Drugs and the law - Hot Topics 59 - Find Legal Answers

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south australiaSouth Australian police can issue an infringement notice(called an expiation notice) for the following offences:offencePenaltyPossession: leaf or headsLess than 25 g $50More than 25 g but less than 100 g $150Possession: hashishLess than 5 g $50More than 5 g but less than 20 g $150CultivationOne plant $150Other offencesSmoking (except in public) $50Possession of equipment $50The fine must be paid within 28 days. If you do not paythe fine in the prescribed time, you will be treated ashaving been convicted and fined by a court.The legislation is section 45A of the Controlled SubstancesAct 1984 (SA) and the Controlled Substances (Expiationof Simple Cannabis Offences) Regulation 2002 (SA) (Reg.6).australian capital territoryPolice in the ACT can issue an offence notice for thefollowing offences:offencePenaltyPossession: leaf or heads25 g or less $100CultivationOne plant (but not hydroponic) $100The fine must paid within 60 days.The legislation is section 171A of the Drugs of DependenceAct 1989 (ACT).northern territoryNorthern Territory police can issue an infringementnotice for the following offences:offencePenaltyPossession: leaf or headsLess than 50 g $200Possession: hashishLess than 10 g resin $200Less than 1 g oil $200CultivationTwo plants $200The fine must paid within 28 days.The legislation is Part IIB of the Misuse of Drugs Act1981.Western australiaWestern Australian police can issue an infringementnotice, called a cannabis infringement notice (CIN), forthe following offences:offencePenaltyPossession: leaf or heads15 g or less $100More than 15 g but less than 30 g $150CultivationTwo plants (but not hydroponic) $200Possession of smoking equipment $100Alternatively, you can elect to complete a cannabiseducation session (CES). The fine must be paid, or theeducation session undertaken, within 28 days, but thisperiod may be extended.The legislation is the Cannabis Control Act 2003 (WA)and Cannabis Control Regulation 2004 (WA).drugs and drivingIt is an offence (under s 12 of the Road Transport (Safetyand Traffic Management) Act 1999) to drive ‘under theinfluence’ of a drug or alcohol. Proof of this offencerequires proof beyond reasonable doubt that the driverwas intoxicated to some degree by the drug or alcohol.Since the introduction of breathalysers and randombreath testing for alcohol, drink driving offences arenow much more commonly charged as driving withthe relevant ‘prescribed concentration of alcohol’. Thisin effect bypasses any need to prove intoxication – thepresence of alcohol in a person’s system is sufficientevidence for the offence to be proved.Drug testingIf the police reasonably suspect that a person is drivingunder the influence of a drug, they have the power totake them to a hospital for a blood or urine test for thepresence of drugs, under the supervision of a doctor.The sample is divided into two. One half is sent togovernment laboratories and the other half is given to theperson for independent analysis.It is an offence to refuse to submit to a blood test or aurine test in these circumstances (Road Transport (Safetyand Traffic Management) Act, section 15). It is likewisean offence to wilfully alter the amount of drug in yourblood or urine before having the test, unless it is morethan two hours since you were driving (Road Transport(Safety and Traffic Management) Act s.16). The maximumpenalty for both these offences is a $3300 fine and 18months imprisonment, with licence disqualification fora minimum of 12 months. If it is the person’s secondmajor traffic offence in five years, the maximum penaltybecomes a $5500 fine and two years imprisonment, anddisqualification for two years.other offences 15
Random drug testingThe Government has introduced legislation to allowrandom roadside testing of drivers, to test for thepresence of cannabis, amphetamine or ecstasy. Theroadside tests involve a saliva test using portable drugscreening machines.The testing method is by saliva swab (an ‘oral fluidtest’) to test for the presence of THC (the psychoactiveingredient of cannabis), methamphetamine and ecstasy.If the saliva testing device indicates positive, then afurther saliva sample may be taken for analysis, with thetest result being provided as evidence in court.It is an offence to drive with THC, methamphetamineor ecstasy present in the person’s oral fluid, blood orurine (although only a driver’s saliva will be tested inmost cases).It is also an offence to drive with morphine or cocaine,but these substances will not be tested by saliva swab.The maximum penalty for driving with THC,methamphetamine or ecstasy is a fine of $1100 for a firstoffence, and $2200 for a second or subsequent offence.If the offence is the first serious driving offence (at leastin the last five years), the driver will be disqualified fromholding a driver’s licence for a minimum of three months(with six months the automatic period of disqualification).If there is an earlier serious traffic offence in the previousfive years, the automatic disqualification period is 12months, with a six month minimum period.As for the similar law about random alcohol testing,it is an offence to wilfully refuse to provide a salivasample, and to consume a drug after driving and beforeundergoing a saliva test.A 2005 study on cannabis and driving conducted jointlyby the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and the NationalDrug and Alcohol Research Centre suggests that driverswould be most effectively discouraged from driving afterconsuming cannabis where there is a high chance ofdetection.Fatal accidentsPolice can obtain blood or urine samples from driversinvolved in fatal road accidents.The maximum penalty for causing death while drivingunder the influence of a drug is 10 years jail (Crimes Act1900, section 52A). If the court is satisfied that you were‘very substantially impaired’ by the influence of a drug orcombination of drugs, the maximum penalty increasesto 14 years jail (section 52A (2), (7)).drugs in spOrTSporting associations have a general right to make rulesfor the conduct of organised sporting competitions.Those rules are binding, on the basis of a contract,on players who want to participate in those organisedcompetitions.At elite levels, the rules always include the right ofsporting bodies to require players to have a drug testfor performance enhancing drugs like anabolic steroids,in and out of competition. Some sports also test forrecreational drugs.The general principle is that if an athlete refuses or failsa drug test, the sporting bodies are entitled, subject totheir own constitutions and rules of procedural fairness,to suspend or ban the player.image u navailablePolice drug and alcohol bus launch. 12 December 2006.Jason South, The Age (Melbourne).16HOT TOPICS 59 > Drugs and the law
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