WHAT IS THE CRITERION OF “ANNUAL USE” IN DRUG TRAFFICKING OFFENSES?
In the trial of drug offenses, the criterion of “annual use amount”, which is a criterion determined by the Court of Cassation, is important in determining whether the narcotic substance is within the scope of use or trade. However, the Court of Cassation finds it unlawful to divide the amount of narcotics seized by the number of perpetrators without sufficient justification and without evaluating other evidence, to determine the personal annual usage limit and to determine this action according to this characterization. Therefore, in addition to this criterion, it should not be overlooked that other evidence is of great importance.
It should be noted that even if the narcotic substance is 1 gram, if the existence of sale, procurement, transfer, transportation and similar actions are determined by ancillary evidence, the defendant will be sentenced for drug trafficking by applying Article 188/3 of the TPC.
The amount that can be accepted for the perpetrator’s personal use varies according to the physical and mental structure of the person and the nature, type and quality of the drug and stimulant substance.
The Ali Medical Institute has assessed that drug users can consume cannabis 3 times a day, one to one and a half grams each time. The Court of Cassation has concluded that the 600-700 grams of cannabis mentioned in the forensic report is within the annual personal use limits.
Cannabis and Indian hemp;
The Court of Cassation has adopted that cannabis over 600-700 grams per year should be considered as possession for commercial purposes.
The number of roots and the amount of marijuana that can be obtained should be taken into consideration in determining the purpose of trade or use in the crime of cultivating female Indian hemp. According to the Court of Cassation, if there is no other evidence that they are planted for commercial purposes, cannabis plants with up to 20 roots can be accepted within the scope of personal use.
Heroin and cocaine
In the absence of any other ancillary evidence for heroin and cocaine, possession of 20 grams or more of the substance seized from the person is considered as possession for commercial purposes.
The daily usage amount for heroin is 150 mg and for cocaine 60 milligrams.
In 2012, it was determined that the purity rate of cocaine in Turkey varies between 10% and 92%. In this case, if the purity rate of the cocaine seized from the defendant is 84%, it can be accepted that one dose of cocaine is 50-100 mg.
Synthetic pills
In the case of synthetic pills containing narcotic drugs, the Court of Cassation has also adopted that 50 or more pills are kept for trade purposes, not for use. The daily usage amount of pills is 3-4 pieces.
Methamphetamine
The average amount of methamphetamine (crystal) for one use is 0.05 gr. For example, 12.85 gr of methamphetamine can be used for an average of 257 uses. The Court of Cassation considers the amount given in this example within the scope of drug trafficking. 9.9 grams of methamphetamine substance was accepted by the Court of Cassation as being within the personal use limit due to the lack of any other evidence, and the Court of Cassation accepted that it was possessed for use
Seizure of more than one type of narcotic substance;
It is considered that the act will also constitute the crime of trafficking when more than one type of narcotic substance, but less than the amounts shared above, is seized from the person. A person who uses drugs usually possesses one or two different drugs of similar potency. For this reason, it can be accepted that the defendant who possessed tablets containing heroin, cocaine, cannabis and amphetamine, which have different qualities and different effects, possessed them for the purpose of selling them.
HOW TO DETERMINE THE OFFENSE OF DRUG TRAFFICKING?
The amount of narcotic substances seized is an important element in determining the perpetrator’s intent to trade narcotics. Here, the perpetrator’s purpose in the action is taken into consideration.
A report should be obtained from an expert on whether the amount of narcotic substance seized from the perpetrator is within the annual personal use limits.
If there is no evidence in the trial file that the narcotic substance was kept for trade, procurement, transportation and similar purposes, the perpetrator’s intent to trade narcotic substances should be determined according to the amount of narcotic substance.
The amount of narcotic substance seized cannot be automatically divided by the number of perpetrators to determine the annual limit of personal use. Other criteria and evidence must be taken into consideration.
The actions of the accused, the way the narcotic substance was seized and possessed, the time and place where the narcotic substance was found, whether the accused used narcotic substances or not, the social and economic status of the accused are also of great importance and are taken into consideration in determining the offense.
