Pubdate: Tue, 14 Jun 2016
Source: Victoria Times-Colonist (CN BC)
Page: A5
Copyright: 2016 Times Colonist
Contact:  http://www.timescolonist.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/481
Author: Cindy E. Harnett

DECRIMINALIZATION OF POT NIXED

Attorney General Rejects Victoria MP Murray Rankin's Proposed Bill

The federal government will not decriminalize the possession of 
marijuana until it becomes law - with stringent regulations and 
restrictions in place, Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould said on Monday.

"Our government's objectives in doing so are to protect young 
Canadians by keeping marijuana out of the hands of children and 
youth," said Wilson-Raybould. "We also want to keep profits out of 
the hands of criminals, particularly organized crime."

The federal attorney general spoke against an Opposition Day motion 
introduced in Parliament on Monday by NDP justice critic Murray 
Rankin, who represents Victoria.

The bill urges the government to decriminalize possession of personal 
amounts of pot before it's made legal.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau campaigned on a promise to legalize, 
regulate and restrict access to marijuana.

"You can't have the prime minister announcing it's going to be 
legalized and then stand up and prosecute it," Rankin said in the 
House of Commons. "It's a ludicrous situation, ludicrous."

The Liberal government says it plans to introduce legislation in the 
spring of 2017, after it has put together a task force to develop a 
comprehensive regime for controlling the safe production, 
distribution and consumption of cannabis products across Canada.

"This task force will be set up very shortly and will have an 
ambitious timeline so that it can inform the government on its 
progress and complete its review in a timely and responsible way," 
Wilson-Raybould said.

Decriminalizing possession of marijuana without ensuring the 
appropriate controls are in place would be giving a green light to 
dealers and criminal organizations to sell marijuana to Canadians, 
especially children and youth, she argued.

But Rankin said a new law could take up to two years to come into 
effect, leaving many Canadians - especially youth - at risk of 
criminal records for something the government has said it doesn't 
believe should be a crime.

It's contradictory for the prime minister to promise during the 
election to immediately fix marijuana laws in Canada and then do 
nothing for eight months, Rankin said in a phone interview.

This year, based on Statistics Canada data, as many as 60,000 
Canadians will be arrested for simple possession of marijuana and 
22,000 will end up with criminal records, according to the NDP.

"We are saying as an interim measure - until they get around to 
amending the law to allow possession and all the restrictions and 
regulations that appropriately go with that - we think as an interim 
measure they should tell the police departments and Crown attorneys 
around the country to just back off," Rankin said.

He said mothers have complained to him that their children are unable 
to easily get employment or travel because they have a criminal 
record for pot possession.

Rankin pointed out in the House of Commons that the attorney general 
has the ability, under the Director of Public Prosecutions Act, to 
issue a directive that it is no longer in the public interest for 
small quantities of marijuana to be the subject of prosecutions.

The Victoria MP said he's in favour of restricting and regulating 
marijuana, but "what I can't get my head around is the contradiction 
of people getting criminal records for something that in a year or 
two will be perfectly legal and people's lives being dramatically 
affected as a result of that."

Rankin said the law is currently being enforced in a patchwork of 
ways across Canada. In Saskatoon and Kelowna, prosecution for 
personal amounts of marijuana occurs "more readily," he said in 
Parliament. "I live in Victoria," said Rankin. "The police have 
better things to do than prosecute people for simple possession of 
marijuana in most circumstances."

But Wilson-Raybould said rushing into an interim period of 
decriminalization - possibly making it easier for youth to acquire 
pot - is not the answer and is not in the best interests of Canadians.

Canada has the highest rate of marijuana use of any developed 
country, especially among youth, and there's compelling evidence to 
suggest it poses a significant health risk to the developing brain, 
said the attorney general.

Aside from the public health risks for youth, the government must 
consider the need to prevent drug-impaired driving, promote safe and 
responsible production and distribution of marijuana and remove 
profits from organized crime, Wilson-Raybould said.

The Liberals underscored on Monday that pot continues to be included 
under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act. "The law is in force 
and it should be obeyed," Wilson-Raybould said.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom