Drug Possession Charge Quashed Due to Illegal Search
A man was recently acquitted of a conviction of drug possession in the NSW District Court, when he appealed his conviction by the Local Court on the ground that a police officer’s search was unlawful. The case reiterates that police...
Your Rights When Approached by Police at Music Festivals
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...
Stop Murdering Drug Users: An Interview with Harm Reduction Advocate Pascal Tanguay
At 8pm on Thursday night, Catholic leaders across the Philippines rang their church bells simultaneously for five minutes to honour those who have died during president Rodrigo Duterte’s “reign of terror.” The ritual will take place for the next 40 days and...
Medicinal Cannabis for the Elderly: An Interview with Canna Nanna Karen Burge
The Therapeutic Goods Administration’s Special Access Scheme (SAS) is a formal arrangement that allows patients to import unapproved therapeutic goods into the country. There are two main pathways to access imported medicines via this scheme: category A and category B....
Drug Law Reform: An Interview with Former NSW DPP Nicholas Cowdery
On 2 June 2011, the Global Commission on Drug Policy declared, “The global war on drugs has failed.” In its report, the commission found that prohibition has led to increased drug consumption, the growth of powerful crime networks and contributed...
Sick Boy Removed While Being Treated With Cannabis Oil
A now five-year-old boy who suffers from spastic quadriplegic cerebral palsy was taken from the care of his parents more than 100 days ago. On May 19, NSW police and Family and Community Services (FACS) officers removed the boy from...
South Australia Proposes Sensible Defence to Drug Driving
Last month, the South Australian Legislative Council voted in favour of an amendment to drug driving legislation that would provide medicinal cannabis users with a defence if they fail a roadside drug test. The Statutes Amendment (Drink and Drug Driving)...
Redefining Medical Cannabis: An Interview with This Week in Weed TV’s Loren Paul Wiener
Australian Greens leader Richard Di Natale moved a disallowance motion through the federal Senate on June 13 this year, which allowed terminally ill patients to import up to three months’ worth of medical marijuana products from overseas. The motion reversed...
Not Guilty of Drug Driving Despite Cannabis in System
Northern Rivers region resident Joseph Carrall was pulled over by NSW police senior constable Chayne Foster on 23 June 2015 for a random drug test. The officer asked the driver whether he’d taken any illicit drugs within the last 48 hours, to...
Aussie Teens Turning Away from Drugs
There’s some positive news in the latest National Drug Strategy Household Survey (NDSHS) – most notably the fact that drug, alcohol and tobacco use appears to be declining amongst our nation’s teenagers. The NDSHS survey of 24,000 people, which was...
