Pubdate: Tue, 25 Oct 2016
Source: Edmonton Journal (CN AB)
Copyright: 2016 The Edmonton Journal
Website: http://www.edmontonjournal.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/134
Author: Juris Graney
Page: 3

ALBERTA PONDERS MANY CHALLENGES OF LEGALIZED POT

Among most pressing is devising marijuana version of breathalyzer

Without a reliable roadside test to conclusively prove a driver is
impaired by marijuana, avoiding wrongful convictions when weed is
legalized in Alberta could be a problem.

That was one of the take-aways for Alberta Justice Minister Kathleen
Ganley after her trip to Denver, Colo., last week where she met with
officials to pick their brains about what systems need to be in place
in this province if and when marijuana is legalized.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made the "legalizing, regulating and
restricting access to marijuana" commitment as part of his election
platform, with a view to have legislation introduced in spring 2017.

As a federal task force gets set to deliver in November its findings
on regulation and restriction of marijuana, provinces are rushing to
do their own research.

Colorado became one of the first states in the U.S. to legalize
recreational marijuana two years ago. Many politicians look to it as a
cannabis case study.

"The big, top-line message is this needs to be done very carefully and
with a lot of regulations," Ganley said Monday.

"Their experience was that it didn't solve all of the problems that
suggested it might, but it also didn't result in new criminal
activities."

One of the recurring issues in the debate over legal weed surrounds
road safety and just how law enforcement and the judicial system deals
with infractions.

Ganley said Colorado had instituted a presumptive marijuana
intoxication limit of five nanograms of THC per millilitre of blood,
but measuring that at the side of the road becomes complicated because
no device exists to test it.

"Unlike being impaired by alcohol, there hasn't yet been the work done
to say this is the blood level which most people are impaired, or to
develop a tool that enables police to test someone immediately to see
if they are at that level," she said.

"People have certain Charter rights not to be convicted without
evidence and so that would present some significant legal challenges
with the science where it is now. With the increased move toward
legalization, I am hopeful that science will catch up more quickly."

Ganley's discussions also touched on changes to fire codes, food
health regulations in regards to edibles, as well as the impact
legalization had on law enforcement resources.

It has been argued that police resources could be redirected to more
pressing policing matters, including attention to Alberta's fentanyl
crisis.

Peace officers or a new team of inspectors could be involved in the
examination of the new regulated production and distribution systems
when marijuana is legal.

Ganley said the costs involved in policing in a new, legalized
marijuana world, shouldn't fall to municipalities or the provinces.

"We would certainly want to see, at minimum, our additional
enforcement costs covered (by federal tax revenue) and if enforcement
costs fell to municipalities, we would want to see federal tax revenue
cover that as well," she said.

"We would want to ensure that all enforcement costs at all levels were
covered off."
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MAP posted-by: Matt