COURT RELAXES DOPE PENALTIES

THE West Australian Government has bowed to months of police pressure by
announcing a cautioning system for first-time cannabis offenders caught
with small quantities of the drug for personal use.

Despite the strong private reservations of Premier Richard Court, Western
Australia will in October join Victoria and adopt a lenient, educational
approach to first offenders.

Police Commissioner Bob Falconer revealed the policy change in a radio
interview yesterday, spoiling government plans to announce the plan today.

Police had been pressuring Cabinet to allow two warnings for small-time
cannabis users before hauling third-time offenders before the courts.

The Government finally agreed to a first-time caution for adults caught
with up to 50 grams of cannabis, as long as offenders attended a lecture on
the ill-effects of marijuana use. Failure to attend within two weeks of an
offence will result in a summons being issued.

"It's not synonymous with being tough on drugs to crunch people for small
quantities of cannabis when it's essentially about an education issue," Mr
Falconer told Radio 6PR yesterday.

For years, Mr Court has resisted pressure to treat small-time drug users
more leniently, arguing the Government's "Just Say No" policy was the best
method of stemming drug use. During the 1996 State election campaign, Mr
Court labelled the ALP as pro-drugs and pro-organised crime when Opposition
Leader Geoff Gallop announced Labor's policy of decriminalising marijuana.

"The Government is maintaining its strong opposition to drug abuse," the
minister responsible for the State's drug abuse strategy, Rhonda Parker,
said last night. "We expect this to net more cannabis users and educate
them against future use."

While the policy shift enjoyed limited support among some ministers, Mr
Court eventually buckled to Mr Falconer's argument that valuable police and
judicial resources were being wasted dealing with petty drug offences.

From October 1, the caution system will be trialled in Perth's northern
suburbs and the southern city of Bunbury. Ms Parker said if the trial were
successful it would be extended statewide.

"Only one opportunity for a caution will be available, subsequent offences
will be dealt with by the courts," she said.

"It's good to see that at last the Government has recognised the merit of
our argument that precious police and court resources should not be wasted
on minor cannabis users," Dr Gallop said last night.

Checked-by: Mike Gogulski