Drug on-the-spot fines save justice system thousands of dollars
by Laura ChungFestival drug users being fined has saved the criminal justice system nearly $200,000 but experts say the scheme could be unfair to those in disadvantaged circumstances.
The move away from having offenders attend court to on-the-spot fines for drug possession was recommended by an expert panel commissioned by Premier Gladys Berejiklian in the wake of two fatalities at the Defqon.1 festival in September 2018.
A report by The National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre (NDARC) found that between January and June 2019, 300 criminal infringement notices were issued for illicit drug use or possession at music festivals across NSW.
Of those, 256 were issued for ecstasy possession, 21 were for cocaine, eight for amphetamine, and 15 for other drug possessions.
The NSW government started the trial in January 2019. It allows police to issue fines of $400 for the possession of prohibited drugs, excluding cannabis which is covered by a separate scheme.
"The provision of on-the-spot fines for possession of prohibited drugs at music festivals diverts offenders from the criminal justice system and is intended to provide a harm reduction approach," a NSW Police spokesperson said.
The report's researchers found that issuing drug fines rather than processing the matters through court saved the justice system about $194,400. The revenue generated from those fines was $120,000, pushing the estimated total financial benefit to $314,400.
But the report notes that issuing fines for illicit drug possession could impact disadvantaged people, including those who are homeless, mentally ill, or young.
Acting chief executive officer of The Ted Noffs Foundation Mark Ferry said while fines for drug possession can keep people out of the justice system, sometimes a police caution would be enough to deter younger users.
"If we can talk to young people about their drug use and ramifications, those conversations and interventions can have a big impact on their life's trajectory rather than the blunt instrument of a fine," he said.
The trial has been extended indefinitely and between August 2019 and March 2020, 432 fines have been issued.
Head of police accountability at Redfern Legal Centre, Samantha Lee said, while the scheme's monetary savings are positive, there are other issues to consider. These include the reduced ability for a court to use its discretion to assess whether a fine had been issued fairly.
She said further research was needed into the impact drug fines had on the community.
Drug use among young Australians has decreased since 2001, a report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare found which surveyed 22,274 respondents.
The report, released in July 2020, showed that in 2001, 38 per cent of 14- to 19-year-olds had used illicit drugs at some point in their lives, but in 2019 only 22 per cent had.
The report also found the average age for people to take illicit drugs for the first time had increased, with the average age reported by 14- to 29-year-olds in 2019 to be 17.3, compared with 15.9 in 2001.