Cocaine

Cocaine is a powerful stimulant made from the leaves of the coca plant, grown primarily in South America.

Cocaine Usage 

According to a 2019 Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction, Canada ranks second among countries where citizens admit to regular cocaine use. Just under three percent of Canadians aged 15 and older said they used cocaine in 2020. Cocaine is also the third most-used substance after alcohol and cannabis (besides tobacco), for those older than 19.

In 2014, cocaine resulted in 1,572 hospital stays in Canada for conditions that are wholly (such as cocaine poisonings) or partially (such as HIV) attributable to the drug. It is estimated that $80 million in health-care costs were attributable to cocaine in 2014. The Public Health Agency of Canada found that 71 percent of stimulant toxicity deaths from January to September 2020 involved cocaine.

It is better known by one of its street names, such as C, rock, snow, coke, powder lines, Charlie, flake, blow, bump, nose candy, perl, rail, speedball, toot, white rock or dust. The two most common varieties are a white powder which you can snort or inject, and an opaque crystal form known as crack, that you either smoke, dissolve or inject.

The term “possessionHaving knowledge and control of something — not only physically holding it, but also an item kept somewhere else that you know about and control.” is often misunderstood. Even if the cocaine is not found on your person, house or car, the police can still charge you with possession if you had some degree of physical control and knowledge about the drug. That means that possession charges can be laid against you even if the drug is found in someone’s else’s home or a neutral location such as a storage locker.

Cocaine used to be regarded by the courts as a drug that was somewhat more serious than marijuana but not as concerning as heroin. However, with crack cocaine and intravenous cocaine users, it is now treated much more seriously by the judicial system.

If this is your first cocaine possession charge and the Crown proceeds by summary convictionLess-serious criminal offences, the maximum is a $1,000 fine and/or 6 months in jail. For a subsequent offence on summary conviction, the maximum is a $2,000 fine and/or 1 year. On indictment, the maximum is 7 years in prison.

If the Crown  treats your case as an indictable offenceA more serious type of Canadian criminal offence., the sentence can be up to seven years in prison if you possessed cocaine for personal use. Those found with large amounts and who are convicted of trafficking could be sentenced to life imprisonment.

Sentences depend on many variables, including whether you already have a criminal record and how much cocaine you were caught with. To win a conviction, the Crown must prove that you possessed (had knowledge and control over it) the substance, that it is a controlled substanceA substance that is regulated by the government, and that your possession of the drug was not authorized.

November 17, 2022
Update: Bill C-5: Mandatory Minimum Penalties Repealed.