The drug court has jurisdiction over three distinct categories of offenders mentioned in section 35 of Drug Act (law no 14/2011). Those categories are:
Offenders who are charged with the offence of use of drugs or drug peddling
Drug dependent offenders whom drug dependency contributed to the commission of a criminal offence
Offenders serving a sentence for a criminal offence.
Each above categories of offenders should meet special conditions mentioned in sub-sections of section 35 of drug act as follows.
Drug Users and paddlers
A person charged with the offence of use of drugs or drug peddling shall be an eligible person if he satisfies the following qualifications.
He is a drug dependent person
He has pleaded guilty to the offence or has indicated that he intends to plead guilty to the offence
He is not charged with an offence referred to in section 36
He satisfies the criteria for a Drug Court prescribed treatment program.
Drug dependent person whose drug dependency contributed to the commission of a criminal offence
A drug dependent person whose drug dependency contributed to the commission of a criminal offence shall be an eligible person if he satisfies the following qualifications.
He is a drug dependent person
His drug dependency contributed to the commission of the criminal offence with which he is charged
The offence he is charged with is not an offence referred to in Section 36
He is not being tried in any other court for an offence referred to in section 36
It is likely the person would, if convicted of the offence, be sentenced to imprisonment or banishment for a term exceeding 10 (ten) years
Has pleaded guilty to the offence or has indicated that he intends to plead guilty to the offence
He satisfies the criteria for a Drug Court prescribed treatment program.
Person serving a sentence for a criminal offence
A person serving a sentence for a criminal offence shall be an eligible person if he satisfies the following qualifications.
He is a drug dependent person
The offence for which he is serving the sentence is either the offence of use of drugs or drug peddling; or
If he is serving multiple sentences, and if the offence for which he is serving his current sentence is not the offence of use of drugs or drug peddling, then the subsequent sentence he will serve is for the offence of use of drugs or drug peddling
The offence for which he is serving the sentence is not an offence referred to in Section 36
He is not being tried in any other court for an offence referred to in section 36
He satisfies the criteria for a Drug Court prescribed treatment program.
