Australia Sees 9 Percent Decline in Drug Charges

Though fewer people are being charged with drug offences, drug use has not declined.

Marijuana plants in Poncitlan, Jalisco state, Mexico, on April 14, 2023. Ulises Ruiz/AFP via Getty Images

The number of people facing drug charges in Australian criminal courts fell by 9 percent in the 2023/24 year, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

In total, 38,039 defendants were charged with offences including possession, sale, trafficking, import or export, manufacture, or cultivation of illegal drugs.