FALLO BAZTERRICA S/ TENENCIA ESTUPEFACIENTES. ¿ ES DELITO?

The Court, by majority vote, decided to declare Article 6 of Law 20771 unconstitutional. This article penalized the possession of narcotics with imprisonment of one to six years and a fine of 100 to 5,000 pesos, even if intended for personal use. The Court ruled that this article was contrary to the provisions of Article 19 of the Constitution, which reserves private actions of individuals that do not affect public order or morality, nor harm third parties, to God, and removes such actions from the purview of the judiciary. The dissenting opinion (Fayt, Caballero) argued that drug possession is an abstract danger crime and, as such, in addition to seriously harming the user's health, endangers public health and safety. They conducted a detailed analysis of Article 19, using a teleological and systematic interpretation, that is, seeking the purpose of the letter of the law and viewing the legal system as a whole, a system of norms. Their argument is based on the executive and legislative branches and their intentions and thinking when formulating, enacting, and promulgating the law. I DEDUCE THEY DO NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE PRINCIPLE OF HARM, NOR DO THEY EMPHASIZE OR CENTER THEIR IDEAS OR ARGUMENTS ON PRIVATE PERSONAL FREEDOM.