It is a sad reality these days where most of us either know someone or have a friend who knows someone who was a meth addict, and died as a result of taking meth or as a result of some type of accident, while under the influence of meth.

The McGowan Government, in its efforts to discourage people from dealing in Methylamphetamine, has passed new laws which increase the penalty for possessing a trafficable about of methylamphetamine (28 grams or more) to life imprisonment.

The Misuse of Drugs Amendment (Methylamphetamine Offences) Bill 2017 received Royal Assent on 21 August 2017 as Act no 3 of 2017. It is due to come into force 28 days after assent, being Monday 18 September 2017.

The new provisions also extend the jurisdiction of the District Court to deal with such offences. In addition, it provides for increased penalties for offences of conspiracy, incitement or being an accessory after the fact of an offence involving methylamphetamine.

To put the new law in some sort of real world context, possessing an amount of meth, a little less than the weight of a chocolate Freddo frog, could see an individual spend the rest of their life in prison.

So, if you do have a friend or loved one who is about to go out and purchase a couple of 8balls of meth, throw them a chocolate Freddo frog and ask them, is it really worth the risk?

MEDIA RELEASE

In this ever-evolving, Covid-19 State of Emergency Mortlock Ryan & Co will continue to be there to provide a voice for regional Western Australians. Our office will continue to operate and provide legal services to new and existing clients.

It is important to strictly adhere to the Government’s social distancing requirements and stay within your home or workplace unless it is a necessary requirement to go out.  The Courts have put new procedures in place to comply with the social distancing requirements, and it’s essential for clients to familiarise themselves with each of the Court’s social distancing requirements. Links to each of the Courts are listed below.

https://www.supremecourt.wa.gov.au/
https://www.districtcourt.wa.gov.au/
https://www.magistratescourt.wa.gov.au/p/public_notices.aspx
https://www.childrenscourt.wa.gov.au/
https://www.familycourt.wa.gov.au/

If you have matters listed in any of the Courts, please contact our office on 1300 649 915, and we will be able to advise you how you are to attend.  To minimise the movement of people within our communities, our office will be using video conferencing software ZOOM and Microsoft Teams.

If clients are unable to use video conferencing software, we ask that you contact our office by telephone so we can make alternative arrangements for you. We will be arranging face to face meetings with new and existing client on a case by case basis, particularly where there is the need to prepare documents for court lodgement or attending Court by audio link.

We have recently marked a 1-year milestone at our premises, and we have had some feedback from some of our previous clients that they were not aware we had moved.

We are not on the main street but situated at 14 Grey Street, Northam, just up from the Northam Boulevard Shopping Centre car park and right next door to Grey Street Doctors Surgery.

We chose not to be on the main street of Northam as we felt that it was essential to offer our clients privacy and ease of access when attending our offices.

We look forward to seeing all our clients at our Grey Street office, just look for the red door.