Title 10Armed ForcesRelease 119-73

§912a Art. 112a. Wrongful use, possession, etc., of controlled substances

Title 10 › Subtitle Subtitle A— - General Military Law › Part PART II— - PERSONNEL › Chapter CHAPTER 47— - UNIFORM CODE OF MILITARY JUSTICE › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER X— - PUNITIVE ARTICLES › § 912a

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Anyone under military law who uses, has, makes, sells, brings into or takes out of the United States, or brings onto a military base, ship, vehicle, or aircraft certain controlled drugs can be punished by a military court. The drugs listed include opium, heroin, cocaine, amphetamines, LSD, methamphetamine, PCP, barbiturates, marijuana (and their compounds or derivatives), plus any drugs the President adds for this rule and any drugs in schedules I–V of the federal Controlled Substances Act.

Full Legal Text

Title 10, §912a

Armed Forces — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Any person subject to this chapter who wrongfully uses, possesses, manufactures, distributes, imports into the customs territory of the United States, exports from the United States, or introduces into an installation, vessel, vehicle, or aircraft used by or under the control of the armed forces a substance described in subsection (b) shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.
(b)The substances referred to in subsection (a) are the following:
(1)Opium, heroin, cocaine, amphetamine, lysergic acid diethylamide, methamphetamine, phencyclidine, barbituric acid, and marijuana and any compound or derivative of any such substance.
(2)Any substance not specified in clause (1) that is listed on a schedule of controlled substances prescribed by the President for the purposes of this article.
(3)Any other substance not specified in clause (1) or contained on a list prescribed by the President under clause (2) that is listed in schedules I through V of section 202 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 812).

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Section effective first day of eighth calendar month beginning after Dec. 6, 1983, but not applicable to any offense committed before that date and not to be construed to invalidate the prosecution of any offense committed before that date, see section 12(a)(1), (5) of Pub. L. 98–209, set out as an

Effective Date

of 1983 Amendment note under section 801 of this title. Procedures for Forensic Examination of Certain Physiological Evidence Pub. L. 100–180, div. A, title XII, § 1248, Dec. 4, 1987, 101 Stat. 1166, provided that: “(a) Establishment of Procedures.—The Secretary of Defense shall establish procedures to ensure that whenever, in connection with a criminal investigation conducted by or for a military department, a physiological specimen is obtained from a person for the purpose of determining whether that person has used a controlled substance—“(1) the specimen is in a condition that is suitable for forensic examination when delivered to a forensic laboratory; and “(2) the investigative agency that submits the specimen to the laboratory receives a written statement of the results of the forensic examination from the laboratory within such period as is necessary to use such results in a court-martial or other criminal proceeding resulting from the investigation. “(b) Transportation of Specimens.—The procedures prescribed under subsection (a)—“(1) shall ensure that physiological specimens are preserved and transported in accordance with valid medical and forensic practices; and “(2) insofar as practicable, shall require transportation of the specimen to an appropriate laboratory by the most expeditious means necessary to carry out the requirement in subsection (a)(1). “(c) Tests for Use of LSD.—Procedures established under subsection (a) shall ensure that whenever the controlled substance with respect to which a physiological specimen is to be examined is lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), the specimen is submitted to a forensic laboratory that is capable of determining with a reasonable degree of scientific certainty, on the basis of the examination of that specimen, whether the person providing the specimen has used lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD). “(d) Rule of

Construction

.—Nothing in this section shall be construed as providing a basis, that is not otherwise available in law, for a defense to a charge or a motion for exclusion of evidence or other appropriate relief in any criminal or administrative proceeding. “(e) Controlled Substances Covered.—For purposes of this section, a controlled substance is a substance described in section 912a(b) of title 10, United States Code. “(f) Report.—Not later than March 1, 1988, the Secretary of Defense shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives, a report describing the procedures established under this section.”

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

10 U.S.C. § 912a

Title 10Armed Forces

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73