Drug Offences
Drug Offence Legislation
Where an accused is charged with a drug offence, the offence will be under the:
- Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act 1985 (NSW)
- Criminal Code 1995 (Cth)
Commonwealth (and state) serious drug offences apply to a long list of illicit substances including:
- Heroin
- Cocaine
- Gammabutyrolactone (GBL)
- Ecstasy (MDMA)
- Methamphetamine (or methylamphetamine
- Precursor chemicals such as pseudoephedrine
The seriousness of the offence with which an accused is charged, and likely sentence, is determined by the:
- Act (i.e. whether the accused possessed, manufactured, supplied or trafficked (etc.) the drug).
- Drug (i.e. whether the accused possessed, manufactured, supplied or trafficked (etc.) ice as opposed to cannabis).
- Quantity of the drug possessed, manufactured, supplied or trafficked (etc.).
Drug Offences
Illegal acts in respect of prohibited drugs, as prescribed by the Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act 1985 (NSW), include:
- Possession of prohibited drug (section 10).
- Manufacture and production of prohibited drugs (section 24).
- Possession of precursors and certain apparatus for manufacture or production of prohibited drugs (section 24A).
- Possession of prohibited drug precursors (section 24B).
- Supply of prohibited drugs (section 25).
- Offence of supplying prohibited drugs on an ongoing basis (section 25A)
Drug and Quantity
The Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act 1985 (NSW) uses 5 categories of quantity:
- trafficable
- small quantity
- indictable quantity
- commercial quantity
- large commercial quantity
The amount of drug comprising each category of quantity is set out in the schedules of the Acts. Definitive amounts for some more commonly encountered drugs set out in the Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act 1985 (NSW) are:
| Drug | Traffickable | Small Quantity | Indictable Quantity | Commercial Quantity | Large Commercial Quantity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cannabis leaf | 300g | 30g | 1kg | 25kg | 4kg |
| Cocaine | 3.0g | 1.0g | 5.0g | 250.0g | 1kg |
| Ecstasy (MDMA) | 15 DDU or 3.0 g | 4 DDU or 0.8g | 25 DDU or 5.0g | 0.25 kg | 1kg |
| Heroin | 3.0 g | 1.0g | 5.0g | 0250g | 1kg |
| Methamphetamine (or methylamphetamine) i.e. Ice | 3.0kg | 1.0kg | 5.0kg | 0.25kg | 0.5kg |