Pubdate: Wed, 28 May 2003
Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC)
Copyright: 2003 The Vancouver Sun
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/vancouver/vancouversun/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/477
Author: Jim Brown, Canadian Press

LIBERALS MOVE TO LIGHTEN PENALTIES FOR POT USERS, GET TOUGH ON GROWERS

OTTAWA  (CP)  -  The  Liberal  government  moved  Tuesday to eliminate
criminal  penalties for simple possession of marijuana, drawing praise
from lawyers, cautious support from doctors and brickbats from police,
opposition MPs and some of its own backbenchers.

Under  legislation  introduced  by  Justice  Minister  Martin Cauchon,
possession  of  up  to 15 grams of pot - enough to roll about 15 or 20
joints - would be a minor offence that carries no criminal record.

Violators would be ticketed and ordered to pay fines ranging from $100
to $250 for youths and from $150 to $400 for adults.

People  caught  with  between  15  and  30  grams  could  get the same
treatment  if they're lucky. But they could also, at the discretion of
police,  be  charged  in  criminal  court and face up to six months in
jail.

While  the  bill  would ease up on small-time users, there would be no
respite for illicit growers and dealers. The maximum sentence for grow
operations  would  be  14  years in prison, up from the current seven,
with the length of term increasing in proportion to the amount grown.

The  penalty  for  trafficking would remain unchanged - a maximum life
sentence, although in practice the toughest terms handed out in recent
years have been about 20 years for major dealers.

Ottawa  also  plans  to  set aside an additional $245 million over the
next  five  years  to  beef  up  law  enforcement  efforts and to fund
education,  information,  research  and  treatment  programs  aimed at
curbing drug use.

Cauchon,  who  hopes to push his bill through Parliament by the end of
the  year,  acknowledged  the  government  is  sending  a double-edged
message.

Casual  pot  smokers will no longer face the threat of jail, and young
people won't automatically be saddled with criminal records that haunt
them for life - one of the government's chief reasons for moving ahead
with the changes. But toking up will still be against the law.

"I  want  to  be  clear from the beginning," said Cauchon. "We are not
legalizing  marijuana and have no plans to do so. What we are changing
is the way we prosecute certain offences."

Health  Minister  Anne  McLellan  echoed that view as she outlined the
$245-million  education  and enforcement plan that accompanied the new
legislation.

"We  do  not  want  Canadians  to  use  marijuana," said McLellan. "We
especially  don't  want  young people to use marijuana. That is why an
important  part  of  our  drug  strategy  will  focus on strong public
education  messages to inform Canadians of the negative health affects
of marijuana."

The  Canadian  Medical  Association  welcomed McLellan's commitment to
prevention and treatment but warned more funding will be needed.

"We can only view today's announcement as a first step," said Dr. Dana
Hansen, president of the group.

The  Canadian  Bar  Association congratulated Cauchon for his "courage
and  leadership"  and  called  decriminalization of minor possession a
positive move.

"The  heavy  hand  of our criminal law should be reserved for problems
that cause serious harm," said bar president Simon Potter.

But  Randy  White,  the  Canadian  Alliance  critic for police issues,
contended  the Liberals should have imposed a five-gram limit if their
goal was to decriminalize possession for personal use.

White predicted that, because of the discretionary aspect of the bill,
30  grams  rather  than 15 will become the practical cut-off point for
criminal proceedings.

"When  you're  talking  about  minor,  personal  possession and you're
talking  in  the  neighbourhood  of 40, 50 joints on you, I doubt very
much whether that is a personal possession."

Dan  McTeague,  one  of  several  Liberal  backbenchers  uneasy at the
prospect   of   decriminalization,   said   the   bill   has  "serious
deficiencies"  and  could  leave young people with the impression it's
all right to smoke dope.

He  also  termed  the measures against growers inadequate, despite the
14-year maximum sentence.

"Everyone knows you never get the maximum," said McTeague.

Marjory  LeBreton,  a  Conservative  senator and vice-chair of Mothers
Against Drunk Driving, said the legislation should not be passed until
provisions against marijuana-impaired driving are strengthened.

Federal officials say anyone driving under the influence of pot can be
prosecuted under the same impaired driving laws that apply to alcohol.
But  critics  note  there  is  no roadside breathalyser technology for
marijuana  and  say the laws must be amended to allow police to demand
blood samples.

David  Griffin,  spokesman  for the Canadian Police Association, which
represents  some  28,000  rank-and-file  officers  across the country,
called  the federal initiative a "hastily put-together package that is
held together by Band-Aids and duct tape."

Reaction from some provincial governments was also
negative.

"This is not a harmless drug and we shouldn't be introducing this into
the  community  for  our young people to smoke," said Ontario Attorney
General Norm Sterling.

British  Columbia,  home  of  the so-called B.C. Bud, was also unhappy
with Ottawa's initiative.

"They  don't  have  any  idea  how the tickets will be collected; they
don't  have any idea how the infrastructure will be set up," said B.C.
Solicitor General Rich Coleman.

"They're  going  to  spend  tens of millions of dollars in advertising
what  they're  doing  and  putting very little money into fighting the
issues of organized crime with regards to marijuana."

Alberta  Justice  Minister  Dave  Hancock  said Ottawa is on the wrong
track  with  its  reforms:  "I  don't  think  you  get rid of crime by
removing the crime from the books and saying it's OK now."

The  spectre  of decriminalization in Canada has raised the hackles of
some  U.S.  officials as well, but Solicitor General Wayne Easter, the
minister responsible for the RCMP, played down the American concerns.

"Certainly,  there  will be probably some reaction," said Easter. "But
they  understand that we do have . . . the sovereign right to make our
own  laws.  And  there  is a recognition that the current laws are not
working."

U.S.  Ambassador  Paul  Cellucci,  who  has warned of potential border
slowdowns  as U.S. customs officers pay closer attention to travellers
headed south, was not available for comment Tuesday.

Cauchon  noted  that  a  dozen U.S. states have already done away with
criminal sanctions for simple possession of pot. 
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake