Section 111 Road Transport Act 2013
Drug Driving – Driving with Presence of Certain Drugs (Other than Alcohol) in Oral Fluid, Blood or Urine

Section 111 of the Road Transport Act 2013 is Presence of Certain Drugs (Other than Alcohol) in Oral Fluid, Blood or Urine and reads as follows:

Presence of certain drugs (other than alcohol) in oral fluid, blood or urine

(cf STM Act, s 11B)

(1) Presence of prescribed illicit drug in person’s oral fluid, blood or urine A person must not, while there is present in the person’s oral fluid, blood or urine any prescribed illicit drug:

(a) drive a motor vehicle, or

(b) occupy the driving seat of a motor vehicle and attempt to put the motor vehicle in motion, or

(c) if the person is the holder of an applicable driver licence (other than an applicable provisional licence or applicable learner licence)–occupy the seat in a motor vehicle next to a learner driver who is driving the vehicle.

Maximum penalty: 20 penalty units (in the case of a first offence) or 30 penalty units (in the case of a second or subsequent offence).

(2) If a person is charged with an offence against subsection (1):

(a) the court attendance notice may allege that more than one prescribed illicit drug was present in the oral fluid, blood or urine of the person and the proceedings are not liable to be dismissed on the ground of uncertainty or duplicity if each of those drugs is described in the court attendance notice, and

(b) the offence is proved if the court is satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that there was present in the oral fluid, blood or urine of the defendant:

(i) a drug described in the court attendance notice, or

(ii) a combination of drugs any one or more of which was or were described in the court attendance notice.

(3) Presence of morphine in person’s blood or urine A person must not, while there is present in the person’s blood or urine any morphine:

(a) drive a motor vehicle, or

(b) occupy the driving seat of a motor vehicle and attempt to put the motor vehicle in motion, or

(c) if the person is the holder of an applicable driver licence (other than an applicable provisional licence or applicable learner licence)–occupy the seat in a motor vehicle next to a learner driver who is driving the vehicle.

The penalties

Maximum penalty: 20 penalty units (in the case of a first offence) or 30 penalty units (in the case of a second or subsequent offence).

(4) If a person is charged with an offence against subsection (3), the offence is proved if the court is satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that morphine was present in the blood or urine of the defendant (whether or not in combination with any other drugs).

(5) Defence for offence relating to presence of morphine in person’s blood or urine It is a defence to a prosecution for an offence against subsection (3) if the defendant proves to the court’s satisfaction that, at the time the defendant engaged in the conduct that is alleged to have contravened the subsection, the presence in the defendant’s blood or urine of morphine was caused by the consumption of a substance for medicinal purposes.

(6) Meaning of consumption for medicinal purposes In this section, a substance is consumed for medicinal purposes only if it is:

(a) a drug prescribed by a medical practitioner taken in accordance with a medical practitioner’s prescription, or

(b) a codeine-based medicinal drug purchased from a pharmacy that has been taken in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions.

Note : Division 1 of Part 7.4 provides for the disqualification of persons from holding driver licences for certain offences (including offences against this section).

The offences of driving with a prescribed concentration of alcohol in the blood, and of driving under the influence of alcohol or any other drug, are dealt with in sections 110 and 112, respectively.

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