The extent of criminal penalties enforced will turn on the facts of each case, including the type and quantity of drug involved and, of course, the offense in question. Depending on the circumstances, imprisonment, fines, and a permanent criminal record are all on the cards. With the right legal backing, however, these might be reduced to alternative sentencing for juveniles, such as counseling, community service, probation, or rehabilitation.

Selling to minors, dealing, manufacture, or cultivation are likely to attract harsher penalties than possession. In addition, if the alleged offender is soon to be 17, or the type or amount of narcotic warrants a more serious outcome, these will all be aggravating factors likely to increase the severity of the penalties and the chance of the crime being treated as an adult offense.

By way of example, possession of over 1kg of cocaine could incur a fine of up to $1 million and life in jail.