment and fines.

www.freeadvice.com

Using or manufacturing counterfeit money is a violation of the United States Code and can be considered criminal fraud. Counterfeiting of currency is not a minor offense, but is actually considered a federal felony handled by the U.S. Secret Service Office.

The denomination does not matter.

Here is the Minnesota Law:

https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/609.632

Whether a felony or misdemeanor depends on the penalty.

Minnesota Statutes 609.632 – Counterfeiting of Currency » LawServer

www.lawserver.com

• Felony: A crime carrying a penalty of more than a year in prison.
• Misdemeanor: Usually a petty offense, a less serious crime than a felony, punishable by less than a year of confinement.

As that shows and as I said...passing a counterfeit note less than $1,000 is a misdemeanor in Minnesota, IF they can prove intent.

He was being arrested by a STATE LEO so Federal law was not the issue

That depends on how many fake $20 bills he had access to.

...but I'll give you that point.

he also stole a pack of cigarettes from the store. And the store called.

To note......the clerk said he knew that if the bill was fake it would come out of his check.

That is also illegal. An employee is not responsible for the losses of a business.

they are responsible if they cause the loss,,

Low wage clerks can't be expected to be currency experts.

thats irrelevant to the topic,, and they are trained to detect them,,,

 

[jc456]

Passing a counterfeit $20 in Minnesota is a misdemeanor...IF they can prove intent.

To my knowledge it's a federal crime.

You are correct.

What are the penalties for using counterfeit money?

The penalties for using counterfeit money are fines of $15,000 or more and 15 years in prison. Penalties for unknowingly using counterfeit money vary by state but typically involve imprisonment and fines.

www.freeadvice.com

Using or manufacturing counterfeit money is a violation of the United States Code and can be considered criminal fraud. Counterfeiting of currency is not a minor offense, but is actually considered a federal felony handled by the U.S. Secret Service Office.

The denomination does not matter.

Here is the Minnesota Law:

https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/609.632

Whether a felony or misdemeanor depends on the penalty.

Minnesota Statutes 609.632 – Counterfeiting of Currency » LawServer

www.lawserver.com

• Felony: A crime carrying a penalty of more than a year in prison.
• Misdemeanor: Usually a petty offense, a less serious crime than a felony, punishable by less than a year of confinement.

As that shows and as I said...passing a counterfeit note less than $1,000 is a misdemeanor in Minnesota, IF they can prove intent.

He was being arrested by a STATE LEO so Federal law was not the issue

That depends on how many fake $20 bills he had access to.

...but I'll give you that point.

he also stole a pack of cigarettes from the store. And the store called.

To note......the clerk said he knew that if the bill was fake it would come out of his check.

That is also illegal. An employee is not responsible for the losses of a business.

they are responsible if they cause the loss,,

if the drawer is short and it's your drawer, it's that person's responsibility to ensure the drawer is balanced.

It wouldn't have been short.

correct, the fake bill would have introduced a different scenario like I said, I don't know those rules. That fake bill would have eventually been reported, not sure if they get reimbursed at all by the banks. Also, since the business trains the people on how to look for counterfeit bill, again, I don't know the legal ramifications as for accountability. If it's explained in job duties, it may be legal to hold the person accountable.

 

[jc456]

Passing a counterfeit $20 in Minnesota is a misdemeanor...IF they can prove intent.

To my knowledge it's a federal crime.

You are correct.

What are the penalties for using counterfeit money?

The penalties for using counterfeit money are fines of $15,000 or more and 15 years in prison. Penalties for unknowingly using counterfeit money vary by state but typically involve imprisonment and fines.

www.freeadvice.com

Using or manufacturing counterfeit money is a violation of the United States Code and can be considered criminal fraud. Counterfeiting of currency is not a minor offense, but is actually considered a federal felony handled by the U.S. Secret Service Office.

The denomination does not matter.

Here is the Minnesota Law:

https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/609.632

Whether a felony or misdemeanor depends on the penalty.

Minnesota Statutes 609.632 – Counterfeiting of Currency » LawServer

www.lawserver.com

• Felony: A crime carrying a penalty of more than a year in prison.
• Misdemeanor: Usually a petty offense, a less serious crime than a felony, punishable by less than a year of confinement.

As that shows and as I said...passing a counterfeit note less than $1,000 is a misdemeanor in Minnesota, IF they can prove intent.

He was being arrested by a STATE LEO so Federal law was not the issue

That depends on how many fake $20 bills he had access to.

