Pubdate: Tue, 27 Aug 2013
Source: Montreal Gazette (CN QU)
Copyright: 2013 Canwest Publishing Inc.
Contact: http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/letters.html
Website: http://www.montrealgazette.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/274
Authors: Mike De Souza and Tobi Cohen

MACKAY FACES COMPLAINT OVER TRUDEAU POTSHOT

OTTAWA - Justice Minister Peter MacKay isn't backing down in the wake 
of a complaint asking a Nova Scotia regulator to investigate whether 
he went too far in taking potshots at Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau.

A University of Ottawa law professor, Amir Attaran, has written to 
the Nova Scotia Barristers' Society, asking it to investigate and 
seek an apology from MacKay for allegedly misleading Canadians about 
federal laws by saying in a televised interview with CTV that "it's 
currently against the law to smoke dope."

Trudeau provoked the controversy after telling Huffington Post Canada 
about his previous experiences of smoking pot, including as an MP 
when he took a puff of a joint being passed around at a private 
dinner party. The revelations prompted MacKay to accuse the Liberal 
leader of setting a poor example for Canadians by "flouting the laws 
of Canada."

MacKay, as justice minister and attorney general, is the top 
prosecuting officer of the country, and is required by law to "see 
that the administration of public affairs is in accordance with law."

Attaran's letter, sent over the weekend to the society, which 
regulates Nova Scotia's legal profession, noted courts in Canada have 
found it's against the law to possess marijuana, but that there's no 
crime in smoking it.

Attaran also alleged that MacKay's comments were inappropriate and 
partisan in nature since they said a crime was committed "without 
formally charging an offence."

In an email, Paloma Aguilar, MacKay's spokeswoman, referred to the 
Controlled Drugs and Substances Act - "where possession of marijuana 
is clearly outlined as a criminal offence."

Attaran said in an interview, "The Constitution does not give the 
attorney general a licence to badmouth. That's what a partisan 
politician does. It's not what the attorney general does."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom