WA called Australia's 'cannabis capital'

[Aar0n92]

http://www.perthnow....u-1226102858694

 

 

WA called Australia's 'cannabis capital'

• From: AAP
• July 27, 2011 2:11PM

WESTERN Australia has become the "cannabis capital of Australia" thanks to weak laws put in place by the previous Labor government, the state's police minister says.

 

Rob Johnson today responded to results from the 2010 National Drug Strategy Household Survey that showed WA's rate of cannabis use was 13.4 per cent, 30 per cent higher than the national average.

 

The figures released today come the week before tough new penalties for cannabis possession come into effect in WA on August 1.

 

Mr Johnson said the new penalties aimed to curb the level of cannabis smoking in WA and reduce the harmful impact of the drug, which had much higher toxicity than previously recorded.

 

"We have virtually become the cannabis capital of Australia and the reason for that is because of the weak laws that Labor put in place when they came into power in 2001.

 

"They even realised that the weakness was leading to an increase in cannabis use, which is the gateway to other drugs," Mr Johnson said.

 

He said that following a report in 2007, the Labor government committed to toughening up the laws but never got round to it.

 

Mr Johnson said the new Liberal-National government laws toughened penalties but millions of dollars would also be spent to fund compulsory one-on-one counselling sessions for those caught with less than 10 grams.

 

He said under Labor's "weak laws", 95 per cent of people caught with less than 30g of cannabis elected to pay small "speeding ticket" fines, but a third of them never paid.

 

Under the new laws, a person caught with more than 10 grams of cannabis will face a penalty of $2000 or two years in jail, or both.

 

A person found in possession of more than 100g of cannabis would be deemed to have that quantity for supply or sale and would face a penalty of $20,000 or two years in jail.

 

Under the new law, a person found in possession of 10g or less of cannabis will receive a Cannabis Intervention Requirement notice to attend a mandatory counselling session.

[saltbox]

Whenever I see the words "Rob Johnson" I know there's going to be bullshit following them. What a load of fucking garbage.

[Naycha]

What a load of crap, cannabis is not toxic but I suppose sheeple will believe anything....

 

Naycha

[Frazz]

what pathetic false claims to justify overblown Prohibition laws , which are obviously aimed at Revenue raising rather than anything more

like $2000 or 2 yrs jail; well majority offenses will be at the lower end of the scale with many being over 10 grams and first offense so it follows most penalties will a monetary fine

 

booo

[dani]

Was wondering how he gets away with making such false and misleading statements like this piece of bullshit....

 

 

"They even realised that the weakness was leading to an increase in cannabis use, which is the gateway to other drugs," Mr Johnson said.

 

[The Hash Nibbler]

I read this and thought I had taken a wrong turn at breakfast and re-entered the 1950"s . Where do these backward farktards get their information? Misinformation more like.

I am appalled at these penalties. $20,000 for having over 4oz and charged with intent to supply, without proof. Tell em they're farkin dreaming........

Game on.... Peace. Gh72

[Stix87]

my mum and dad know i grow for my self and are a bit worried i would go to jail i have already told them if it were to happen i would plead not guilty anyway then my mother said im not giving you 20k for fines i said i dont think it would come to that i think people should have the right to grow there own meds these new laws are so fucked what bout the crack dealers i bet ya they get a slap on the wrist for wrecking peoples lives our gov is backwards.

[Frazz]

Recently the WA P Commisioner's son was a manufacturer of Crystal Death .. wonder what his sentence was?

 

Commissioner's son charged over drug lab blast

 

Updated March 23, 2011 04:18:00

 

The son of Western Australia's Police Commissioner and another man have been charged over the explosion of a clandestine drug laboratory in Perth's south-eastern suburbs.

 

The blast tore the roof off the Homeswest unit in Carlisle and sent a fridge smashing through a wall

 

Five people were injured when the drug lab exploded at a Housing Department unit on Bishopsgate Street in Carlisle on Sunday afternoon.

 

The police commissioner's son, Russell O'Callaghan, was among those injured suffering burns to his head, arms and shoulder.

 

The 29-year-old has now been charged with one count of attempting to manufacture a prohibited drug.

 

Neighbours at the units say they have complained for years about the behaviour of the tenants and visitors but nothing has been done.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-03-22/commissioners-son-charged-over-drug-lab-blast/2647886

 

 

Updated June 01, 2011 19:59:05

 

Russell O'Callaghan, 29, was due to be sentenced in the Magistrates Court this morning

 

He faced up to four years jail but at the start of the hearing, Magistrate Paul Heaney said he was not prepared to go ahead with the sentence.

 

Magistrate Heaney said he believed the case should be sent to the District Court where the maximum penalty is 25 years or a $100,000 fine or both.

 

O'Callagahan had his bail renewed and is due back in court next month (sic) July.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-06-01/police-commissioners-son-faces-severe-drugs-penalty/2741148

 

No further updates available ?

 

booo

[daemon]

Exactly, Frazz. Hypocrisy.

[saltbox]

Hey, good point about O'Callaghan's son. I couldn't find any new info on that at all.

 

I did find this though: Man escapes jail term for airport drug lab

 

A 50 year-old man has avoided a jail term for manufacturing drugs in a hangar at Jandakot airport.

 

Stuart Exeter Hyder was arrested after police found chemicals and manufacturing equipment inside the hanger in November 2009.

 

The District Court was told Hyder was addicted to methylamphetamine and was producing the drug for his own use.

 

His lawyer argued that Hyder should receive a suspended jail term, using previous comments by the Police Commissioner that many clandestine laboratories were designed only for the user's own consumption.

 

The Judge accepted that the operation was not for commercial purposes and that Hyder had been trying to feed his own addiction.

 

Hyder was given a four-year suspended term that included a condition he undergo drug counselling.

 

Easy - just say you were addicted to cannabis. Mr Barnett and co tell us its addictive so IT MUST BE.