Pubdate: Fri, 02 Oct 2015 Source: Peterborough This Week (CN ON) Copyright: Metroland Printing, Publishing and Distributing Contact: http://www.mykawartha.com/peterborough-on/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1794 Author: Todd Vandonk WHAT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES IF MARIJUANA IS LEGALIZED? The Conservatives Have Set Minimum Sentences but Others Advocate for Tickets Instead of Jail Time Plead guilty or go to jail. Those were Kim Hale's options after police raided his rural property and found 30 marijuana plants hanging in a barn nearly a year ago. After multiple court visits, rather than go to trial and risk jail time, the 56-year-old pleaded guilty to production of marijuana in August. He was hit with a sentence of 18 months probation and a $9,100 fine. "It turns you right into a criminal and to me that is barbaric," says Mr. Hale. Stephen Harper's Conservatives' tough-on-crime approach introduced new mandatory minimum sentences in 2012 for people caught trafficking, possessing or growing marijuana. A minimum sentence for the production of six to 200 plants is six months while 201 to 500 plants leads to a two-year minimum sentence. Heading into Oct. 19 federal election, opposition parties are campaigning for the legalization or decriminalization of marijuana. "Even the United States is realizing that incarceration as a way to solve problems is not only expensive but wasteful and doesn't solve the problem so having minimum sentences and taking that decision out of judges hands is really not a prudent move," says local NDP candidate Dave Nickle, noting the NDP supports decriminalizing marijuana. "First and foremost, we don't send young people to jail or give them criminal records and I think that is really important. So many young people have a criminal records because they were smoking for recreational use and that is a huge waste of human potential." The Liberals want to take it one step further and legalize marijuana and put regulations on it. During a campaign stop in British Columbia on Wednesday (Sept. 30), Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau said legalization could happen anywhere from a month to "a year or two" into a Liberal government, but he would make sure the process gets underway shortly after taking power, if he becomes prime minister. Local Liberal candidate Maryam Monsef says alcohol and tobacco are examples of how specific regulations can protect our youths and generate tax revenue while taking proceeds away from criminal organizations. "The reality is that Mr. Harper and his Conservative approach to marijuana is failing our children," she says, noting that a recent World Health Association report stated that Canada teens are the highest marijuana users among the countries surveyed. "If we pass smart laws that tax and strictly regulate marijuana we can better protect our kids while preventing millions of dollars from going into the pockets of criminal organizations," she says. Conservative candidate Michael Skinner says his government would continue to be tough on marijuana laws and legalizing it would make it easier for children and teens to get their hands on it. "The side effects of marijuana is the reduction of productivity and if we want to continue to boost our economy in Canada, we need productive people," he explains. Marijuana advocates say the Canada government need to look no further than across the border in Colorado -- where marijuana legalization is bringing in millions of dollars of revenue per month while simultaneously benefiting schools and contributing to a drop in crime rates -- to see the benefits. But Mr. Skinner says they still have their problems. "They still have drug dealers operating and organized crime and a lot of things that come with that side of the business is still happening," he says. City deputy police chief Tim Farquharson agrees that legalizing pot won't scare away organize crime groups from the illegal business of growing and trafficking pot. "Organized crime is controlling at least a third of the tobacco industry and it's legal so that argument has been proven wrong." However, the City force, along with Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, support ticketing people for possession of marijuana - 30 grams or less - rather than laying a criminal charge. "We are advocating in this case for another discretionary tool and that would the ticketing option," he says. Under the Harper government, marijuana incidents and charges have gone up by about 30 per cent between 2006 and 2014 while authorities deal with pot possession incident every nine minutes in Canada, according to 2014 statistic Canada figures. Not so much in Peterborough, according to Deputy Farquharson, noting it isn't a top priority and they don't lay a lot of possession charges unless it is connected to another crime. "Starting around 2000, pharmaceuticals became are problem so it diverted a lot attention from marijuana because you only have so many resources," he explains. "That (pharmaceuticals and crack cocaine) is what is causing a lot of what police is going to from break and enters to robberies to home invasions, and assaults." - --- [sidebar] Mandatory Minimum Sentences for Schedule II Drugs (cannabis and marijuana) * Trafficking: 1-2 years minimum * Possession for the Purpose of Trafficking: 1-2 years minimum * Importing/Exporting: 1 year minimum * Possession for the Purpose of Exporting: 1 year minimum * Production of 6 - 200 plants: 6 months minimum With Health and Safety Factors: 9 months minimum * Production of 201 - 500 plants: 1 year minimum With Health and Safety Factors: 18 months minimum * Production of more than 500 plants: 2 years minimum With Health and Safety Factors: 3 years minimum * Production of oil or resin: 1 year minimum With Health and Safety Factors: 18 months minimum - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom