Henry Karmo<\/b><\/p>\n
Africa-Press – Liberia. <\/strong><\/span>In a significant move, both chambers of the Legislature concurred on the passage of the amended act titled \u201cControlled Drugs and Substances Act of 2014,\u201d which will now be referred to as the \u201cControlled Drugs and Substances Act of 2023.\u201dThe decision to amend the act came following a conference committee report from both houses. The committee adopted the version of the House\u2019s Bill No. 25, which had been previously enacted by the Senate. Notably, the original House\u2019s Bill No. 45 had classified every offense under the law as non-bailable.<\/p>\n However, the Senate\u2019s version took into consideration the fundamental constitutional right to bail, recognizing that it should only be denied in cases of capital offenses or grave offenses as determined by law.<\/p>\n Under the amended act, the cultivation, manufacture, importation, export, trafficking, and sale of controlled drugs and substances will now be considered a first-degree felony, classified as a grave offense and therefore, non-bailable. Additionally, properties, both real and personal, utilized in the commission of these offenses will be escheated to the Republic.<\/p>\n The proceeds from the sale of these escheated properties will be appropriated as follows: twenty-five percent (25%) to the drug enforcement agencies, another twenty-five percent (25%) to drug prevention and rehabilitation programs, and fifty percent (50%) to the general revenue of the Republic.<\/p>\n It is important to note that these appropriations for drug enforcement agencies and drug prevention and rehabilitation programs are in addition to the annual budget allocations made by the Legislature.<\/p>\n The Senate\u2019s version of the Bill also recognizes that the use or consumption of controlled drugs and substances is a second-degree felony. However, in line with the constitutional right to bail for the commission of a crime, this offense will be bailable. The bail amount for such cases will be twice the value of the controlled drugs or substance and must be covered by cash, a manager\u2019s check, or a bank certificate equivalent to the cash amount.<\/p>\n The rationale behind designating the consumption of controlled drugs and substances as a second-degree felony is rooted in the belief that consumers are often considered victims of cultivators, manufacturers, importers, exporters, traffickers, and sellers.<\/p>\n Furthermore, the amended act stipulates that if a convict of any of these crimes is a non-Liberian, they will be deported from Liberia after serving their sentence.<\/p>\n With the passage of the amended act, Liberia aims to strengthen its drug control measures and combat the widespread cultivation, manufacturing, trafficking, and consumption of controlled drugs and substances. The government is determined to protect its citizens, prevent drug abuse, and provide rehabilitation support to those affected by drug-related issues.<\/p>\n For More News And Analysis About Liberia<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Henry Karmo Africa-Press – Liberia. In a significant move, both chambers of the Legislature concurred on the passage of the amended act titled \u201cControlled Drugs and Substances Act of 2014,\u201d which will now be referred to as the \u201cControlled Drugs and Substances Act of 2023.\u201dThe decision to amend the act came following a conference committee […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":39256,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,12],"tags":[233,237,234],"class_list":["post-39257","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-policy","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-liberia","tag-liberia"],"yoast_head":"\n