The debate as to whether or not to set up a court specifically for drug related offences carries on.

At present, the court system in Malta takes on varying cases – there are some magistrates which take on cases relating to particular crimes, most notably when child abuse comes in. This is done for a reason. More often than not, these cases are presided over by female magistrates and that is because they tend to deal better with the cases and the emotions that run high during the hearings.

In the past, there was a specific magistrate who used to deal with most drug cases in an ‘unofficial’ manner. He has since been promoted to a Judge in the Civil Courts. His departure from the downstairs corridors has led to the system reverting to how it was before, with cases spread out between presiding magistrates using whatever mechanism they do.

One is not saying that they do not deal with the cases well, far from it – they do an outstanding job. But perhaps it is time to set up a Drugs Court, similar to the Family Court.

Drug addicts and drug pushers are very peculiar animals. The former are shadows of what a person should be and more often than not, they are driven to despair by their behaviour which causes them to be shunned by their families, to steal to feed their habit and to live in conditions which we think are only in movie sets, but which are in reality part and parcel of drug life.

Pushers on the other hand are heartless beasts. They do not deserve clemency or leniency – they will stop at nothing to make profits off the drugs they either feed in bulk onto the market, or broker deals with middlemen and even end users.

Whatever angle you take, both breeds need specific treatment, in terms of medicine, emotional handling and yes, even sentencing. All to often, in court, you see the same people day in day out and again, more often then not, they are in court for theft to feed their habit or drug use itself.

However, with the cases being spread out before different magistrates, it is difficult for them to establish patterns of behaviour, or to build empathy with witnesses who are addicts themselves. A magistrate has access to a criminal record, but it is not the same as a magistrate who can see these people time after time and build up a rapport and a reliable and solid opinion of these people.

As already mentioned, these people need specific handling. They are not in the same league as fraudsters, bar fighters and murderers. The introduction of the court, which might not even be with the main building in Valletta, would see that they would have specific treatment. It is not the first time that people who are awaiting their hearing have collapsed with the shakes, nausea and even vomiting. It is not healthy for them and it is not healthy for Joe Public that has gone to pay a traffic fine either. The jury might still be out on this one, but this newspaper believes that it would be in the public’s best interest to set up a Drugs Court.