Cannabis conviction rate going to pot as attitudes shift

The number of people appearing before our district courts on cannabis offences has halved over the past decade — a phenomenon being called “decriminalisation by stealth”.

In one region, this number had dropped more than two-thirds.

According to Ministry of Justice data, 4117 people charged with cannabis-related offences went through New Zealand’s district courts last year.

This was a 54 per cent drop from the 8876 people in district courts on cannabis-related offences in 2008.

In the North Auckland region — from Auckland central north to Warkworth — there had been a 68 per cent decrease in people appearing before the courts on cannabis offences.

The data encompassed all crimes related to cannabis, including dealing or trafficking, manufacturing or cultivating, possession and use. The data counted an offender only once each year.

Although it seemed to suggest Kiwis were cutting their use of the drug, New Zealand Drug Foundation chief executive Ross

Bell thought otherwise. “We’re among the highest users in the world — I think around 11 per cent of the population have used cannabis in the last 12 months.”

Bell said a decrease in apprehensions and convictions was likely down to police practice.

He didn’t consider it likely police had actively relaxed their attitudes around cannabis. It was more probable limited resources were prioritised for policing drugs that caused the most harm, he said.

“Over the last 10 years police have had access to what they call a broader range of alternative resolutions. That includes things like the adult diversion schemes, or justice panels.

“In many districts they have these alternative resolutions which mean they can divert people rather than prosecuting them through a court.”

Arguably you could describe it as “decriminalisation by stealth”, Bell said.

But a police spokesperson said officers’ approach to cannabis had not changed. Police had discretion on “how they deal with a range of matters, including cannabis offences, on a case by case basis.

“This includes a number of alternative resolution options such as precharge warnings for lower level offences.”

The spokesperson noted police were still seeing large-scale commercial cannabis crops — largely associated with organised crime.

“There has been a big jump in the number of cannabis plants seized nationwide in recent years.”

A poll commissioned by the New Zealand Drug Foundation recently found support for personal possession sat at 67 per cent.

Support for pain relief was 87 per cent while those in favour of a law reform legalising the use of cannabis for pain relief for terminal conditions was even higher, at 89 per cent.