Drugs charges to proceed against former SA opposition leader
Charges against former SA opposition leader David Speirs have been confirmed in the Adelaide Magistrates Court, six months after his arrest.
David James Speirs, 40, appeared in the Adelaide Magistrates Court on Tuesday where Director of Public Prosecutions Martin Hinton KC confirmed the crown would be proceeding with two charges of supplying a controlled substance to another person.
The offences are alleged to have occurred in August last year.
Mr Hinton told the court he did not oppose a short adjournment of three weeks which Mr Speirs’s defence lawyer, Travis Moran, sought so that negotiations between prosecution and defence could continue.
Mr Speirs was arrested and charged at Berri, in the state’s Riverland region, in September last year after a video, published by News Corp, emerged reportedly showing him snorting from a plate.
The former Liberal leader resigned from politics following the charges.
David Speirs says he hopes the matter resolves in a speedy manner. (ABC News)
Outside court on Tuesday, Mr Speirs told the media he looked forward to “hopefully bringing this to a reasonably speedy conclusion” while also saying the experience had been difficult.
“There will be more to say in the coming weeks, I just look forward to hopefully bringing this to a reasonably speedy conclusion through the process but aside from that I don’t plan to say anything more today,” he said.
“I would like to see a resolution sooner rather than later, but I respect the judicial process in this state, obviously being part of decision making in this state for some time, and I just look forward to working through the process in a logical and methodical way.
“It’s not been unstressful but I will just work through the process.”
The matter was adjourned, and Mr Speirs will next appear in court later this month.
