Pat downs

It’s that time of the year again and the annual party season is just about to begin in full force. Unfortunately, along with the fun and celebration come the warnings about the problems that can be associated with partying. For many people, partying and drug use, whether legal or illegal, go hand in hand.

Firstly it is important to be aware that if you do not want to experience negative consequences -“ do not use drugs. Drug taking is risky and as a result you can never be quite sure of the experience you are going to have.

No matter how many precautions you take, there are no guarantees. This week we’ll be looking at one of the most real risks involved with partying and using illicit drugs -“ getting into trouble with the law.

When a promoter decides to put on an event he or she must put great thought into the health and safety of the patrons. Increasingly, promoters have to develop an alcohol and other drug strategy.

This is usually based on a harm minimisation philosophy, much like the policy adopted by the Australian government. It has three components -“ supply reduction, demand reduction and harm reduction.

Supply reduction does its best to exclude drugs from the event; demand reduction is essentially the education component of the strategy, i.e., providing information to patrons about the risks involved in drug use so hopefully they will make the decision not to use; and harm reduction attempts to keep those people who choose to use drugs as safe as possible, i.e., medical teams and rovers.

Supply reduction is incredibly important from an organisational perspective. Police want evidence the promoters are doing their very best to stop drugs from entering the venue and one of the ways gay events have attempted to do this is by having pat downs at the entrances to parties. These are non-intrusive searches where patrons are asked to empty out their pockets and be patted down by a trained member of security staff.

It is vital that people know if they get found with an illicit substance there could be serious consequences. Essentially there are three possible outcomes: the substance could be taken from them and destroyed and they are let into the party; the drugs are destroyed and they are not allowed entry; and in the worst-case scenario the punter and their drugs are handed over to the police.

Do not think you are immune to the legal consequences of drug use. While law enforcement officers are mindful of the health and safety issues associated with policing drug use in a heavy-handed way, the self-administering, possession and supply of prohibited drugs is against current NSW laws.

If you get caught at the entrance to a party with an illegal drug, at the very least you could find yourself with a caution, at worst a criminal conviction and a jail sentence.

Remember: if you do not want any negative consequences, do not use the drug and, no matter how many times you have used a substance, never be blas?