...but I'll give you that point.

he also stole a pack of cigarettes from the store. And the store called.

To note......the clerk said he knew that if the bill was fake it would come out of his check.

That is also illegal. An employee is not responsible for the losses of a business.

they are responsible if they cause the loss,,

Low wage clerks can't be expected to be currency experts.

legally, if it's in their job description and they are trained against it, it is.

 

[jc456]

Passing a counterfeit $20 in Minnesota is a misdemeanor...IF they can prove intent.

To my knowledge it's a federal crime.

You are correct.

What are the penalties for using counterfeit money?

The penalties for using counterfeit money are fines of $15,000 or more and 15 years in prison. Penalties for unknowingly using counterfeit money vary by state but typically involve imprisonment and fines.

www.freeadvice.com

Using or manufacturing counterfeit money is a violation of the United States Code and can be considered criminal fraud. Counterfeiting of currency is not a minor offense, but is actually considered a federal felony handled by the U.S. Secret Service Office.

The denomination does not matter.

Here is the Minnesota Law:

https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/609.632

Whether a felony or misdemeanor depends on the penalty.

Minnesota Statutes 609.632 – Counterfeiting of Currency » LawServer

www.lawserver.com

• Felony: A crime carrying a penalty of more than a year in prison.
• Misdemeanor: Usually a petty offense, a less serious crime than a felony, punishable by less than a year of confinement.

As that shows and as I said...passing a counterfeit note less than $1,000 is a misdemeanor in Minnesota, IF they can prove intent.

He was being arrested by a STATE LEO so Federal law was not the issue

That depends on how many fake $20 bills he had access to.

...but I'll give you that point.

he also stole a pack of cigarettes from the store. And the store called.

To note......the clerk said he knew that if the bill was fake it would come out of his check.

That is also illegal. An employee is not responsible for the losses of a business.

they are responsible if they cause the loss,,

Low wage clerks can't be expected to be currency experts.

BTW, this is my issue with you. there is no gray area in your posts, it either is or isn't. You have no idea what the legal rules are for that, and yet you post this nonsense. You have no idea what the business may have filed with the EEOC. Come on dude, stop being such a cry baby.

 

[pknopp]

Passing a counterfeit $20 in Minnesota is a misdemeanor...IF they can prove intent.

To my knowledge it's a federal crime.

You are correct.

What are the penalties for using counterfeit money?

The penalties for using counterfeit money are fines of $15,000 or more and 15 years in prison. Penalties for unknowingly using counterfeit money vary by state but typically involve imprisonment and fines.

www.freeadvice.com

Using or manufacturing counterfeit money is a violation of the United States Code and can be considered criminal fraud. Counterfeiting of currency is not a minor offense, but is actually considered a federal felony handled by the U.S. Secret Service Office.

The denomination does not matter.

Here is the Minnesota Law:

https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/609.632

Whether a felony or misdemeanor depends on the penalty.

Minnesota Statutes 609.632 – Counterfeiting of Currency » LawServer

www.lawserver.com

• Felony: A crime carrying a penalty of more than a year in prison.
• Misdemeanor: Usually a petty offense, a less serious crime than a felony, punishable by less than a year of confinement.

As that shows and as I said...passing a counterfeit note less than $1,000 is a misdemeanor in Minnesota, IF they can prove intent.

He was being arrested by a STATE LEO so Federal law was not the issue

That depends on how many fake $20 bills he had access to.

...but I'll give you that point.

he also stole a pack of cigarettes from the store. And the store called.

To note......the clerk said he knew that if the bill was fake it would come out of his check.

That is also illegal. An employee is not responsible for the losses of a business.

they are responsible if they cause the loss,,

Low wage clerks can't be expected to be currency experts.

thats irrelevant to the topic,, and they are trained to detect them,,,

They are not paid to be experts and will miss some and are not responsible.

 

[jc456]

Passing a counterfeit $20 in Minnesota is a misdemeanor...IF they can prove intent.

To my knowledge it's a federal crime.

You are correct.

What are the penalties for using counterfeit money?

The penalties for using counterfeit money are fines of $15,000 or more and 15 years in prison. Penalties for unknowingly using counterfeit money vary by state but typically involve imprisonment and fines.

www.freeadvice.com

Using or manufacturing counterfeit money is a violation of the United States Code and can be considered criminal fraud. Counterfeiting of currency is not a minor offense, but is actually considered a federal felony handled by the U.S. Secret Service Office.

