Pubdate: Thu, 28 Feb 2013
Source: Monday Magazine (CN BC)
Copyright: 2013 Monday Publications
Contact: http://mondaymag.com/contact/
Website: http://www.mondaymag.com
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1150
Author: Danielle Pope
Cited: Sensible BC: http://www.sensiblebc.ca

THE COST OF ENFORCEMENT

The plume has lifted and the reflection is clear: marijuana 
enforcement is costing British Columbia more than any other province 
in the country - to the tune of about 10.5 million taxpayer dollars each year.

Criminology Professor Neil Boyd released a study this week that 
analyzes the costs and outcomes of enforcement against marijuana 
possession in B.C. The study, titled "The Enforcement Of Marijuana 
Possession Offences in British Columbia: A Blueprint for Change," was 
funded by the Sensible BC campaign and showed that our province 
spends much more per capita to police and charge marijuana users than 
any other province.

"The rate of marijuana use in B.C. is fairly close to that in other 
provinces," says Boyd. "Seven per cent of British Columbians used 
marijuana in the past week, compared to a national average of six per 
cent. However, the rate of marijuana offenses reported by police in 
B.C. is far higher than that of any other province, and almost double 
that of the national average."

Boyd's study shows that considerable RCMP resources are used to 
enforce cannabis possession in the province. With a reported 16,578 
police reports of marijuana possession in B.C. in 2011, 3,774 of 
those led to charges and about 1,200 British Columbians were 
convicted of marijuana possession that year.

"RCMP have been laying more possession charges across Canada since 
2005, with a 30 per cent increase since that time," says Boyd. "But 
in B.C., the increase has been the greatest of the provinces, with 
charges for marijuana possession more than doubling here in six years."

Important to note: this increase does not include Vancouver, Boyd 
says, where possession charges have declined as a direct result of 
Vancouver PD policy. And when it comes to Victoria, charges have not 
increased in the last 10 years - save one bump in 2010. In 2011, 41 
charges of possession occurred in our city, showing a surprising 
gradual decrease. Boyd discovered, however, that the brunt of 
cannabis prohibition in B.C. falls upon the user, with 91 per cent of 
all cleared cannabis offences possession-related.

"The picture that emerges from our research is one of enforcement 
without any consistency or purpose," says Boyd. "There is no clear 
logic applied in relation to the decision to detain, to confiscate, 
to charge or to convict, outside of a consistent pattern of either 
use in public, or use in relation to a motor vehicle. The decision 
with respect to who will then be charged appears to amount to a 
rather arbitrary use of discretion."

Dana Larsen, director of the Sensible BC campaign, believes that the 
proposed Sensible Policing Act would put an end to wasted dollars and 
that passing this law would "let the RCMP focus their resources on 
real crimes."

"This study shows the need to reform how we deal with marijuana and 
marijuana possession in B.C.," says Larsen. "The vast majority of 
British Columbians don't think possession of marijuana should be a 
criminal offence, but the RCMP here are on their own crusade, blowing 
ever-increasing amounts of taxpayers money on their failed war 
against pot smokers."

For those who want to hop a boat to pursue the topic, Boyd will be 
speaking about his research in Vancouver on Feb. 28 and March 1, with 
a panel including Micheal Vonn of the BC Civil Liberties Assocation, 
Bill Vandergraaf, a retired Winnipeg police detective and Dr. Lynda 
Balneaves, associate professor in UBC's School of Nursing. Learn more 
at www.sensiblebc.ca .
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom