Controlled substances inspectors: what they can do

It is the clarification of who the person showing up to inspect a pharmacy, a distributor or a dispenser of controlled substances is. Not merely an administrative official: the Act delegates to them the powers of a law enforcement officer, including firearms, arrests and search warrants. The Act also puts a lock on those powers: they are not exercised until the Secretary of Justice certifies that the inspector received the specialized training.

The Secretary of Health’s investigative power has a written scope worth knowing. It covers criminal or administrative violations related to the manufacture, distribution, dispensing and delivery of controlled substances in Schedules II, III, IV and V. As to Schedule I, the Act includes it only “when a certificate of registration has been issued to conduct research with such substances.”

Information pending verification.

Information pending verification.

1. 1

   Step 1: What the Secretary of Health may investigate

   Article 511-A opens with the scope, and it is narrower than people assume: “The Secretary of Health shall have the power to investigate every violation of a criminal or administrative nature of this Act, when such violations relate to the manufacture, distribution, dispensing and delivery of any controlled substance included in Schedules II, III, IV and V of this Act and those relating to controlled substances in Schedule I, when a certificate of registration has been issued to conduct research with such substances.” Schedule I comes in through that specific door, not generally.

2. 2

   Step 2: The powers the inspector brings

   The second paragraph is what changes the conversation: “By delegation of the Secretary of Health, the Health Inspectors attached to the Controlled Substances Division of the Department of Health shall hold the powers corresponding to a law enforcement officer.” The Act lists them “among others”: to have, possess, carry, transport and bear firearms under Act 168-2019, known as the Puerto Rico Weapons Act of 2020; to make arrests; to execute and serve search warrants and subpoenas; to seize property under Article 512; and to administer oaths and take sworn statements.

3. 3

   Step 3: With one limit: only in the discharge of their functions

   The same sentence that grants the powers ties them down. They are exercised “in relation to and in the discharge of the functions entrusted to them or that may in the future be entrusted to them under the provisions of this Act,” and the Act expressly adds that this includes “the procedures related to the registry of manufacturers, distributors and dispensers.” It is not a general police power: it is tied to this Act’s functions.

4. 4

   Step 4: The lock: certification by the Secretary of Justice

   Article 511-B sets two timing conditions and one signature. The Inspectors “shall receive specialized training, coordinated with the Department of Justice and the Police of Puerto Rico, after their appointment and before exercising the powers conferred by Article 511-A of this Act.” And it closes: “The Secretary of Justice or their designee shall certify that the Health Inspectors attached to the Controlled Substances Division of the Department of Health have received the specialized training and that they are qualified to perform the functions delegated to them by this Act.” After appointment, before exercise, and certified by Justice.

5. 5

   Step 5: The form filled out when they confiscate

   Article 512 describes a concrete piece of paper. When the confiscated property is controlled substances, it shall be the duty of the Police or the Department of Justice, as the case may be, to fill out a form recording the quantity of controlled substances confiscated in terms of weight and of packages, containers or units; the scientific or common name of the substance; the date and place of the confiscation; general conditions as to its state; the date it was submitted to the Police Laboratory for analysis; and the name and signature of the officer who confiscated it, plus any other information deemed appropriate. The Act adds that when the Health Inspectors confiscate controlled substances they must fill out that same form, kept and used for the same purpose.

6. 6

   Step 6: What happens if the quantities do not match

   The Act writes out the discrepancy procedure and it is worth knowing. If, after controlled substances confiscated for final disposition are received at the Department of Health and the form is examined, “a discrepancy is found between the quantity of controlled substances received at the Department of Health for final disposition and that recorded on the corresponding form, the Department of Health shall turn to the Department of Justice requesting that the pertinent investigation be carried out to clarify the discrepancy and, if necessary, that it proceed in accordance with law.”

7. 7

   Step 7: Destruction happens with three agencies present

   When one of two conditions is present — that appropriate and secure storage facilities or secure transportation facilities are lacking, or that the confiscated substances, whether small or large quantities, are perishable — the Police or the Department of Justice shall notify the Department of Health and request its appearance to carry out the destruction. The Act requires institutional witnesses: “In the presence of at least one Health Inspector attached to the Controlled Substances Division of the Department of Health, one from the Police and one from the Department of Justice, the destruction of the controlled substances shall be carried out, and an acta must be drawn up, to be signed by the aforementioned officials.” When it is the Health Inspectors who confiscate and one of those conditions applies, it is Health that notifies the Police and Justice and requests their appearance.

8. 8

   Step 8: The sample that survives the destruction

   This matters if there is a criminal case involved. “If necessary for purposes of a criminal prosecution for violation of this Act, the Police, or the Department of Justice, shall preserve a sample of the confiscated controlled substances, duly identified or labeled.” And the Act gives it express evidentiary weight: “This sample, accompanied by the corresponding destruction acta and by testimonial evidence about the acta, shall constitute admissible and sufficient evidence in a criminal proceeding for violation of this Act.”

There is nothing to apply for: this Act defines enforcement powers, not a citizen procedure. The Controlled Substances Division is attached to the Department of Health, which is where the Inspectors and the registry of manufacturers, distributors and dispensers the Act mentions live. The training certification is signed by the Secretary of Justice or their designee. If what you are looking for is the controlled-prescription monitoring system, or the medical cannabis programme, those are separate guides.

• Treating the inspector as an ordinary administrative official: the Act delegates law-enforcement powers to them, including arrests and search warrants.
• Assuming those powers are general police powers: they are exercised in relation to and in the discharge of this Act’s functions.
• Believing a newly appointed inspector can already exercise them: the training comes after appointment and before exercise, and the Secretary of Justice certifies it.
• Thinking the investigative power covers all of Schedule I: the Act includes it when a certificate of registration has been issued to research with those substances.
• Assuming Health carries out the destruction alone: the Act requires at least one Health inspector, one from the Police and one from Justice, with a signed acta.
• Treating the evidence as lost after destruction: a labeled sample is preserved that, with the acta and testimonial evidence, is admissible and sufficient.

These are the government pages this guide is based on.

• Departamento de Salud de Puerto Rico

  Salud

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