The denomination does not matter.

Here is the Minnesota Law:

https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/609.632

Whether a felony or misdemeanor depends on the penalty.

Minnesota Statutes 609.632 – Counterfeiting of Currency » LawServer

www.lawserver.com

• Felony: A crime carrying a penalty of more than a year in prison.
• Misdemeanor: Usually a petty offense, a less serious crime than a felony, punishable by less than a year of confinement.

As that shows and as I said...passing a counterfeit note less than $1,000 is a misdemeanor in Minnesota, IF they can prove intent.

He was being arrested by a STATE LEO so Federal law was not the issue

That depends on how many fake $20 bills he had access to.

...but I'll give you that point.

he also stole a pack of cigarettes from the store. And the store called.

To note......the clerk said he knew that if the bill was fake it would come out of his check.

That is also illegal. An employee is not responsible for the losses of a business.

they are responsible if they cause the loss,,

Low wage clerks can't be expected to be currency experts.

thats irrelevant to the topic,, and they are trained to detect them,,,

They are not paid to be experts and will miss some and are not responsible.

you don't know that. How the fk would you know that?

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

correct, the fake bill would have introduced a different scenario like I said, I don't know those rules. That fake bill would have eventually been reported, not sure if they get reimbursed at all by the banks. Also, since the business trains the people on how to look for counterfeit bill, again, I don't know the legal ramifications as for accountability. If it's explained in job duties, it may be legal to hold the person accountable.

Stores have a high lighter that they mark the bill with. If they mark the bill and it changes color, it's a fake bill.

 

[pknopp]

Passing a counterfeit $20 in Minnesota is a misdemeanor...IF they can prove intent.

To my knowledge it's a federal crime.

You are correct.

What are the penalties for using counterfeit money?

The penalties for using counterfeit money are fines of $15,000 or more and 15 years in prison. Penalties for unknowingly using counterfeit money vary by state but typically involve imprisonment and fines.

www.freeadvice.com

Using or manufacturing counterfeit money is a violation of the United States Code and can be considered criminal fraud. Counterfeiting of currency is not a minor offense, but is actually considered a federal felony handled by the U.S. Secret Service Office.

The denomination does not matter.

Here is the Minnesota Law:

https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/609.632

Whether a felony or misdemeanor depends on the penalty.

Minnesota Statutes 609.632 – Counterfeiting of Currency » LawServer

www.lawserver.com

• Felony: A crime carrying a penalty of more than a year in prison.
• Misdemeanor: Usually a petty offense, a less serious crime than a felony, punishable by less than a year of confinement.

As that shows and as I said...passing a counterfeit note less than $1,000 is a misdemeanor in Minnesota, IF they can prove intent.

He was being arrested by a STATE LEO so Federal law was not the issue

That depends on how many fake $20 bills he had access to.

...but I'll give you that point.

he also stole a pack of cigarettes from the store. And the store called.

To note......the clerk said he knew that if the bill was fake it would come out of his check.

That is also illegal. An employee is not responsible for the losses of a business.

they are responsible if they cause the loss,,

Low wage clerks can't be expected to be currency experts.

BTW, this is my issue with you. there is no gray area in your posts, it either is or isn't. You have no idea what the legal rules are for that, and yet you post this nonsense. You have no idea what the business may have filed with the EEOC. Come on dude, stop being such a cry baby.

A long time ago I went through something similar. I didn't report try employer but someone else did. The employer had to pay up.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

To note......the clerk said he knew that if the bill was fake it would come out of his check.

That is also illegal. An employee is not responsible for the losses of a business.

It is if that person caused the loss and it was company policy. Nothing illegal about it.

 

[DGS49]

I have no doubt that a small shop owner would have a policy that any clerk accepting a counterfeit bill is financially responsible, but I doubt that that rule would hold up if challenged before the Wage & Hour Division (DoL).

Nevertheless, an unsophisticated store clerk would certainly take that rule seriously, as did the clerk here.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

I have no doubt that a small shop owner would have a policy that any clerk accepting a counterfeit bill is financially responsible, but I doubt that that rule would hold up if challenged before the Wage & Hour Division (DoL).

Nevertheless, an unsophisticated store clerk would certainly take that rule seriously, as did the clerk here.

It only takes a second to check a 20 dollar bill. It takes much less time than having to verify a valid ID to cash a customers check. If it's part of your job, then it's part of your job.

