Rana Lawyers Client Steps
Explain your case and we’ll determine if we need to have a conference or simply answer any questions you may be concerned about.
Book in for an initial conference with one of our experienced criminal lawyers and we’ll progress from there.
Our team of criminal defence lawyers suggest that you contact Rana Lawyers as soon as you have been contacted by the Police or as soon as you are aware of any Police involvement to provide legal advice and guidance when it comes to drug charges.
Possession of Dangerous Drugs Charge
A dangerous drug is described in schedules 1 and 2 of the Drugs Misuse Regulation. In Queensland, the most common schedule 1 drugs include cocaine and MDMA, whereas the most common schedule 2 drug is cannabis, in the context of drug offending. It is an offence to possess any amount of dangerous drugs if they fall within these schedules according to section 9 of the Drugs Misuse Act 1986 (Q).
The importance of the schedules is that it allows lawyers to determine which Court has jurisdiction, or in other words which Court has to deal with the matter. For instance, if it is a small amount of cannabis then the matter must be dealt with in the Magistrates Court, whereas if the cannabis exceeds the schedule 3 Drug Misuse Regulation amount of 500 grams, then it has to be committed to the District Court for trial or sentence. Similarly, a small amount of cocaine (under 2 grams) must be dealt with in the Magistrates Court whereas an amount exceeding the schedule 3 Drug Misuse Act Regulation (over 2 grams) must be dealt with by the Supreme Court.
What are the penalties for possession of drugs?
Subject to the different drugs possessed and the amount, the maximum term of imprisonment varies between 15 years and 25 years.
The difficulty with this offence is that if drugs are found in your possession or a place you usually occupy, the Court can deem that you had possession as per section 129(1)(c) of the Drug Misuse Act unless there is evidence to the contrary
Ultimately, with most charges, the Police have to ordinarily prove each element of the offence. However, in possession of dangerous drug charges, they only have to prove that the drug was found on your person or in a place you usually occupy to establish that a defendant had possession.
This doesn’t mean that the inference, or presumption, cannot be set aside with evidence. It requires a careful examination of the evidence.
It is important that you speak to Rana Lawyers before speaking to the Police in order to assess:
- The strength of the Crown case;
- The circumstances in which a warrant was issued, if there was one;
- The validity of a car search, if this took place, without a warrant.
Many drug offences can involve terms of imprisonment being imposed and they are considered serious offences by the Courts.
Criminal Law Experts in Drugs Charges
If you are convicted of any type of drug charge, the penalties vary from fines to terms of imprisonment. It is important to have your case assessed by a lawyer to determine potential outcomes and consequences of being charged with this offence.
Once you contact Rana Lawyers for an initial consultation with one of our experienced assault lawyers, our team will assess your case, and provide an outline of what is to be expected from the case and what happens once you retain us.
If you are pleading guilty to a drug charge, you will be required to fund our firm’s services for the entirety of the matter.
Our team of experienced lawyers will then start processing the case material, as well as the prosecution’s material. From there, we respond to that material by having another conference with you, retrieving any material we need, and then assessing whether the matter requires case conferencing with the Prosecution.
The next stage is attending Court for the sentencing hearing and in the case of a trial, our team will guide you through the entire process, making sure you know what to expect.
Trust Rana Lawyers with Drug Charges
Rana Lawyers can offer you the highest quality of representation in Court, backed by our decades of experience in drug trials and adversarial work.
With a substantial team of lawyers, paralegals, legal assistance, and administrators, we take pride in ensuring that clients are taken care of every step of the way, leaving no room for oversight of even the smallest details.
