Original second drug supply charge relaid against David Speirs, court told

An extra drug supply charge has been laid against former opposition leader David Speirs as the former MP faces court again.

Former Liberal opposition leader David Speirs is negotiating with prosecutors over his drugs case – and is once again facing two charges instead of one.

On Tuesday, Mr Speirs attended the Adelaide Magistrates Court alongside lawyer Travis Moran for his second appearance over alleged drug supply.

Prior to his previous court appearance, police prosecutors dropped the number of charges laid against Mr Speirs from two to one.

In court on Tuesday, however, Direct of Public Prosecutions Martin Hinton KC said a fresh file had been laid with the court – once again accusing Mr Speirs of two counts.

Court documents allege Mr Speirs committed two counts of supplying or administering a drug that wasn’t cannabis to another person.

The documents allege the first offence took place at Kingston Park between August 1, 2024 and August 10, 2024.

They further allege the second offence took place on August 1, 2024, at Kingston Park.

The case was adjourned until next month and, outside court, Mr Speirs told the media the change from one count to two was “just administrative”.

He said he looked forward to resolving the case as soon as possible, but was respectful of the judicial process and how long it needed to take.

Asked whether the case had been weighing on him, he said it had “not not been stressful”.

David Speirs at court in November 2024. Picture: NewsWire / Dean Martin

Mr Speirs, 39, was charged with one count of supplying or administering a drug, other than cannabis, to a person.

SA Police allege the offence occurred at Kingston Park between August 1 and August 10, 2024

The charge arises from Mr Speirs’ arrest at Berri, in the Riverland, on September 26, 2024, and a subsequent search of his Kingston Park residential premises.

That arrest was made public a month after The Advertiser published a video of Mr Speirs appearing to snort white powder in the kitchen of his Kingston Park home.

Metadata shows that video was recorded on June 30, 2024 – Mr Speirs was Leader of the Opposition and of the Liberal Party at that time, and quit on August 8.

Mr Speirs claims it is a deepfake, but a top forensic analyst concluded it was “authentic” with no indication of tampering.

A still image from the video of Mr Speirs appearing to snort white powder at his home.

“I am extremely disappointed by this and assure South Australians that I would never take illicit substances, I never have and I never will,” Mr Speirs said at the time.

At his first court appearance in November, Mr Speirs was permitted to travel overseas while on bail.

Entering court on Tuesday, Mr Speirs appeared upbeat and in a jovial mood, greeting television reporters by name and chatting with them in the court elevator.

He sat in the public gallery of the courtroom speaking to Mr Moran, one leg crossed over the other and one hand pressed to his mouth while listening.

Mr Hinton told the court a further three weeks were required for the case, even though negotiations had already begun between the parties.

However, he said Mr Speirs’ counsel wanted it noted on the court file that “the committal process had not yet begun”.

Under state law, the committal process is effectively a countdown to the time at which a person is expected to enter their plea to a criminal charge.

The amount of sentencing discount one can receive for an early guilty plea reduces as that period nears its end.

Magistrate Lydia Duncan remanded Mr Speirs on continuing bail to face court again at the end of the month.

Outside court, Mr Speirs said he would like to say more about the case, but could not at this time and believed there would be an opportunity to do so later.