 

[Rigby5]

That is the whole point.
The police SHOULD be our front man, that protects us from these awful violations of legal principles.
These abuses should never have gotten to the public, where is harmed hundreds of thousands and cost millions of dollars.
And yes, ultimately it IS we who have to finally decide when our legislators have crossed the line and we have had enough.
That is what the American Revolution was all about, and clearly rebellion is not a one shot deal.
Since governments always tend towards being more corrupt, then rebellion is a guaranteed and continuing cycle.
Our state and federal leaders are NOT the source of legal authority. We are. And they only borrow what authority we delegate to them.

Correct. However a police officer is not the front man, your representatives are. The job of the police officer is to enforce the laws created, and those laws are created by elected politicians.

Don't blame police officers for doing their job. We've all done jobs where we disagreed with management. On the last job I worked, I one time in 25 years expressed how he was running the company the wrong way. My employer told me to mind my own business. He didn't hire me to think, he hired me to drive the truck, and leave the thinking to him. If I didn't like the way he ran his business, then don't let the door hit me in the ass on the way out.

From that point on, I never told him a thing about running his business. I drove the truck as he paid me to do. I knew he was breaking even on some of the jobs, losing money on others, over charging on jobs and losing customers because of it, but it wasn't my place to inform him of his bad business policies. I simply did my job and cashed my paycheck at the end of every two weeks. Police officers are no different.

Yes, police ARE VERY different from a private sector job, and it is illegal to just "do what your boss" says in a public sector job, when your boss is violating the law.
That is because it is NOT actually your boss who pays you when you have a public sector job.
If police do not complain about illegal legislation by corrupt politicians, then they essentially are illegal co-conspirators in an actual crime.

If someone tells you to rob a bank and you go do it, then who is the guilty party? Is it the person who told you to do it, or you who actually did it?

Police ARE different than a private sector job in that they are getting paid with tax payer money, not the boss's money.

 

[Rigby5]

I would have sat him up and allowed him to remain alive

How would you have put him in the squad car? You get that was the task?

and that Floyd was resisting?

He was in the squad car until they took him out to murder him.

You're a lying little bitch with a punk attitude. Low IQ human scum like you get shot by cops and deserve it.

Floyd was in the back seat of the police car at one time.
Don't know why they took him back out.
Probably because they laid him down, and by not seeing out the windows, he got claustrophobic.

 

[Rigby5]

BREAKING: George Floyd's ex gf testifies about his past drug addiction:

Derek Chauvin trial: George Floyd's ex-girlfriend testifies about his drug use, their relationship

The trial for former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who faces murder and manslaughter charges in connection with the death of George Floyd, continued into its fourth day on Thursday, with Floyd’s former girlfriend recalling how the pair met and their shared history of narcotics addiction.

www.foxnews.com

There went the prosecutions case. Acquittal is all but assured. Remember Chauvin is innocent until proven guilty. He doesn't have to prove innocence. Reasonable doubt is an ugly thing to a prosecutor.

Not at all.
Past drug use means he would have a much higher drug tolerance, not less.
So then it is even more likely that Chauvin murdered Floyd.
And since Chauvin worked the same night clubs that Floyd did, as bouncers, then it is also likely Chauvin knew Floyd and deliberately murdered him for some reason.
There is no reasonable doubt.
Everyone saw Chauvin commit deliberate murder.

Wrong. It means he's a drug addict and drug addicts can be very unpredictable when high on drugs and confronted by cops. He was caught with drugs and had drugs in his system at the time of death.

Acquit.

Except drugs harm the rights of no one else, and that means the police should have no jurisdiction over drugs at all.
And no, he was not caught with any drugs.
He had drugs in this system, but they were not the cause of death according to the autopsy.

Yes he had drugs in his mouth.

Whether or not drugs "harm the rights of others" is not the topic of conversation. A drug addict passing off a fake 20 dollar bill that fought with police when arrested is. .

You throw these fucking arguments out that have zero legal merit and you actually think you are correct.

I am correct because I am going back to fundamentals, as to exactly what the legal authority of police is.
Police do NOT have authority to arrest someone for something like drugs, that have no effect on the rights of anyone else.
Victimless crimes, nanny laws, like prohibition, are inherently illegal.
All the police involved in enforcing prohibition and the War on Drugs are committing a crime.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

I am correct because I am going back to fundamentals, as to exactly what the legal authority of police is.
Police do NOT have authority to arrest someone for something like drugs, that have no effect on the rights of anyone else.
Victimless crimes, nanny laws, like prohibition, are inherently illegal.
All the police involved in enforcing prohibition and the War on Drugs are committing a crime.

