OTTAWA * Demanding a breath sample from a motorist is no different than asking for their licence and registration, Canada's justice minister argued Thursday as the federal government defended its proposed crackdown on impaired driving. Jody Wilson-Raybould tabled a "charter statement" in the House of Commons comprising the arguments why the government believes the new measures are permissible under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. "The Supreme Court of Canada has recognized as reasonable the authority, under provincial law and common law, of police officers to stop vehicles at random to ensure that drivers are licensed and insured, that the vehicle is mechanically fit, and to check for sobriety," Wilson-Raybould's statement says. "The information revealed from a breath sample is, like the production of a driver's licence, simply information about whether a driver is complying with one of the conditions imposed in the highly regulated contexts of driving." [continues 439 words]
High school kids who use marijuana prone to slack off and perform poorly, study finds It turns out that high school stoner Jeff Spicoli in the 1982 movie may be based on more fact than fiction. New research shows high school students who use marijuana are less likely to get good grades and plan to attend university than those who pass on pot. The study by University of Waterloo researchers found that students who started using cannabis at least once a month became four times more likely to play hooky. [continues 250 words]
Mary Jane appears to be overtaking the Marlboro Man as the plant of choice among high-school students. "We all know about the problems with cigarettes," said Brayden, a 17-year-old local high-school student. "They're bad for your health, but the long-term effects of marijuana are way better." A new study by the University of Waterloo's Propel Centre for Population Health Impact suggests cannabis has replaced cigarettes as the inhalation product of choice among students in grades 7 to 12. [continues 598 words]
High schoolers who smoke weed are dazed and confused, UW study finds WATERLOO - What happens if you start smoking marijuana in high school? Do you risk turning into a laid-back stoner, your grades and university ambitions fading in a haze? The answer is 'yes' according to public health research out of the University of Waterloo. It calls on high schools to help prevent this from happening. The study tracked 26,475 Ontario and Alberta students over time, measuring changes as some students began to smoke marijuana rarely, or more often. [continues 508 words]
It has taken years to persuade individuals that smoking causes cancer and years to persuade various levels of government, corporations, schools and other organizations to ban smoking in public places. Now we are faced with a new but similar peril which seems to parallel tobacco smoking. There are many unknowns that cause us concern, like the effects on health, addictions, distracted and impaired driving and psychiatric implications. We understand the need for medical marijuana use but do we need to rush into something that requires a lot more thought and research into long-term effects just because of the pressures of marijuana growers and by users who want easier access for their habit. [continues 53 words]
Niagara Regional Police have shut down the Niagara Cannabis Club in Merritton and have charged the operators with drug trafficking. It's the fourth St. Catharines storefront closed by the Guns, Gangs and Grows Unit for marijuana trafficking in less than a month. "Bottom line, these people are not licenced by Health Canada to sell these products," said NRP Staff Sgt. Shawn Clarkson Friday. Police said they received numerous complaints from the public about the goings on at the former bank building at 108 Hartzel Rd. and began an investigation into the sale of marijuana there. [continues 447 words]
A Coe Hill physician stripped of his medical licence has lost his appeal to have a string of criminal charges levied against him dropped due to what the defence claimed was unreasonable delays to reach trial. Dan Stein, Rob Kamermans' Toronto lawyer, said Justice Robert Scott ruled in favour of the prosecution which submitted that it was not to be blamed for the inordinate amount of time the case is taking to reach trial. "Our application has been dismissed," Stein told The Intelligencer. "We are waiting for the reasoning. Justice Scott wanted to give us an answer because we have a week of motions setup. Now that the application was dismissed we're faced with a week of pre-trial motions starting on Monday (May 15)." [continues 558 words]
Expert says employers should treat recreational marijuana the same as alcohol - it's a no-no at work St. John's lawyer Harold Smith of Stewart McKelvey represents employers in all aspects of labour relations, employment and administration law, and as such has been helping employers adjust their policies to incorporate the legalization of marijuana. He addressed a recent presentation of the Canadian Pension and Benefits Institute, Atlantic Region, in St. John's, titled "Marijuana in the Workplace" for employers. "The message I was trying to bring to the group from a legal perspective is you treat (marijuana) no different than alcohol," Smith said. "You would ban recreational use of marijuana or cannabis on the property as you ban alcohol. So an employer, you ban it. You say you 'shall not, must not, and cannot have cannabis, like alcohol, on our site.'" [continues 414 words]
KITCHENER - Waterloo Regional Police raided a marijuana dispensary in Kitchener on Thursday. Insp. Mike Haffner said police arrested two people and two others remain at large in connection with selling marijuana at the business. The raid occurred at 10:45 a.m. at the KW Dispensary at 1421 Victoria St. N., near Lackner Boulevard. Property seized from the location included marijuana and cannabis products such as edible treats along with money. Police said the business owners received numerous letters telling them to close the business, which is considered illegal, or face a police crackdown. [continues 144 words]
A majority of Canadians oppose the federal government's plan to give greater powers to police officers to obtain breath samples from drivers in roadside tests, a new poll has found. As part of its legislative package last month to legalize marijuana, the government also tabled a bill to update impaired driving laws. Bill C-46 would drop the requirement for police to have a reasonable suspicion a driver has been drinking before demanding a breath sample. For example, officers would no longer need to smell alcohol on the driver's breath or receive an admission that a driver had been drinking. [continues 531 words]
