Possession of an illegal drug

If you agree that you have committed the offence and the police are able to prove all the elements of the offence, it is best to plead guilty at an early opportunity to receive the maximum discount. Currently the maximum discount available for an early plea of guilty is 25% of the sentence.

Furthermore, the early guilty plea shows the Court that you have remorse and contrition for your actions.

Our lawyers at National Criminal Lawyers work closely with you to ensure that we obtain all necessary paper work at increasing the chances of obtaining a non-conviction or section 10.

Possess prohibited drug can be punished with a prison sentence of up to 2 years.

Please note that the penalties mentioned are reserved for the worse case offending and are unlikely to be the penalty you receive.

If you decide to plead not guilty you will need to prepare to go to a Defended Hearing.

A Defended Hearing is where all the witnesses of that case are called to give evidence. The witnesses are both examined by the prosecution and tested by your defence lawyers.

National Criminal Lawyers have defended thousands of people charged with cultivate and are experts at these hearings.

Sometimes there may exist a defence at law. Some of the possible defences available for those charged with possess prohibited drug can include:

Acting in accordance with an authority granted by the Secretary of the Department of Health where the Secretary is satisfied that the supply of the prohibited drug is for the purpose of scientific research, instruction, analysis or study; or
A person to whom the prohibited drug has been lawfully prescribed or supplied to; or

A person who:
Has the care of, or is assisting in the care of, another person for or to whom the prohibited drug has been lawfully prescribed or supplied, and
Had the prohibited drug in your possession for the sole purpose of administering, or assisting in the self-administration of, the prohibited drug to the other person in accordance with the prescription or supply and/or
Is licenced or authorised to supply the drug under the Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 1966 (NSW);

The Courts are not bound by statistics however there must be reasonable consistency in sentences. A Magistrate or Judge should have regard to what has been done in other cases. In Green [2011] HCA 45, the plurity judgement of French CJ, Kiefel and Creennan JJ stated:
“Equal Justice” embodies the norm expressed in the terms “equality before the law”. It is an aspect of the rule of law.

For possess prohibited drug 56% of offenders received a fine.

In NSW, a court can impose any of the following penalties for a supply prohibited drug charge.

• • Prison sentence
  • Home Detention
  • Intensive correction order (previously periodic detention)
  • Suspended sentence
  • Community service order (CSO)
  • Good behaviour bond
  • Fine
  • Section 10

However, from 24 September 2018 new penalty’s will be replacing the above. They are as follows:

• • Full time Imprisonment
  • New ICO (ICO) with a home detention condition available
  • New Community Correction Order (CCO)
  • Fine
  • New Conditional release Order (CRO)

Our senior solicitor represented a 21-year-old client charged with possession of cocaine while walking home drunk. We successfully represented him in his sentencing hearing where the magistrate recorded no conviction on the condition that he enter into a good behaviour bond.

Another client was recently charged with possession of a prohibited substance (ecstasy) after being detected by a police “sniffer dog” which was being used as part of an organised drug operation at a Sydney Music Festival. Our senior criminal lawyer represented the client at the first appearance at the Downing Centre Local Court. Having already done all the preparation work (including obtaining references, a letter of apology and preparing submissions) we were able to have the matter finalised at the first appearance by way of a non-recording of a conviction.