WINKLER - The City of Winkler will not honour the province's Dec. 22 deadline to indicate whether or not they'd be willing to have marijuana sold in the community. Mayor Martin Harder was the first municipal leader in Manitoba to make that statement and he said they don't feel they have enough facts to make a decision either way. "We haven't got any information," he said. "It's a moving target, and every time we get some information it's different than what we knew before." [continues 478 words]
It's time to reassess the war on drugs in Canada. That's a statement that at least two thirds of Canadians support. Talk of decriminalizing or legalizing marijuana has come to the forefront once again, first because the Liberal party adopted it as a campaign plank, and now because all the NDP leadership candidates agree. There's no doubt the drug war has failed, but what Canadians must decide is to what level we're willing to give up the fight. [continues 344 words]
If you are the first person to do something, whatever it is, there's one of two reasons for that. Either you are a visionary, or the thing you are doing is so stupid nobody else would even consider it. The NDP's latest strategy to fight drug trafficking falls into the latter category. Attorney General Andrew Swan announced legislation allowing the province to suspend the drivers license of those who drove a vehicle as part of a drug trafficking offence. [continues 396 words]
Border Land School Division has hired a private company to bring in a drug sniffing dog to all four high schools. Superintendent Tim Mendel said this approach allows the division to look for drugs without being dependent on calling the RCMP. "If you bring in the police, they may not want to come," he said. "They need some probable cause." Mendel said this approach, which costs about $300 per visit, gives the division the power as to when and where the dog sniffing unit will go. [continues 262 words]
News that Hwy. 75 funnels billions of dollars in international trade from Winnipeg to U.S. destinations is not something that would ordinarily cause alarm. Report causes concern But after a National Drug Intelligence Center report out of the U.S. suggested the highway was being used to funnel drugs and guns across the border, Manitoba's PC party has raised the alarm. PC Justice Critic Kelvin Goertzen referred to a recent sentencing of a Winnipeg man for smuggling guns into Canada in exchange for drugs, saying we shouldn't be surprised this kind of thing is happening. [continues 249 words]
Is you son or daughter doing ecstacy? Has your best friend decided to try it "just once." Have you? Ecstasy use is on the rise in Altona, and local police say a recent possession charge is only the beginning. Altona Police picked up an individual under the intoxicated person detention act, and through the course of the arrest learned the suspect was high on ecstacy. The suspect was treated at the Altona Hospital and faces possession charges. Sgt. Perry Batchelor said it was then they received indications that there was "a whole lot more" out there. [continues 498 words]
Portage-Lisgar MP Brian Pallister is championing a private members bill, to create new offences for production and possession of "precursor" chemicals used to make the drugs. The tools they need Put forward by a Conservative colleague, Pallister said the bill will give police the tools they need to deal with what he calls a growing problem, and not one restricted to big cities. "Crystal Meth is having a disastrous effect on our rural communities," he said. "This bill will help to curb the harmful effects of this drug, especially on our young people." [continues 138 words]
Altona Red River Valley Echo -- Not only is meth use happening in Altona, it's being manufactured here too, according to RCMP Cpl. Mike Ramsay, coordinator of synthetic drug operations. Ramsay said they know Crystal Meth labs are and have been operated in the town. "We know this through source information and information obtained by the Altona Police," he said. Ramsay said in some cases they are even reasonably sure of the exact locations of potential labs. But he admitted, being reasonably sure won't get them a search warrant. [continues 119 words]
Altona Red River Valley Echo -- Are you a parent intimidated by the increasing prevalence of crystal meth, or the statistics that show many teenagers smoke marijuana? Are you afraid it could be creeping into your home? If that's you, or if you simply want to equip yourself to drug proof your kids, the Altona Recreation Department has a program that might work. Grace Braun said a new program called "How to Drug Proof Your Kids" is being launched April 11, and will run for six weeks every Tuesday. [continues 142 words]
