Police say most tips from public now lead to pot grown for medicinal use Police in Alberta last year smoked out 125 per cent fewer marijuana grow ops than they did in 2012, with most of the pot gardens now detected being legal ones. They also seized 13,067 pot plants province-wide last year, a whopping 234 per cent decrease from the 43,606 confiscated in 2012, said the Alberta Law Enforcement Response Teams, also known as ALERT. The vast majority of cannabis plants seized last year - about 86 per cent - were from south of Red Deer. [continues 469 words]
They're not the infamous Bloods and Crips that have waged bloody battles over the drug trade in Los Angeles. But a Blood Tribe police investigator warns the two gangs who've adopted those monikers - and are prone to wielding machetes and hatchets - could spur a rise in violence in two southern Alberta communities. The Bloods and the Crips, who are not affiliated with the Los Angeles street gangs, began their long-standing feud on the Blood Tribe, a sprawling First Nation southwest of Lethbridge. [continues 406 words]
If Crime Is Reduced and Drug Users Get Help, 'I'm All for It,' Knecht Says If a safe injection site for IV drug users reduces crime and helps people get to a better place in their lives, Edmonton police Chief Rod Knecht says he would throw his full weight behind it. But for now, he's not voicing an opinion on whether one should open or not. "I'm obviously not a physician, I'm not a nurse, I'm not a social worker," Knecht said Friday. "I think if the public's view is that safe injection sites are a good thing, I guess we'll respect that, but we have some concerns." [continues 553 words]
Edmonton's Top Cop Addresses Some of City's Key Problems If a safe injection site for IV drug users reduces crime and helps people get to a better place in their lives, Edmonton police Chief Rod Knecht says he would throw his full weight behind it. But for now, he's not voicing an opinion on whether one should open or not. "I really don't have a position," Knecht said Friday morning. "I'm obviously not a physician, I'm not a nurse, I'm not a social worker. I think if the public's view is that safe injection sites are a good thing, I guess we'll respect that, but we have some concerns." [continues 822 words]
Dana Larsen Held in Jail Overnight After Leaving Kelowna at Start of Tour Aimed at Legalizing Pot The Free Marijuana Tour will continue minus the free seed part, its Kelowna-based co-ordinator says. Cindy Heemeryck says no cannabis seeds will be distributed at future stops planned by pot activist Dana Larsen, who was arrested and held in jail overnight by Calgary police. "We're going to carry on," Heemeryck said Thursday from Calgary, a few hours after she had paid $1,000 bail to get Larsen out of jail. [continues 340 words]
Advocate Charged With Two Counts of Trafficking A well-known Vancouver pot activist has been released on bail after being arrested in Calgary for handing out cannabis seeds at a rally he was hosting Wednesday. Overgrow Canada director Dana Larsen said a volunteer was first arrested for handing out the seeds at the Calgary stop in his cross-Canada tour, but when Larsen found out he presented himself to police. "I went out there and said 'if you're going to be arresting anyone for sharing cannabis seeds it's going to be me,'" he said. "So, I gave him a handful of seeds and the officer arrested me as well." [continues 262 words]
Marijuana Activist Arrested for Seed Handout Turns out giving away marijuana seeds will get you arrested ... at least in Calgary. Vancouver's Dana Larsen, 44, a marijuana activist says his high-profile arrest in Calgary has only boosted the profile of his national seed giveaway campaign, which has attracted new seed orders and several offers from suppliers. He is expected to appear in court on May 18. Larsen was arrested at the Days Inn on Macleod Trail South as his Overgrow Canada event, dubbed "Free Marijuana - Overgrow the Government Tour," made its stop in Calgary, the second of 14 cities in the tour. [continues 241 words]
Activist arrested at Calgary tour stop Vancouver-based pot activist Dana Larsen vows to push ahead with his pro-legalization rallies and tour despite being arrested and charged in Calgary this week for distributing marijuana seeds. "It's absolutely fuelling the fire," he said Thursday. "I'm getting more requests for seeds and have more people contacting me to donate seeds - so really, this kind of harassment just gets people worked up and gets way more media attention." Larsen, 44, was arrested Wednesday evening in Calgary during the second stop of his cross-country OverGrow Canada tour. [continues 404 words]
Urges Canadians to exercise their freedom by planting cannabis seeds A marijuana activist says his high-profile arrest in Calgary has only boosted the profile of his national seed giveaway campaign, which has attracted new seed orders and several offers from suppliers. Dana Larsen, 44, of Vancouver, was charged with one count of trafficking marijuana and one count of possession for the purpose of trafficking. He was later released from custody and is expected to appear in court on May 18. [continues 668 words]
Police say they were forced to bring in extra officers to a pot rally for the arrest of a marijuana activist because the crowd had become agitated. "The crowd became aware of that occurring, then a number of people came out and it =C2=85 elevated the incident somewhat as people were becoming upset," Calgary Police Inspector Mike Bossley said Thursday after Dana Larsen was charged. "That really required additional response from the police just to make sure that it stayed as a peaceful event." [continues 334 words]
A drug case that's been before the court for more than a year avoided a major delay when a judge ruled that lawyers representing two suspects would not have to withdraw. Judge Eric Peterson said Tuesday during a hearing in Lethbridge provincial court he could not find that a substantial conflict of interest exists, even though the two lawyers, Robin McIntyre and Andrea Urquhart, work for the same Calgary law firm. Peterson ruled on the matter after the federal Crown prosecutor applied to have the lawyers removed because of perceived conflict of interest. But Peterson said he was satisfied the public's confidence in the administration of justice would not be shaken, and the lawyers could continue to represent their clients, [names redacted]. [continues 181 words]
