Pubdate: Wed, 17 May 2000 Source: Toronto Star (CN ON) Copyright: 2000 The Toronto Star Contact: One Yonge St., Toronto ON, M5E 1E6 Fax: (416) 869-4322 Website: http://www.thestar.com/ Forum: http://www.thestar.com/editorial/disc_board/ Author: Dale Anne Freed, Toronto Star Staff Reporter OFFICER LIKES SOUND OF NEW RAVES BILL Private member's proposal good start, inquest told The Raves Act, 2000, a private member's bill currently before the Ontario Legislature, offers some good ways to promote public safety and ban illicit drugs at raves, a senior police officer told an inquest into the death of Allan Ho. ``The sheer numbers of ravers'' involved in illicit drug use is ``disturbing to say the least,'' Taverner told the inquest. A Ryerson student, Ho died of an overdose on the drug ecstasy just two weeks before his 21st birthday while attending A View to a Thrill rave last Oct. 9 at 501 Alliance Ave. ``I would support anything we can do as a society to deal with what I call an epidemic of drug use,'' Superintendent Ron Taverner, head of Toronto police special investigations services, told the inquest. The Raves Act, 2000, drafted by deputy Liberal leader Sandra Pupatello which has passed first reading, offers ``a good framework'' but it needs more discussion and fine-tuning, said Taverner, who is chair of the Ontario Chiefs of Police substance abuse committee. The bill, said Taverner, would give police ``the ability to deal with a situation'' where drugs are sold and to terminate the event if illegal acts are occurring on site before the event gets out of control. The act, which defines a rave as a dance event occurring between 2 and 6 a.m. for which ad mission is charged, offers the following proposals, the inquest heard: * The bill prohibits anyone from holding a rave unless the local municipality has issued a permit. * No one may promote or sell tickets to a rave unless a permit has been issued. * Municipalities may revoke, suspend, or issue or renew permits subject to conditions. For instance, a municipality would deny a permit if the applicant had recently been convicted of an offence under the Controlled Drug and Substances Act or offences at raves under liquor, fire safety, health protection, noise or maximum-occupancy laws and bylaws. * Police would have authority to enter any place where they believe a rave has violated the act and require all persons to leave. * Corporations that promote a rave without a permit or allow property to be used for raves without a permit could be fined up to $50,000; individuals could be fined up to $10,000, sentenced to six months in jail or both. * People at raves who fail to abide by a direction to leave could be fined up to $5,000. Taverner said he would urge the inquest jury to seriously consider recommending that the federal government fund a national strategy for drug awareness. In the early '90s, the federal government spent $210 million over three years on a national drug strategy, Taverner said. ``I feel it's shameful that was discontinued,'' Taverner said outside the inquest. Capping a rave to 2,000 or 3,000 attendees would also help police deal more effectively with a crisis before it reaches numbers that are too high to control, Taverner told the inquest. ``Our primary concern is public safety and (banning) the use of illicit drugs.'' Taverner was speaking specifically about three raves held on the CNE grounds earlier this spring. At a Feb. 20 rave, 7,000 people attended and five people were arrested on 17 drug-related charges; on March 25, 12,000 attended and 15 people were arrested on 38 drug-related charges; on April 22, 7,000 attended and 24 people were arrested on 57 drug-related charges. - --- MAP posted-by: Greg