|
|
Printing etc. of certain books etc., communication of certain information and possession of certain documents an offence.
|
5.—(1) (a) A person shall not print, publish, cause or procure to be printed or published, sell or expose or offer or keep for sale, distribute or offer or keep for distribution, any book, periodical or other publication which either—
|
|
| |
(i) advocates or encourages, or might reasonably be supposed to advocate or encourage, whether expressly or by implication, the use of any controlled drug prescribed for the purposes of this section, or any product or preparation containing any such controlled drug, otherwise than in the course of professional treatment by a practitioner, or
|
|
| |
(ii) contains any advertisement advertising any use of a pipe, utensil or other thing for use by persons, for or in connection with the use of a controlled drug so prescribed or such a product or preparation, which is a use other than a use described in paragraph (b) of this subsection.
|
|
| |
(b) The use lastly referred to in paragraph (a) of this subsection is a use (being the use of a pipe, utensil or other thing)—
|
|
| |
(i) which is described in the relevant advertisement, and
|
|
| |
(ii) which any person reading the relevant advertisement would—
|
|
| |
(I) take to be a use relating to a controlled drug prescribed for the purposes of this section or a product or preparation containing such a controlled drug, and
|
|
| |
(II) take to be, and only to be, a use to be availed of in the course of professional treatment by a practitioner.
|
|
| |
(2) A person who contravenes subsection (1) of this section shall be guilty of an offence under this subsection.
|
|
| |
(3) If any person, for the purpose of enabling or assisting another person to obtain, otherwise than on foot of a prescription issued by a practitioner, a controlled drug prescribed for the purposes of this section or a product or preparation containing such a drug communicates to that person any information, he shall be guilty of an offence under this subsection.
|
|
| |
(4) If a person, with intent to commit or to aid, abet, cause or procure the commission of an offence under subsection (3) of this section, has in his possession or under his control any document of such a nature that the dissemination of copies thereof would constitute such an offence, he shall be guilty of an offence under this subsection.
|
|
| |
(5) In any proceedings for an offence under subsection (2) of this section it shall be a defence for the defendant to prove that—
|
|
| |
(a) at the time of the alleged offence he carried on the business of selling or distributing books, periodicals or other publications, and
|
|
| |
(b) the act alleged to constitute such offence was committed by him in the ordinary course of his said business, and
|
|
| |
(c) he could not by the exercise of reasonable care have known or ascertained the contents of the book, periodical or other publication in respect of which such act was committed.
|
|
| |
(6) Where in proceedings for an offence under subsection (4) of this section it is proved that the defendant had at the time of the alleged offence in his possession or under his control a document described in the said subsection (4), then, unless there is sufficient other evidence to raise an issue as to whether the defendant so had the document with the intent referred to in the said subsection (4), he shall be treated as having had at such time the document in his possession or under his control with such intent.
|
