Pubdate: Fri, 28 Jan 2011
Source: Abbotsford Times (CN BC)
Page: Front Page
Copyright: 2011 The Abbotsford Times
Contact:  http://www.abbotsfordtimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1009
Author: Cam Tucker
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada)

POT BYLAW SUSPENSION 'PRECEDENT SETTING'

Crowd Piles into Mission Chambers

The B.C. Civil Liberties Association is hoping the recent suspension 
of a controversial Mission bylaw will set a major precedent in 
British Columbia.

On Monday, Mission district council suspended its Controlled 
Substance Property Bylaw for one month so it can undergo a review 
amidst a wave of protest from citizens who say they have been 
unfairly targeted by the bylaw and handed inspection fees upwards of $5,200.

The bylaw grants the district's Public Safety Inspection Team the 
ability to inspect homes that are consuming more than 93 kilowatts of 
electricity a day. The bylaw was instituted to help reduce the number 
of marijuana grow operations in Mission.

A class-action lawsuit on behalf of several Mission residents who had 
their properties inspected - without a trace of a marijuana grow 
operation - is expected to be filed any day now.

Micheal Vonn, policy director of the BCCLA, said she expects this 
case could set the standard for how municipalities and police forces 
implement and enforce similar bylaws existing now and in the future.

"We're counting on it," she told the Abbotsford-Mission Times.

"Part of the reason we are very, very keen to see there will be legal 
action undertaken, given that council has thus far proved quite 
inadequate to the task of remedying this on their own, is essentially 
to define a couple of areas that stand out as things that we need 
clear guidance on."

"That's exactly what I voted for in the bylaw initially and that's 
how I thought it worked," said Stevens.

Other municipalities with similar bylaws include Pitt Meadows and 
Coquitlam. Paul Gipps, deputy chief administrative officer for the 
District of Mission, said the district is aware a lawsuit is likely 
to be filed and that the program will now undergo a "comprehensive review."

"Council has heard the community asking questions, wanting a review, 
and that's exactly what we're going to do," said Gipps.

He said not only will the bylaw be open to review, but the whole 
process of how it was implemented, as well.

"It is in its early stage, we're just writing up the framework and 
trying to get all the questions people would like to know [so] we can 
answer that as part of the review."

The bylaw was the focus of a massive group of people that packed 
Mission's council chambers Monday. The public meeting got heated at 
times, as folks voiced their displeasure with the bylaw and the 
council for implementing it.

Vonn said her office has been inundated with phone calls, e-mails and 
letters from angry Mission residents, some of them she said are 
unable to pay their mortgages because of the inspection fees.

She added the bylaw accuses people of criminal wrongdoing.

"We understand . . . that they are recording on criminal records 
checks people who have been found in violation of this bylaw," said Vonn.

"[This] means you have to explain why you've been accused of being a 
criminal by the district of Mission to anyone who requires a criminal 
records check - employer, volunteer or otherwise.

"They're there to accuse you of being a criminal and then claiming 
that it has nothing to do with criminal law."

However, Mission RCMP spokeswoman Sgt. Miriam Dickson said that is not true.

"That's impossible," she said. "You can't have a criminal record 
unless you go to criminal court and are found guilty."

Dickson said information goes on a person's criminal record if they 
have had "adverse contact" with police, which means a complaint was 
launched against that individual but no charges were laid. She said 
this type of contact with police does not apply to municipal bylaws, 
including the Controlled Substance Property Bylaw.

Mission implemented the bylaw in July 2009. For more on this story, 
visit www.abbotsfordtimes.com.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom