More Kiwis are facing charges for cannabis possession offences even after police were directed five years ago not to prosecute unless it was in the public interest to do so.
In 2019, the Misuse of Drugs Amendment was passed into law, giving police discretion on whether to prosecute when someone is found in possession of an illicit drug for personal use.
Police were directed to consider whether prosecution is required in the public interest or if a health-centred approach would be more beneficial.
Ministry of Justice data showed more than 2100 cannabis possession charges were filed in 2019, but this number fell to around 1800 the year following the directive.
By 2021, charges had dropped even further to below 1300.
However, this trend is now reversing, with charges rising again from more than 1500 charges two years ago to nearly 1800 in the year just gone.
A 2019 Government directive to consider whether prosecution was in the public interest led to a decrease, but now charges are ramping up again. (Source: 1News)
Labour police spokesperson Ginny Andersen said the increase in prosecution “doesn’t seem fair”.
“There’s an increase in low-level offending for New Zealanders, but international criminals operating on a large scale are let off the hook.”
Her comments come after 11 Vietnamese nationals were arrested and deported by Immigration NZ following a recent bust where a total of 3385 cannabis plants and 48kg of dried buds were found in rented homes in Auckland. The drugs seized were worth around $18m.
‘Highly organised syndicates’
Police Minister Mark Mitchell defended the decision to send the Vietnamese nationals home rather than prosecute them.
He said these syndicates were “highly organised” and here for “all the wrong reasons”.
“It’s actually much easier to put them on a plane and send them home. I think it’s a big cost to the taxpayer here, it clogs up our justice system and our courts.”
Green Party police spokesperson Tamatha Paul said the use and distribution of drugs should be treated as a health issue rather than a criminal justice issue.
“Cannabis need to be decriminalised, legalised and regulated so that you don’t get these types of outcomes and have people coming to Aotearoa and making a profit out of this.”
Mitchell said police were “doing an outstanding job in terms of the investigations – identifying, charging, prosecuting”.