State v. Ireland

DURRANT, Justice:

INTRODUCTION

¶ 1 For a Utah court to have jurisdiction over a defendant, the charged offense must have been committed, at least partly, within the state. 1 In this case, Jeffrey Don Ireland was charged with unlawful possession or use of a controlled substance 2 based exclusively on the fact that he tested positive for the existence of methamphetamines in his bloodstream. We are asked to determine whether the existence of methamphetamines in Ireland’s bloodstream conclusively showed that Ireland possessed or used a controlled substance within the state.

¶ 2 Utah Code section…