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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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Canada: Pot Law Changes Will Boost Production: Police
ccguide Thursday 15 May 2003 Pubdate: Fri, 09 May 2003 Source: Winnipeg Free Press (CN MB) Copyright: 2003 Winnipeg Free Press Contact: Website: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/502 Author: Bruce Owen Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada) POT LAW CHANGES WILL BOOST PRODUCTION: POLICE More Expected to Smoke Up With Decriminalization OTTAWA'S impending decriminalization of Canada's marijuana possession laws has police across the country shaking their heads in frustration and dismay. The reason is that because of the change - treating marijuana possession like a speeding ticket instead of a criminal offence - police expect demand for cannabis to go up, meaning growers will have to step up production. And that means more work for already-stretched police agencies. To counter that, the Canadian Chiefs of Police and the Canadian Police Association want Ottawa to usher in a new National Drug Strategy that cracks down on marijuana growers and smugglers. Both also say that strategy should include a funding commitment for better drug prevention and treatment programs and more education campaigns about the harms of soft drug use. "There has to be increased enforcement," said Brockville Police Service Chief Barry King, CACP secretary-treasurer. "People who run grow operations should get jail terms. Right now, many of them get conditional sentences. We haven't got the sentencing that the community needs. We have to realize that these people are the scourge, not the user or addict." King said police also want federal legislation that gives them the power to deal with drugged-up drivers. That means more drug recognition training for police and the ability to demand suspected drug-impaired drivers give blood or urine samples to police. Right now, police haven't got the legal right to do that. King said it's also possible new roadside tests, like mouth swabs, and technology, like eye scanners, will be in the hands of front-line police to deal with drug-impaired drivers. 'We're Talking Drugs' "We're not talking about a bottle of beer you can pour out on the side of the road," King said. "We're talking drugs." The CPA is also lobbying Ottawa for tougher enforcement. In a letter sent to Prime Minister Jean Chretien Wednesday, the CPA said they also want new legislative tools to combat the illegal drug trade, including organized criminals, drug traffickers, manufacturers and cultivators. Dave Griffin, CPA executive officer, said police fear the message out of Ottawa is that smoking marijuana is OK. "The government spends millions of dollars on the affects of tobacco. Why are they changing perceptions about a drug that has the combined affects of tobacco and alcohol?" Chretien said May 3 that his government would soon amend the Criminal Code of Canada to make possession of small amounts of pot -- supposedly less than 30 grams -- a minor offence that would be treated something like a traffic violation. Those charged and convicted would not have a criminal record, and only pay a fine. In Manitoba, police say decriminalization will make their jobs easier, as they only have to issue a ticket to an offender instead of processing them as a criminal. However, they also say the relaxed laws will mean more people will smoke. That means more cultivation and more cross-provincial smuggling to meet that demand. Marijuana cultivation in Canada, particularly in British Columbia, is already worth billions of dollars to growers, smugglers and the organized crime networks that support them -- the Hells Angels and Asian-based gangs. That won't change with decriminalization. Neither will smuggling, which is already huge. In the past few months between Broadview and Moosemin, Saskatchewan RCMP have seized eight pounds shy of a ton of marijuana. "We already have to pick and choose what we do now," a city police officer added. "There is just so much of it." Already, city police have seen a marked increase over last year in the number of indoor grows shut down so far in 2003. Statistics are still being compiled, but it's estimated police have seized about 200 per cent more pot since the beginning of the year than from all of 2002. In 2002, police shut down 82 indoor grows and seized 6,999 plants. The total street value of the seizures was $11,641,254. Officers also say they now typically go for the larger grows and ignore smaller ones, just because of the amount of work involved. It's worth more to police to go after the bigger ones because of the time it takes dismantling the grow and tabulating the evidence. In most cases, those charged with running a grow operation are generally released several hours after being arrested. The same goes with people caught smuggling pot from B.C. eastwards. Police also say they expect to see more home invasions associated with the marijuana trade. Winnipeg has already seen several crimes in which drug users hit the wrong house in a bid to steal marijuana and other drugs. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake
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