Forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

Legislation: Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Act 1981 (Vic) s 77(1)

Maximum penalty: 1 year imprisonment, 20 penalty units, or both

Period: 1 July 2020 to 30 June 2023

Jurisdiction: Magistrates' Court

On SACStat, a charge is a single count of an offence
On SACStat, a case is a collection of one or more charges sentenced at a hearing

*Note: unavailable options have under 10 cases

Charge data

In the Magistrates' Court, 62 charges of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence were sentenced in the three years to 30 June 2023. The most common sentence for a charge of this offence was a community correction order (59.7% or 37 charges).

On SACStat, a charge is a single count of a sentenced offence. Charge data is most useful in understanding how a specific crime is usually sentenced.

Case data

In 19 cases sentenced in the Magistrates' Court in the three years to 30 June 2023, each case included at least one charge of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence. Among the 19 cases, 10 people were male and 9 people were female. The most common outcome for cases was a fine (31.6% or 6 cases).

A case is a collection of one or more charges against a person or company sentenced at the one hearing. Case data is most useful in understanding the total sentence usually imposed on people found guilty of a particular crime.

Figure 1: Sentencing outcomes for all charges of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

Number: 62 charges

Bar graph showing sentence types imposed for charges of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 1 in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 3: Community correction order lengths for charges of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

Number: 37 charges

Bar graph showing lengths of community correction orders for charges of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 3 in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 4: Fine amounts for charges of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

Number: 1 charge

Note: The graph only includes fines that were not part of an aggregate sentence (non-aggregate fines).

Bar graph showing fine amounts for charges of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 4 in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 5: Sentencing outcomes for all charges of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence by financial year

Number: 62 charges

Stacked bar graph showing sentences imposed each year for charges of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 5 in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 6: Number of charges of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence by financial year

Number: 62 charges

Bar graph showing the number of charges each year for the offence of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 6 in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 8: Average fine amounts for charges of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence by financial year

Number: 1 charge

Note: The graph only includes fines that were not part of an aggregate sentence (non-aggregate fines).

Bar graph showing fines amounts each year for charges of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 8 in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 9A: Sentencing outcomes for all people for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

Number: 19 cases

Bar graph showing sentence types for all offenders for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 9A in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 9B: Sentencing outcomes for males for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

Number: 10 cases

Bar graph showing sentence types for male offenders for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 9B in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 9C: Sentencing outcomes for females for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

Number: 9 cases

Bar graph showing sentence types for female offenders for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 9C in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 9D: Sentencing outcomes for people aged under 25 for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

Number: 2 cases

Bar graph showing sentence types for offenders aged under 25 for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 9D in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 9E: Sentencing outcomes for people aged 25 to 54 for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

Number: 15 cases

Bar graph showing sentence types for offenders aged 25 to 54 for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 9E in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 9F: Sentencing outcomes for people aged 55 and over for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

Number: 2 cases

Bar graph showing sentence types for offenders aged 55 and over for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 9F in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 10: Imprisonment lengths for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

Number: 2 cases, including imprisonment only (1 case) and imprisonment combined with a community correction order (1 case).

Bar graph showing imprisonment lengths for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 10 in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 11: Non-parole periods for all people for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

Number: 1 case

Note: Imprisonment terms do not include a community correction order.

Bar graph showing non-parole periods for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 11 in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 12: Community correction order lengths for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

Number: 5 cases

Bar graph showing lengths of community correction orders for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 12 in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 13: Sentencing outcomes for all cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence by financial year

Number: 19 cases

Stacked bar graph showing sentences imposed each year for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 13 in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 14: Number of cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence for all people by financial year

Number: 19 cases

Bar graph showing the number of cases each year for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 14 in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.

Figure 15: Average imprisonment lengths for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence by financial year

Number: 2 cases

Bar graph showing the average imprisonment length each year for cases of forge or fraudulently alter a prescription for a drug of dependence

See Table 15 in the Excel data file for the data in this graph.