Says City Is Under-Serviced for Medical Marijuana The founder of a medical marijuana clinic opening this month in Edmonton says the facility will provide a "necessary service." "We know that Edmonton is under-serviced, from what we're hearing from both physicians and patients, with regards to physicians who are comfortable with prescribing cannabis," Dr. Danial Schecter said Tuesday. On Monday, Edmonton anaesthesiologist Dr. Brian Knight told Metro there is no shortage of physicians to prescribe cannabis. Schecter opened his Toronto clinic in 2014 and has since expanded to Halifax, Ottawa, St. John's and Barrie, making Edmonton's Hys Centre location his first venture into Western Canada. [continues 217 words]
A new Mainstreet/Postmedia poll says 44 per cent of Edmontonians surveyed support the establishment of a safe injection site for IV drug users in this city. Another 30 per cent opposed the idea, while 26 per cent were undecided. That's not overwhelming public support. But it suggests an intriguing degree of public receptiveness. And this is the right time for us to be having that discussion. Historically, heroin hasn't been a problem drug in Edmonton. But that's changing. In 2013, there were 19 visits to emergency rooms in the Edmonton health zone because of heroin overdoses. Last year, there were 118. In the first two months of 2016, there were about as many heroin overdoses as there were in all of 2013. [continues 625 words]
Edmonton location to offer exams, info and prescriptions An Edmonton anesthesiologist who prescribes medical marijuana is skeptical that a new clinic will help patients. Toronto-based Cannabinoid Medical Clinic, founded by Dr. Danial Schecter, will open its first Edmonton location this month to offer exams, product information and cannabis prescriptions. But Dr. Brian Knight says plenty of doctors are already prescribing medical marijuana. "There's really a shortage of people treating chronic pain in general in Canada, and all of a sudden these people come out of the woodwork opening medical marijuana clinics, and where were they 10 or 15 years ago to help treat patients?" he said. [continues 167 words]
The idea of a supervised-injection site in Edmonton appears to have lukewarm support among city residents, a new poll has found. One of the researchers assembling a proposal for medically supervised injection services in the city said Sunday she hopes support will grow once people find out more about how the service would work. "We're helping people stay alive, and also helping them find an off-ramp from using injection drugs," said Elaine Hyshka, a University of Alberta public health researcher and core member of Access to Medically Supervised Injection Services Edmonton. [continues 414 words]
University makes antidote to lethal opioid freely available Dirk Chisholm hopes he never has to give a shot of naloxone to an overdosing student on campus, but he's readily equipped if need be. Chisholm, who's part of an EMT certified group of University of Calgary students that assist in on campus medical calls, said the group has recently been given naloxone to combat on campus overdoses. Naloxone is an antidote that can reverse fentanyl overdoses. "I think it's quite important we have the kits," he said. "It's not an issue unique to campus by any means - it seems to be quite an epidemic, so if something were to occur we're quite equipped to handle that." [continues 271 words]
Association polling members on cannabis sales While Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has promised to legalize recreational marijuana use, changes to legislation could take time. But the Alberta Liquor Store Association wants to be ready. "We wanted to poll our members to see how they feel about the possibility of liquor stores selling a controlled substance like marijuana so that when the provincial government (begins discussions) here in Alberta, we can be at the table," said Ivonne Martinez, president of the Alberta Liquor Store Association. [continues 219 words]
Alberta Association Polls Members, but Wants 'Full Picture' From Province While Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has promised to legalize recreational marijuana use, changes to legislation could take time. But the Alberta Liquor Store Association wants to be ready. "We wanted to poll our members to see how they feel about the possibility of liquor stores selling a controlled substance like marijuana so that when the provincial government (begins discussions) here in Alberta, we can be at the table," said Ivonne Martinez, president of the Alberta Liquor Store Association. [continues 220 words]
There's increasing talk of other Canadian cities copying Vancouver's supervised drug injection site, which allows people to use substances such as heroin, cocaine and meth. The argument is that it's better for people to use drugs under the supervision of a health-care professional, rather than doing it on the street or in some alley. Staff can step in if something goes amiss and they can ensure safe practices, such as the use of clean syringes and disinfectant, which reduce the spread of disease. [continues 342 words]
Re. "Canadian causes stir at UN with drug speech," March 17 I applaud the assistant deputy minister of health, Hillary Geller, on her public support for harm reduction, including supervised injection services, at the United Nation narcotic drug conference in Vienna. I was disappointed with the negative spin of your article, which is not based on the available scientific evidence. We need supervised injections services exactly because narcotics like heroin and fentanyl are dangerous. Providing medical supervision during consumption saves lives, increases uptake into treatment, reduces crime and prevents related diseases. [continues 132 words]
Inside Alberta
