Why can big celebrities openly admit to taking illegal drugs, and have little to no action taken against them?

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Johnny Depp’s recent trial comes to mind – he openly admitted to doing cocaine but as far as I’m aware no action was taken

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Anonymous 0 Comments

A confession to a crime means nothing without additional evidence to corroborate that crime. Whenever there is a famous murder, tens if not hundreds of people come forward to confess that they committed the crime. Why are they not charged? Because there’s no evidence that they committed the crime.

It is illegal to possess controlled substances without a prescription in this country. It is illegal to sell, consume, traffic, or otherwise control without a license these substances. But if the person does not literally possess it (either on their person or “constructively,” meaning in a room they alone control, or in a safe in their home, or at their direction someone else possesses it), then no crime has occurred.

I sped yesterday. 10 over the speed limit. What does that mean in a court of law, though? No one saw me. No one can identify that I committed the crime. There’s no evidence. So it’s like it didn’t happen. But it is probative to different situations to explain that you were intoxicated, and to inform a jury what you were intoxicated on so a toxicologist can explain the effects it would have on you in that situation.

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