What makes something legal or illegal are the people we vote for. There is nothing inherently legal or illegal. So if we as a people collectively decide that non-prescribed drugs should be illegal, then they are illegal. I think they should be illegal. I've known several people who died from opiod products including a family member. As a citizen of our society, I would hate to see even more people die because of dope.

 

[Rigby5]

Uh, yeah, if you do something that horrifies everyone who saw it, who probably would have stopped you if you and your buddies didn't have guns. Um, yeah.

The people in the crowd were screaming to make Chauvin stop, but he killed the guy.

Revealing your ignorance of our justice system once again. No, a jury is only supposed to vote based on law--not how other people felt at the time.

Works on the assumption you'd get convictions. Put me on a jury, I'd vote to acquit every time. They have insurance.

Again, your ignorance on our justice system. If you were on a jury and voted that way with overwhelming evidence of guilt, you are the one that should be put in prison for perjury.

Only person I saw creating "Chaos" was Trump. Day to day, it was a different story from that guy.

If anything, the riots helped Trump, which is why he did so little to stop them. Gotta scare those white people into voting for more plutocracy.

What did you want Trump to do to stop them? He offered them all help, and they told him to go beat a salt bag. A President cannot help any city or state that refuses his offer. Learn about the powers of a US President.

again, you mistake a parasite for vital organ. The country worked a lot better when the workers got the money and the rich got taxed.

Yeah, it worked so well that companies left the state or country to get away from unions bleeding the companies dry. The vital organ is the person(s) that created the product, created the jobs, and created the work environment and paying all the bills. A worker simply works.

Yeah, that's why the city paid out 6 million because they knew they had such a solid case.

No, because if they didn't pay this worthless fat bitch the money, the Mayor would have been voted out.

Not true.
Legislation is not perfect, and is supposed to be interpreted with common sense by the police.
When the police act in such a way as to cause revulsion by the crowd, then yes that is appropriate for the jury to take into account.
That would include excesses like police tasing a 7 year old, tasing someone holding a small dog, kicking or punching someone, or hundreds of things we have seen police do in videos.

Haven't you ever heard of "jury nullification"?
The jury does and is supposed to used a wider range of values other than mere legislation.
That is not only because legislation is never exact, but also because legislation sometimes can just be completely wrong.

As for the $6 million pay out, I assume that was the shooting of Tamir Rice with a toy gun. And clearly the police were entirely at fault since they could have stopped the car 100' away, and used the loud speaker to ask him to put the toy gun on the ground before they approached. Instead they drove up on the grass 10' away from him and jumped out of their car. Well of course then it was dangerous, but it was all their own making. You can't claim self defense when you deliberately cause all the risk. In fact, if it were a real gun, Tamir Rice could have legally killed them under the excuse the police scared him by driving up on the grass like that.

 

[Rigby5]

I am correct because I am going back to fundamentals, as to exactly what the legal authority of police is.
Police do NOT have authority to arrest someone for something like drugs, that have no effect on the rights of anyone else.
Victimless crimes, nanny laws, like prohibition, are inherently illegal.
All the police involved in enforcing prohibition and the War on Drugs are committing a crime.

What makes something legal or illegal are the people we vote for. There is nothing inherently legal or illegal. So if we as a people collectively decide that non-prescribed drugs should be illegal, then they are illegal. I think they should be illegal. I've known several people who died from opiod products including a family member. As a citizen of our society, I would hate to see even more people die because of dope.

Wrong.
Read Thomas Jefferson or anyone else, and they will tell you that legislators are NOT the source of any legal authority.
In a democratic republic, then legally you must be able to do whatever you want, and the only constraints come from when you start to infringe upon the rights of others.
And only then does the inherent rights of others allow for constraints on your actions to become legal.

But you are also confused as to facts.
Prohibition and the War on Drugs have proven without a doubt that more people die when you try to make something illegal, than if you simply try to inform people of the dangers.
That is because it is actually a medical problem, and once you make it illegal, you prevent any medical intervention.
The main problem with drugs is that since they are illegal, there is no quality control and dose varies greatly.
People do not deliberately overdose.
They overdose because they are guessing dosage due to illegal drugs not having prescribed doses.
Every single illegal drug death is caused because the drug was illegal.

