Pubdate: Wed, 28 May 2003
Source: Edmonton Sun (CN AB)
Copyright: 2003, Canoe Limited Partnership.
Contact:  http://www.fyiedmonton.com/htdocs/edmsun.shtml
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/135
Author: Kathleen Harris

'HODGE-PODGE'

Pot Bill Will Mean More Young Tokers And Stoned Drivers, Critics Warn

OTTAWA -- The federal government's plan to decriminalize small stashes of 
marijuana got off to a rocky start yesterday, with critics warning the move 
will mean more young tokers and a rash of stoned drivers on the road.

Stressing that pot will remain illegal, Justice Minister Martin Cauchon 
tabled the controversial bill that would fine those caught with less than 
15 grams of pot and impose stiffer sentences for those who grow or sell the 
weed.

It's part of a sweeping $245-million anti-drug strategy that will focus on 
prevention, treatment and enforcement.

But David Griffin, president of the Canadian Police Association, called the 
package a hasty "hodge-podge" that will create more problems than it 
resolves. The strategy neglects the urgent need for more resources to nab 
drug-impaired drivers and crack down on marijuana-growing operations, he said.

"What we need now is to send a clear message to Canada's young people that 
drugs are harmful, that drugs and driving kill and that people who sell 
drugs to kids will go to jail," he said.

Under the new legislation, possession of up to 15 grams - the equivalent of 
about 15 to 20 joints - will be subject to a minimum fine of $150 for 
adults or $100 for youth.

Fines are steeper if you're caught while driving, committing an indictable 
offence or near a school.

Canadian Alliance Leader Stephen Harper blasted the government for imposing 
"discount" fines for youths -- a move he said will send mixed signals to 
youths.

"Why lower fines for the kinds of young people that we do not want to start 
using drugs?" he fumed.

But critics aren't limited to the opposition ranks. Some Liberal MPs are 
also fighting to burn the bill.

Pickering-Ajax Grit MP Dan McTeague criticized the bill for having no 
mandatory minimum sentences, no graded fines for repeat offenders and no 
real tools to detect drug-impaired drivers. The strategy is a "pitiful 
response" to growing operations linked to organized crime, he said.

Believing the bill doesn't go far enough, NDP Leader Jack Layton said 
marijuana should be legalized and regulated under LCBO-style control.

"You get a smaller penalty for possessing marijuana, but you can't grow it, 
you can't buy it, you can't sell it. Now that is completely illogical," he 
said. "It would make a lot more sense to treat it the same way we do 
alcohol or cigarettes."

But Cauchon stressed there are no plans to legalize marijuana and said the 
renewed drug strategy simply modernizes penalties to fit the crime.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens