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No More Jail Terms for Drug Possession
By Carl Schreck
Moscow Times Staff Writer www.moscowtimes.ru
Under a new law that came into effect this week, drug users can
possess a greatly increased amount of an illegal substance -- for
instance, 20 grams of marijuana or 1.5 grams of cocaine -- without the
risk of being thrown in jail.
The law has been criticized by the Federal Anti-Drug Service, which
says it hampers the battle against drugs, but praised by those who
work to rehabilitate drug addicts, who predict more addicts will now
seek help.
President Vladimir Putin signed an amendment to the Criminal Code in
December stipulating that possession of no more than 10 times the
amount of a "single dose" would now be considered an administrative
infraction rather than a criminal offense. Punishment would be a fine
of no more than 40,000 rubles ($1,380) or community service.
It then took five months to hammer out what would be considered the
single dose of various drugs.
Ten times the amount of a single dose, as set in the government
resolution that came into effect Wednesday, is 20 grams of marijuana,
5 grams of hashish, mescaline or opium, 1.5 grams of cocaine, 1 gram
of heroin or methamphetamine, and 0.003 grams of LSD.
Anyone caught in possession of these amounts or less cannot legally be
detained, a spokeswoman for the Moscow branch of the Federal Anti-Drug
Service said. Instead, a report will be filed and the fine will be
determined by a court.
This is a major change. Under the old standards, someone caught with
0.1 grams of marijuana, for instance, could be punished by
incarceration.
Foreigners, even those with deep pockets, should still take the new
law seriously, however. Yelena Zhigayeva, a lawyer at the Moscow law
firm Haarmann Hemmelrath & Partner, said that by law foreigners who
violate Russian drug laws, even if it is only an administrative
infraction, can be expelled from the country or denied re-entry.
Alexander Mikhailov, deputy head of the Federal Anti-Drug Service, was
indignant about the resolution.
"The heroin dose is normal for a chronic drug user, but for a regular
person it's nonetheless a dose of potassium cyanide," Mikhailov was
quoted as saying in Kommersant on Thursday. "We were categorically
against it, but the Justice Ministry simply went crazy chasing its
European standards.
"Now drug addicts have the right to run around with their pockets full
of marijuana, and we can't even detain them."
A spokesman for the Federal Anti-Drug Service was more diplomatic.
"It's the law, and we are required to abide by it and enforce it," he
said by telephone.
The amounts for single doses were recommended by a group formed by the
State Duma's Legislative Committee that included representatives from
the Health, Justice and Interior ministries, the FSB and several NGOs.
Lev Levinson, head of New Drug Policy, an advocacy group for drug law
reform, was the coordinator of the group. "This is a brave, humane
law," Levinson said. "Now that police will stop persecuting users,
they can start focusing on real threats like large-scale drug
trafficking."
Vitaly Zhumagaliyev, head of the Moscow bureau of Harm Reduction,
which works to rehabilitate drug addicts, said the new law will
provide a boost to his organization's activities.
Russia Enacts Sweeping Reforms in Drug Laws: No Jail for Possession
5/14/04
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/337/russia.shtml
DRCNet reported in March that Russia was on the verge of making
dramatic reforms to its draconian drug laws after the Duma passed
legislation that would remove criminal penalties and the possibility
of jail time for simple drug possession. But then the wheels flew off
the whole process as drug warriors within the Russian government
attempted to turn the reform on its head by defining the quantities of
each drug that would constitute possession for personal use at levels
so low as to render the reforms meaningless, or worse. (Visit
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/328/russia.shtml and
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/329/russialaw.shtml for our
earlier coverage.)
Now the drug warriors have been fought off, and reformers have managed
to get quantities set at levels that will keep hundreds of thousands
of Russian drug users out of prison. Under the old law, possession of
even a single marijuana cigarette could garner a three-year prison
sentence. According to Russian authorities, somewhere between 200,000
and 300,000 people are currently serving time for drug offenses.
Russia's Duma
Under the new law -- actually an amendment to the Criminal Code --
which went into effect Wednesday, people possessing no more than 10
times the "average single dose" will no longer be charged with a
crime, but an "administrative infraction." Possession of between 10
and 50 times the "average single dose" is punishable by a larger fine
and community service, but again, no jail or prison time. Small-scale
dealers will find themselves protected against drug trafficking
charges by this second provision -- unless they get caught in the act
of selling. Punishment for drug sales is increased under the new law.
