Until recently, cases of drug supply which involved more than the ‘indictable quantity’ but less than the commercial quantity could not be finalised in the NSW Local Court – they were ‘strictly indictable’ which meant they had to be committed to a higher court such as the District Court to be dealt with – whether by ...

Being prosecuted for a criminal or traffic offence can be a nerve-wracking experience. You may be unfamiliar with the process, unsure of the best way forward and concerned about the outcome. But whether you are charged with a less-serious matter such as drug possession, drink driving or common assault, or accused of something as serious as ...

By Paul Gregoire and Ugur Nedim On the afternoon of 26 May 2015, Brett Ritchie was pulled over by police as he was driving down the Oxley Highway near Wauchope. The officers then arrested him due to outstanding warrants. Whilst standing next to the car, Mr Ritchie removed a fabric sunglasses case from his pocket ...

Before 2014, the possession of drugs classified as anabolic steroids was primarily regulated by the Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 1966, which dealt with the substances in much the same way as other prescription drugs. However in 2014, the NSW government reclassified the drugs as narcotics which brought the penalties in line with drugs like ...

By Paul Gregoire and Ugur Nedim The hot weather is starting to kick in and with it, the festival season is upon us. Thousands of revellers are gearing up to take in their favourite live music acts, get down to some old skool beats, or spend the weekend partying at a bush doof. But as ...

We recently reported on the newly elected Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte who publicly declared: “If you are involved in drugs, I will kill you. You son of a whore, I will really kill you.” On Friday, the President threatened to quit the United Nations and form a separate organisation with China and several African nations. His ...

Criminal lawyers are often criticised for adjourning cases from court date to court date, while doing very little in between. They are accused of ‘dragging cases out’ and having little interest in getting charges dropped at an early stage in the proceedings – after all, lawyers make more if cases go all the way to ...

The two Australians convicted of drug trafficking ten years ago now face imminent execution in Indonesia. Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran made the 700km journey to the execution island, where it is expected that their execution by firing squad is imminent. Their journey began early in the morning of March 4, when they were ...

If you are found in possession of more than a certain quantity of drugs, you can be charged with deemed supply, even if you had no intention of supplying or selling the drugs. A standard drug supply charge requires there to be some evidence that you were supplying or intending to supply the drugs to ...

The seriousness of a drug charge will largely depend on the weight of the drug. But what constitutes the weight of the drug? Is it the total impure weight of the substance containing the drug? Or only the pure weight of the drug within the substance? In other words, if 5 ‘ecstacy’ pills are located ...