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19th October 2007, 11:00 WST
The drug charge that led to Ben Cousins sacking from the West Coast Eagles will be dropped, the AFL footballer's lawyer Shane Brennan says.
I have just been informed by the organised crime squad that the charge of possession of the narcotic will be dropped on Monday morning at nine o'clock, Mr Brennan told Southern Cross Broadcasting today.
Their (police) problem stems from the fact that the alleged narcotic isn't a prohibited substance, as I understand it.
The 29-year-old midfielder was charged with possessing a prohibited drug after police pulled him over for driving erratically on Tuesday.
He was also charged with failing to comply with a requirement to undergo a driver assessment.
Cousins has never tested positive for illicit drugs.
But in March this year, he underwent several weeks of drug rehabilitation in the US, returning to Perth in April after agreeing to a zero tolerance clause to testing positive to banned substances.
He also agreed not to fall foul of the law.
The charges this week led to his sacking by the West Coast Eagles on Wednesday.
He appeared in the Perth Magistrate's Court yesterday where the matter was adjourned for three months so that he could return to rehabilitation in the US.
Today, Mr Brennan says Cousins was delighted to learn the charges would be dropped.
He's as happy as Larry, so would you or I be, Mr Brennan told ABC Radio.
In essence, the charge was completely misconceived from the start, as I indicated to the media yesterday, he told Southern Cross Broadcasting.
Mr Brennan said Cousins still planned to defend the failure to take a driver assessment charge.
The lawyer would not comment on how this may affect Cousins application for a visa to the United States.
West Coast chairman-elect Mark Barnaba told ABC Radio dropping the charge against Cousins would not change the club's decision to sack their former captain.
I haven't had (the news) confirmed, but if it is true that's great for Ben, Mr Barnaba told ABC radio.