Here are the critical quantity levels determined by the Russian
government in consultation with drug reform groups such as the Russian
Harm Reduction Network and the NAN Foundation. These are the
quantities that represent ten times the "average single dose," up to
which no one can be arrested or criminally charged:
heroin, 1.0 grams
cocaine, 1.5 grams
marijuana, 20.0 grams (dried)
hashish, 5.0 grams
ecstasy, 0.5 grams
methamphetamine, 0.5 grams
mescaline, 0.5 grams
LSD, 0.003 grams
psilocybin, 0.005 grams
The Russian equivalent of the DEA, the Federal Drug Control Service,
wanted much lower levels, Vitaly Djuma, head of the Russian Harm
Reduction Network, told DRCNet while the levels were being decided.
"The agency responsible for setting new doses is the Ministry of
Health," said Djuma, "but using its status as a state security agency,
the Federal Drug Control Service (FDCS) tried to push through its own
determinations where, for example, a single dose of heroin was 0.0001
gram, thus turning all drug users once again into 'drug dealers.' This
could not only nullify the humanizing of legislation by the Russian
administration but also directly threaten the safety -- and lives --
of millions of Russians who use drugs."
Under the quantities proposed by the FDCS, the "average single dose"
of marijuana would be 0.0015 grams. With a standard joint weighing in
at about one gram, possession of a single joint would make the
possessor subject to penalties for drug dealing because one gram
exceeds 50 doses (0.75 grams) by the FDCS standard. Similarly absurd
low "average single doses" were set for other drugs as well.
But all that has been undone, and the FDCS is not happy. "Now drug
addicts have the right to run around with their pockets full of
marijuana, and we can't even detain them," FDCS deputy chief Alexander
Mikhailov complained to the newspaper Kommersant Thursday. "The heroin
dose is normal for a chronic drug user, but for a regular person it's
nonetheless a dose of potassium cyanide. We were categorically against
it, but the Justice Ministry simply went crazy chasing its European
standards."
An FDCS spokesman was more diplomatic. "It's the law, and we are
required to abide by it and enforce it," he told the Moscow Times
Thursday.
Drug reformers welcomed the law and the new, improved "average single
dose" levels. "This is a brave, humane law," said Lev Levinson, head
of New Drug Policies, and one of the people who helped set the new
quantities. "Now that police will stop persecuting users, they can
start focusing on real threats like large-scale drug trafficking," he
told the Times.
Now, if the Russians can only reign in the drug warriors. They were
busy repressing the Moscow Million Marijuana March last weekend (see
newsbrief this issue).
By Carl Schreck
Moscow Times Staff Writer www.moscowtimes.ru
Under a new law that came into effect this week, drug users can
possess a greatly increased amount of an illegal substance -- for
instance, 20 grams of marijuana or 1.5 grams of cocaine -- without the
risk of being thrown in jail.
The law has been criticized by the Federal Anti-Drug Service, which
says it hampers the battle against drugs, but praised by those who
work to rehabilitate drug addicts, who predict more addicts will now
seek help.
President Vladimir Putin signed an amendment to the Criminal Code in
December stipulating that possession of no more than 10 times the
amount of a "single dose" would now be considered an administrative
infraction rather than a criminal offense. Punishment would be a fine
of no more than 40,000 rubles ($1,380) or community service.
It then took five months to hammer out what would be considered the
single dose of various drugs.
Ten times the amount of a single dose, as set in the government
resolution that came into effect Wednesday, is 20 grams of marijuana,
5 grams of hashish, mescaline or opium, 1.5 grams of cocaine, 1 gram
of heroin or methamphetamine, and 0.003 grams of LSD.
Anyone caught in possession of these amounts or less cannot legally be
detained, a spokeswoman for the Moscow branch of the Federal Anti-Drug
Service said. Instead, a report will be filed and the fine will be
determined by a court.
This is a major change. Under the old standards, someone caught with
0.1 grams of marijuana, for instance, could be punished by
incarceration.
Foreigners, even those with deep pockets, should still take the new
law seriously, however. Yelena Zhigayeva, a lawyer at the Moscow law
firm Haarmann Hemmelrath & Partner, said that by law foreigners who
violate Russian drug laws, even if it is only an administrative
infraction, can be expelled from the country or denied re-entry.
Alexander Mikhailov, deputy head of the Federal Anti-Drug Service, was
indignant about the resolution.
"The heroin dose is normal for a chronic drug user, but for a regular
person it's nonetheless a dose of potassium cyanide," Mikhailov was
quoted as saying in Kommersant on Thursday. "We were categorically
against it, but the Justice Ministry simply went crazy chasing its
European standards.
"Now drug addicts have the right to run around with their pockets full
of marijuana, and we can't even detain them."
A spokesman for the Federal Anti-Drug Service was more diplomatic.
"It's the law, and we are required to abide by it and enforce it," he
said by telephone.
