The offense of illicit use of narcotics is punishable by one year’s imprisonment and a fine of €3,750 (CSP, art. L. 3421-1, al. 1). When it is committed by a person holding public authority or entrusted with a public service mission or by the personnel of a transport company exercising functions calling into question the safety of transport, the penalty incurred is increased to five years’ imprisonment and a fine of €75,000 (CSP, art. L. 3241-1, al. 2).
Under the terms of the last paragraph of Article L. 3421-1 of the Public Health Code, when they note the illicit use of narcotics, the police may decide to resort to the criminal fixed fine procedure. (for a detailed presentation of the conditions of implementation, see Penal Rep., v° Fixed fine, by J.-P. Céré, nos. 49 to 62). The perpetrator of the offense must then pay a fixed fine, either directly to the police at the time the offense is detected, or to the Public Treasury (C. pr.peni. , art. 495-18). Payment of this fine extinguishes public action (CSP, art. L. 3241-1, al. 3). The tort lump sum fine procedure cannot be implemented when the perpetrator of the offense is a minor or when all the offenses noted do not fall within its scope of application (Penal Code, art. 495). -17).
In a circular dated August 31, 2020, the Minister of Justice intended to provide certain clarifications regarding the situations in which this procedure should not be used. Thus, its implementation must be excluded as long as the person concerned exercises one of the functions underlying the aggravation of the sentence, without it being necessary to distinguish according to whether the offense was committed in the exercise or on the occasion of these. It must be excluded when the person concerned has been found in possession of a large quantity of narcotics or the use concerns narcotics other than cannabis, cocaine, MDMA/ecstasy. The circular nevertheless specifies that these restrictions may be waived for repressive purposes, particularly when crimes of illicit use of narcotics have been noted in large numbers (during a rave partyeg.).
It is precisely the desire to ensure the repression of the illicit use of narcotics that the National organization for the reform of marijuana law France (NORML France) challenged before the Council of State. The applicant association…
2024-01-28 23:03:13
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