Pubdate: Wed, 19 Jan 2005
Source: Castlegar News (CN BC)
Copyright: 2005 Castlegar News
Contact:  http://www.castlegarnews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3613
Author: Dale West
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization)

PARENTS TO PUSH FOR SOLUTIONS

When RCMP officers told Michelle Donaldson that items missing from a local 
store likely ended up at local crack houses, she was surprised; surprised 
that the officers spoke of crack houses in the plural; surprised that those 
crack houses were in the vicinity of her children's schools.

"We tolerate marijuana in our community, but crack houses by our schools?" 
said Donaldson.

"That's enough, we can't take it anymore."

Donaldson and other members of Stanley Humphries parent advisory council 
will begin writing letters to deliver that message to city council and the 
RCMP. They will ask that something be done about the problem, and suggest a 
drug-free zone as a possible solution.

Coun. Deb McIntosh brought the drug-free zone idea to the Castlegar RCMP 
Community Consultative Group last week.

"The idea is to set up a zone around Stanley Humphries, Twin Rivers and 
Castlegar Primary, a drug-free zone, a zero-tolerance zone," McIntosh told 
the group.

A drug-free zone around schools doesn't imply that drugs are OK everywhere 
else in town. "It gives kids and parents some authority to say we're not 
going to tolerate it, we want our schools to be drug free," said McIntosh.

The idea is not to turn kids into little rats, McIntosh said, but to give 
kids and parents a way to start tackling the problem, a way for kids and 
parents to take some responsibility.

"It's a good start. Start at our schools and work out."

Should the community adopt and support such a drug-free philosophy, there 
is some hope that the courts might enforce the community's wishes.

Today, that wouldn't necessarily be the case, Const. Fran Bethell told the 
group. Presently, if someone is caught with less than 30 grams of 
marijuana, charges are not always laid. And that would be the case with the 
small quantities dealt with around the schools.

With a percentage of the population pushing for legalization of marijuana, 
pressure is being placed on federal prosecutors about the type of charges 
that they will lay.

"We have ongoing frustrations with that," said Bethell, "with very small 
quantities."

She noted a recent case in which Mounties discovered drugs prepackaged to 
sell but crown failed to prosecute because the individual didn't have a 
previous record.

"We're in a funny world at the moment where it isn't legal, but they're not 
real happy laying charges. There isn't anything in place yet. If they 
legalized it they would probably put some parameters on it."

That world, however, could be changed if the community wills it.

"I think it's part of the community's responsibility to pull together and 
fight for issues that protect our children," said Donaldson.

Parents need to get involved, Donaldson added. The problem, however, is 
bigger than just parenting. "The problem is society. We are all so busy. 
Technology really hasn't made our lives easier, it has made our lives more 
complicated. In the struggle for survival in the wild kingdom, I think 
we've forgotten how to be a community."

Will the drug-free zone idea work? Donaldson said that she doesn't know. 
"But it might make them uncomfortable to be here."

She said the crack houses could be sighted but there is a danger of 
advertising that drugs are available at those locations. Neighbours could 
put signs in their own windows, though, signs that said go away, we don't 
want you. "That would be one way to voice an opinion."

"The important thing now is to let city council know that people care and 
they want something to happen," said Donaldson. "It's here, it's in your 
backyard, it's not somebody else's."
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