The amounts for single doses were recommended by a group formed by the
State Duma's Legislative Committee that included representatives from
the Health, Justice and Interior ministries, the FSB and several NGOs.
Lev Levinson, head of New Drug Policy, an advocacy group for drug law
reform, was the coordinator of the group. "This is a brave, humane
law," Levinson said. "Now that police will stop persecuting users,
they can start focusing on real threats like large-scale drug
trafficking."
Vitaly Zhumagaliyev, head of the Moscow bureau of Harm Reduction,
which works to rehabilitate drug addicts, said the new law will
provide a boost to his organization's activities.
Russia Enacts Sweeping Reforms in Drug Laws: No Jail for Possession
5/14/04
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/337/russia.shtml
DRCNet reported in March that Russia was on the verge of making
dramatic reforms to its draconian drug laws after the Duma passed
legislation that would remove criminal penalties and the possibility
of jail time for simple drug possession. But then the wheels flew off
the whole process as drug warriors within the Russian government
attempted to turn the reform on its head by defining the quantities of
each drug that would constitute possession for personal use at levels
so low as to render the reforms meaningless, or worse. (Visit
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/328/russia.shtml and
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/329/russialaw.shtml for our
earlier coverage.)
Now the drug warriors have been fought off, and reformers have managed
to get quantities set at levels that will keep hundreds of thousands
of Russian drug users out of prison. Under the old law, possession of
even a single marijuana cigarette could garner a three-year prison
sentence. According to Russian authorities, somewhere between 200,000
and 300,000 people are currently serving time for drug offenses.
Russia's Duma
Under the new law -- actually an amendment to the Criminal Code --
which went into effect Wednesday, people possessing no more than 10
times the "average single dose" will no longer be charged with a
crime, but an "administrative infraction." Possession of between 10
and 50 times the "average single dose" is punishable by a larger fine
and community service, but again, no jail or prison time. Small-scale
dealers will find themselves protected against drug trafficking
charges by this second provision -- unless they get caught in the act
of selling. Punishment for drug sales is increased under the new law.
Here are the critical quantity levels determined by the Russian
government in consultation with drug reform groups such as the Russian
Harm Reduction Network and the NAN Foundation. These are the
quantities that represent ten times the "average single dose," up to
which no one can be arrested or criminally charged:
heroin, 1.0 grams
cocaine, 1.5 grams
marijuana, 20.0 grams (dried)
hashish, 5.0 grams
ecstasy, 0.5 grams
methamphetamine, 0.5 grams
mescaline, 0.5 grams
LSD, 0.003 grams
psilocybin, 0.005 grams
The Russian equivalent of the DEA, the Federal Drug Control Service,
wanted much lower levels, Vitaly Djuma, head of the Russian Harm
Reduction Network, told DRCNet while the levels were being decided.
"The agency responsible for setting new doses is the Ministry of
Health," said Djuma, "but using its status as a state security agency,
the Federal Drug Control Service (FDCS) tried to push through its own
determinations where, for example, a single dose of heroin was 0.0001
gram, thus turning all drug users once again into 'drug dealers.' This
could not only nullify the humanizing of legislation by the Russian
administration but also directly threaten the safety -- and lives --
of millions of Russians who use drugs."
Under the quantities proposed by the FDCS, the "average single dose"
of marijuana would be 0.0015 grams. With a standard joint weighing in
at about one gram, possession of a single joint would make the
possessor subject to penalties for drug dealing because one gram
exceeds 50 doses (0.75 grams) by the FDCS standard. Similarly absurd
low "average single doses" were set for other drugs as well.
But all that has been undone, and the FDCS is not happy. "Now drug
addicts have the right to run around with their pockets full of
marijuana, and we can't even detain them," FDCS deputy chief Alexander
Mikhailov complained to the newspaper Kommersant Thursday. "The heroin
dose is normal for a chronic drug user, but for a regular person it's
nonetheless a dose of potassium cyanide. We were categorically against
it, but the Justice Ministry simply went crazy chasing its European
standards."
An FDCS spokesman was more diplomatic. "It's the law, and we are
required to abide by it and enforce it," he told the Moscow Times
Thursday.
Drug reformers welcomed the law and the new, improved "average single
dose" levels. "This is a brave, humane law," said Lev Levinson, head
of New Drug Policies, and one of the people who helped set the new
quantities. "Now that police will stop persecuting users, they can
start focusing on real threats like large-scale drug trafficking," he
told the Times.
Now, if the Russians can only reign in the drug warriors. They were
busy repressing the Moscow Million Marijuana March last weekend (see
newsbrief this issue).