 

[Rigby5]

correct, the fake bill would have introduced a different scenario like I said, I don't know those rules. That fake bill would have eventually been reported, not sure if they get reimbursed at all by the banks. Also, since the business trains the people on how to look for counterfeit bill, again, I don't know the legal ramifications as for accountability. If it's explained in job duties, it may be legal to hold the person accountable.

Stores have a high lighter that they mark the bill with. If they mark the bill and it changes color, it's a fake bill.

Yes, a good bill marks as yellow and a fake bill gets a darker color.
But that is not often done, as it takes time.

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

Not true.
Legislation is not perfect, and is supposed to be interpreted with common sense by the police.
When the police act in such a way as to cause revulsion by the crowd, then yes that is appropriate for the jury to take into account.
That would include excesses like police tasing a 7 year old, tasing someone holding a small dog, kicking or punching someone, or hundreds of things we have seen police do in videos.

Haven't you ever heard of "jury nullification"?
The jury does and is supposed to used a wider range of values other than mere legislation.
That is not only because legislation is never exact, but also because legislation sometimes can just be completely wrong.

As for the $6 million pay out, I assume that was the shooting of Tamir Rice with a toy gun. And clearly the police were entirely at fault since they could have stopped the car 100' away, and used the loud speaker to ask him to put the toy gun on the ground before they approached. Instead they drove up on the grass 10' away from him and jumped out of their car. Well of course then it was dangerous, but it was all their own making. You can't claim self defense when you deliberately cause all the risk. In fact, if it were a real gun, Tamir Rice could have legally killed them under the excuse the police scared him by driving up on the grass like that.

Completely wrong.

Tamir was at a recreational center. People with guns generally run away from police. What the officer attempted to do is get him to run away from the recreational center instead of towards it where children were. He positioned himself there for that reason.

If you ever get any training in firearms, one of the first and most important factors they teach you is downrange. Downrange is the very conscious observation about what is behind your intended target. The reason it's important is because it's likely if you have to fire, some if not half of your shots will miss your target and could end up hitting an innocent behind it. Any shooter will tell you the more distance between you and your target with a handgun, the more of your rounds will miss it and end up downrange instead.

This park is in a residential area where houses are right next to each other. It's on a fairly busy street. The police pulled up where they did because they expected him to run. They pulled close to him so if they did have to shoot, much less chance of hurting an innocent downrange.

Rice seen the police coming. He knew they were heading towards him. He pulled the gun right when the officer started to exit his vehicle. When the officer seen the gun, he fired, perfectly legal under the definition of self-defense.

As for the "toy" part, here is a picture of the "toy" and the real gun it was replicated from:



So which one is the toy?

 

[Ray From Cleveland]

Wrong.
Read Thomas Jefferson or anyone else, and they will tell you that legislators are NOT the source of any legal authority.
In a democratic republic, then legally you must be able to do whatever you want, and the only constraints come from when you start to infringe upon the rights of others.
And only then does the inherent rights of others allow for constraints on your actions to become legal.

But you are also confused as to facts.
Prohibition and the War on Drugs have proven without a doubt that more people die when you try to make something illegal, than if you simply try to inform people of the dangers.
That is because it is actually a medical problem, and once you make it illegal, you prevent any medical intervention.
The main problem with drugs is that since they are illegal, there is no quality control and dose varies greatly.
People do not deliberately overdose.
They overdose because they are guessing dosage due to illegal drugs not having prescribed doses.
Every single illegal drug death is caused because the drug was illegal.

No, that's not why people overdose. When you take anything, a cigarette, a drink, a drug, your body immediately recognizes it as a poison, and God created our bodies to fight poison. As it does, it neutralizes the effects of the poison. If you got high on one snort of coke for a while, after a period of time, you can't get high off just one snort, so you double your intake to two snorts, then three, then four.

While you will never get the same satisfaction of getting high like your first time, addicts try to get as close to that as they can. Finally they take so much that the body cannot fight that amount of poison and shuts down like what happened to Floyd.

The rights we have in this country are listed in the US Constitution. Nowhere in the Constitution does it limit government from making laws unless it violates a clause in the document. If we could all do as we please, I'd be able to park my car on my neighbors front lawn, rape his very attractive daughter, kill hm if he paints his house a color I don't approve of. There is no civilized society without laws. Uncivilized societies only exists where there is no government or laws.