Pubdate: Tue, 18 Mar 2014
Source: Metro (Halifax, CN NS)
Copyright: 2014 Metro Canada
Contact:  http://www.metronews.ca/Halifax
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4727
Author: Ruth Davenport

MINOR POT GROWERS NOT A TOP COP PRIORITY

The deputy chief of Halifax Regional Police says officers won't be 
"kicking down doors" when Canada's marijuana licensing laws change on April 1.

"If they have a small amount of marijuana and they had a medical 
licence, we will get to them at some point, but there's no plan to go 
out and do a full collection," said Deputy Chief Bill Moore at 
Monday's meeting of the Board of Police Commissioners.

As of April 1, licences to grow medical marijuana will be revoked as 
production shifts from individual growers to a handful of large companies.

In HRM, Moore said unlicensed growers will be targeted according to 
the threat they pose.

"The 'pecking order' of it is: marijuana dealer with gun, No. 1; 
marijuana dealer without gun or near a school, and so on," he said.

Coun. Linda Mosher said grow-ops are such a problem in her district 
that residents "fear for their lives."

"I've got residents in my area ... they're waiting for April 2 to 
call me," she said. "A house was firebombed; it's a major problem."

Moore said police would certainly target any problem areas.

"There are certainly people that have been ... exceeding their 
licensing requirements - those are the top part of who we're looking 
for," he said. "But I'm talking about an ordinary citizen that has 
their 30 grams and a couple of plants. We're not going to be kicking 
in all those doors."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom