Pubdate: Wed, 11 Jul 2007
Source: Standard, The (St. Catharines, CN ON)
Copyright: 2007 The Standard
Contact:  http://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/676
Author: Grant LaFleche
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization)

NIAGARA POLICE USED DISCRETION WHILE POLITICIANS  DEBATED POT LAW

It really was a case of law enforcement playing wait  and
see.

In 2005, while the House of Commons debated whether to  decriminalize
the possession of small amounts of  marjiuana, police officers took a
liberal approach to  applying the law.

Niagara Regional Police responded to nearly 200  cannabis possession
calls that year but only laid  charges in 46 of them. The rest where
cleared without  charges being laid.

That changed in 2006 when the Conservative government  dumped the
decriminalization plan. The number of  charges laid jumped 124.

"That is really what was going on," said NRP Deputy  Chief Gary
Beaulieu.

"Police officers were using their discretion."

The problem for officers, said Beaulieu, was they had  no way of
knowing if a possession charge against  someone for a small amount of
pot would stick in court.

Had the government legalized small amounts of  marijuana, some charges
could have wound up being a  waste of time and money.

"So officers would confiscate the drugs, and do the  paper work to
have them destroyed," Beaulieu said.  "They would probably give the
person a warning and that  would be it."

In other cases involving multiple suspects, he said  charges cannot be
laid because there is some doubt over  who is in possession of the
drug. So again, the drugs  are seized and destroyed, but no one is
charged.

Once the status quo was maintained by the Stephen  Harper government,
it was business as usual for the NRP  and officers began to lay more
charges.

That trend continues into 2007, where 47 possession  charges have been
laid as of July 9.

The NRP is not unique in this regard.

Statistics show that several large Canadian police  services saw a
significant jump in the number of  marijuana possession charges laid
in 2006 over 2005.

Toronto, Vancouver, and Ottawa reported increases of 20  to 50 per
cent once confusion over possible changes to  Canada's drug laws passed.

And 2006 also saw an NRP crackdown on marijuana grow  operations in
the region, supported by provincial  funding for the so-called "guns,
gangs and grows"  operations.

As the frequency of drug busts increased, more  possession charges
were laid.

However, Beaulieu said most simple possession charges  are not laid by
the NRP drug squad or by special  operations targeting the growing and
trafficking of  marijuana.

"We are talking about charges laid by patrol officers,  dealing with
marijuana possession on the street level,"  he said.
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