Pubdate: Sat, 22 Oct 2016
Source: Globe and Mail (Canada)
Copyright: 2016 The Globe and Mail Company
Contact:  http://www.theglobeandmail.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/168
Author: Shannon Kari
Page: A16

ADVOCATES, OWNERS SAY POT-SHOP POLICING IS INCONSISTENT

Toronto officials maintain that there is no grey area when it comes to
the legality of dispenseries

On a warm fall day, the distinctive smell of dried cannabis buds wafts
out to the sidewalk of a busy midtown Toronto street. WeeMedical on
St. Clair Avenue will, at times, leave its front door open, providing
a clear view for passers-by of what is for sale. Far from secretive,
the retail operation is located just a few doors from a doughnut shop
where it is not unusual to see a parked police car. It was one of the
43 dispensaries where Toronto police executed search warrants in late
May of this year, yet it's business as usual now, open seven days a
week.

A few kilometres south, at Green Buddha on College Street, a Blue
Jays-cap-wearing employee barely glances up from his phone as he sits
behind a counter topped with a number of glass jars filled with
different strains of cannabis. A colleague was charged with drug
trafficking offences a few weeks back, but this appears to be of
little concern. "It wasn't me," said the employee, who then resumes
scanning his phone.

It's been nearly five months since Toronto police raided dozens of
storefront marijuana dispensaries in an attempt to crackdown on the
illegal industry.

The city-wide sweep, called Project Claudia, led to nearly 200
trafficking-related charges and the arrests of 90 people. The city's
Municipal and Licensing Standards division also issued nearly 80 sets
of charges related to bylaw infractions (such as operating without a
business licence).

This week, the city announced the owners and employees of six
dispensaries had pleaded guilty to bylaw infractions and were ordered
to pay fines ranging from hundreds of dollars to $4,000. Of the 138
Toronto dispensaries investigated this year, the city believes 85 have
shut down.

Dozens of others, however, continue to operate as the industry, users
and frustrated officials wait for the federal government to announce
its plan for legalizing marijuana.

In the interim, police continue to lay criminal charges. Since the
mass raid, search warrants have been executed against some two dozen
dispensaries, as recently as this week, according to Toronto police.

"One gets shut down, another one jumps in," said Neev Tapeiro, the
owner of Cannabis as Living Medicine, which has been in operation for
20 years as a dispensary and a compassion club for medical users. His
business was one of the ones raided by police in Project Claudia and
while Mr. Tapeiro said he can't say much about his criminal case, he
is frustrated with what happened. "The police did not distinguish
between medical and recreational dispensaries," he said. (Both are
illegal, though medical dispensaries want proof that clients have
Health Canada's approval.)

While there is no grey area in the current criminal law or city
regulations, what remains unclear is why police allow some
dispensaries to remain open while others are subject to enforcement.
Toronto police spokeswoman Meaghan Gray said the service takes a
number of factors into consideration before moving ahead with a search
warrant, including complaints from the community and proximity to
schools and parks where children play.

"The Service also has to balance the operational requirements of any
given division," Ms. Gray wrote in an e-mail. "With other criminal
factors to consider, the Service is unable to focus all resources on
marijuana storefronts alone … the law is not grey; these storefronts
are operating illegally. We will continue to enforce the law as it
stands to the best of our abilities."

The police force's approach has raised the ire of owners, whose
businesses range from small retail operations that have been caught
selling marijuana to any customer, to more formal clinics that require
medical documentation.

"It is completely arbitrary," Toronto defence lawyer Paul Lewin said.
"Whether you will be targeted seems to depend on the view of the
police division in that part of the city. It is also making the ones
that get to stay open super rich," he said.

Mr. Lewin, whose law firm website states that he specializes in
"cannabis law," questions whether the crackdown on dispensaries is
about public safety and health concerns, or an attempt to reduce
competition before the federal government determines who can sell
marijuana through their licensed outlets. "We are now using the
criminal law power to sort out the marketplace," Mr. Lewin said.

The Public Prosecution Service of Canada said that charges have been
withdrawn against two businesses charged in Project Claudia. No other
cases among the 43 have been resolved or gone to trial. Federal Crown
attorneys seem to have a "low level of enthusiasm" in dealing with
these cases, Mr. Lewin said.

That view is echoed by fellow defence lawyer Benjamin Goldman. "This
is a mess that has been dropped in the laps of the federal Crown's
office downtown. Crown attorneys, on the ground level and judges are
asking what we are doing with all these cases," said Mr. Goldman.
"This could use up a huge amount of court resources."

In an e-mail, the spokesperson for the Public Prosecution Service of
Canada, Nathalie Houle, said, "The PPSC prosecutes the laws that are
presently in place. There is a large number of cases and they are
proceeding through the system."

If the criminal side of Project Claudia is moving very slowly, that is
not the case when it comes to enforcement by the city.

"This is against the law. The law is very clear," said Tracey Cook,
executive director of Municipal Licensing and Standards. "When there
is a different regulatory regime, we will enforce that regime."

City prosecutors are active in provincial court, seeking fines and
shutting down orders against dispensaries. "We are also trying to
educate property owners," said Ms. Cook. One of the city's powers
includes the ability to seek restrictions on a landlord found in
violation of certain bylaws from being able to lease to any business
for two years. "It is an effective tool," she said.

Toronto Mayor John Tory said he stands by his strong support for
Toronto's campaign of raids by police and city bylaw officers. "We are
in a limbo period," Mr. Tory said, repeating pleas for "clarification"
from Ottawa on how marijuana legalization is going to proceed.

But he made no apologies for what police or city bylaw staff have been
doing in the meantime - busting illegal operations about which he said
the city receives many complaints.

"I think that law says what the law says," Mr. Tory said. "And I think
most of these [dispensaries] in my view, are illegal, and they are
certainly a continuing concern of residents and retailers in the city
of Toronto."

Toronto city council opted not to regulate the industry, in contrast
to the city of Vancouver, which adopted a new bylaw last year that
permits the licensing of businesses that advocate for medical
marijuana use. The bylaw does not regulate the sale of marijuana,
though, since that is outside the powers of the city. A spokesman for
the city said that, to date, a total of eight medical marijuana
retailers or compassion clubs have been awarded business licences.

Toronto's enforcement approach earns praises from former politician
George Smitherman, who is involved in two medical marijuana companies
seeking production approval from Health Canada. He said dispensaries
are misleading the public into believing they are serving people with
legitimate medical needs. Only producers approved by Health Canada can
distribute to customers with medical authorization, although not
through a retail location. "This is a black market industry operating
as a retail establishment," Mr. Smitherman, a former provincial
cabinet minister and mayoral candidate, said.

Not everyone on the medical marijuana side of the industry believes
that enforcement against dispensaries is the proper course of action
at this time. John Fowler, president of Toronto-based Supreme
Pharmaceuticals, which is a Health Canada-approved producer, said it
is time to look at the bigger picture. "Prohibition does not work. The
problem is this, you are not going to shut dispensaries down by laying
charges against the kids who work behind the counter," said Mr.
Fowler. "If your goal is to get rid of the unlicensed seller, you have
to move much more quickly to provide a regulated framework," he said.

Mr. Tapeiro is also calling for the government of Prime Minister
Justin Trudeau to speed up the pace of implementing its campaign
promise. "Now we are hearing that slow and steady is the route. It is
very frustrating," said Mr. Tapeiro, who makes reference to the LeDain
Royal Commission, which recommended in 1972 that possession of
marijuana be legal in Canada. "That was under Pierre Trudeau," he said
with a sigh.
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MAP posted-by: Matt