In recent years, many in the police have said that they are unsure of what they are allowed to do when they suspect that someone is using drugs. Now a report suggests that the police should be able to search people and homes to find evidence that someone has drugs for their own use. The report was handed over to the Minister of Justice on Tuesday from the Substance Abuse Committee. – Drugs are prohibited today and will continue to be so. Minister of Justice Emilie Enger Mehl (Sp) emphasizes this when she receives the report. The committee believes that today it is dependent on a confession from the person who uses drugs, so that this can be punished. They will give the police more means to uncover this, even if the suspect does not admit to using it. Furthermore, it is proposed that the police should be able to take saliva samples from people who are suspected of using drugs. This is considered milder than blood and urine tests, which have been used in the past. The saliva sample must not be taken by force, but it is suggested that refusing such testing can be emphasized by the police when they consider testing for drugs with urine or blood samples. It is also proposed to clarify when the police can search people suspected of drug use. Will change which amount is not punished In 2022, the Supreme Court handed down three judgments in which they did not punish drug addicts for having a small amount of drugs, so-called sentencing waivers. The Supreme Court held that drug addicts could have up to five grams of heroin, amphetamines and cocaine for their own use, without this resulting in punishment. It does not mean that after this it became legal to use or store small doses of drugs for drug addicts. But the main rule was that the prosecution should not take such cases to court. The committee now proposes that the limit be lowered to two grams for cocaine and one gram for heroin. For cannabis, they propose a limit of 15 grams, while the limit for amphetamine is unchanged in the proposal. Will legislate who will not be punished The committee wants the Storting to legislate that drug addicts over the age of 18 are given immunity from prosecution for using or storing small amounts of drugs. But what is involved in someone being addicted to drugs is not defined by the committee. They write that there will usually be no doubt about this. Furthermore, the committee proposes that it should be possible to avoid punishment by appearing for drug counseling. So-called conditional exemption from prosecution. The committee wants this to be the normal reaction to young people who have committed a minor drug offence. Minister of Justice Emilie Enger Mehl (Sp) says it will be exciting to go through the report. Photo: NTB – A derailment KrF’s justice policy spokesperson Kjell Ingolf Ropstad says it is urgent to get this clarification: – Drug use has in recent years been normalized to a new and dangerous level. This must be reversed. MDG leader Arild Hermstad believes that even if the committee is open to using some coercive measures, they do not give support for more severe coercive measures. – My clear expectation is therefore that this report is put in a drawer. Because this is a derailment of the whole debate about which aid measures can reduce the damage from drug use in society. Ingvild Thorsvik (V) is also disappointed by the report and calls for health care for drug addicts: – Giving the police additional coercive measures is a fist in the stomach for everyone who struggles with addiction. The government wants more coercive measures and more punishment. It will not reduce drug use and overdose deaths. Justice policy spokesperson for SV, Andreas Sjalg Unneland, tells news that more coercive measures for the police to uncover drug use is a policy that belongs in the 80s. Many questions How to respond to drug addicts’ use and storage of small amounts of drugs has been a hotly debated topic over time. The debate raises several questions: How should the police be able to proceed if they suspect that someone is storing a limited quantity of drugs? Who is considered a drug addict? How small is a smaller quantity? Two team judges and a law professor have taken a closer look at this. The committee consists of retired lawyer Hans-Petter Jahre, lawyer Tonje Vang and law professor Ørnulf Øyen. For a year, they have been working on issues that are part of the wider drug and treatment reform the government promised in the Hurdal platform. The committee has previously received criticism. Among other things, because it neither represents healthcare personnel nor the drug addicts that the report targets. Kenneth Johansen of the user organization RIO believes that the committee has failed to create a legal definition of who the drug addict is. – The proposal will lead to the continued use of disproportionate coercive measures against drug addicts, he says. Acting children’s ombudsman Ivar Stokkereit believes the committee was limited to assessing preventive work in the police. He calls it a weakness of the report. – It is crucial that the government also considers what preventive measures the municipalities must have in place, so that children and young people who struggle with drug use can get better help, he says. Actis at Frode Kaafjeld says they are satisfied with the investigation and that it provides possible answers to the “vacuum we are in, where young people who have problems with drugs have gone under the radar for a long time.” Difficult rules The Solberg government proposed in 2021 to abolish penalties for small quantities of drugs for personal use. This was in line with the drug reform committee’s recommendations in 2019. This proposal did not receive a majority in the Storting, following opposition from the Labor Party and the Center Party. In the same year, the Attorney General issued guidelines on which means of coercion the police could use for smaller quantities of drugs. Here it was highlighted that in these cases the police are not allowed to search people, mobile phones or homes in search of evidence. Several police officers said they were unsure of the rules when they were not allowed to continue with previous practice. Now the committee wants the police to be allowed to use coercion as they used before 2021. At the same time, they want the law to contain the assessments the police must make with regard to whether it is reasonable to subject the person to various types of coercion. Not least, the committee believes that the police’s guidelines today place greater restrictions on what the police can do to uncover drug use, than is necessary under current law and the Attorney General’s instructions from 2021. – The committee recommends that the Attorney General and/or the Directorate of Police take the initiative to change the guidelines. Published 18.06.2024, at 15.32 Updated 18.06.2024, at 18.54
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Will give the police more room to use coercion in drug cases
