Wednesday, a huge crowd turned out in Prince Albert to learn about the threat of crystal meth and to hear about a plan to address substance abuse in this region. On Thursday morning, Community Resources and Employment Minister Joanne Crofford sent out a press release announcing the province's launch of a review of Saskatchewan's approach to treating addicted youth. The timing is interesting, to say the least. There is no question there has been a surge in awareness of the limited availability of addictions services, particularly for youth. The spread of crystal meth use, a drug which often requires immediate and intense detox treatment, has highlighted the problem. The fact the four daily newspapers in the province worked together on a project surrounding crystal meth is evidence of this. [continues 220 words]
Wednesday was dedicated to focusing on solutions for substance abuse problems in Prince Albert. Uniting to Heal, Prince Albert's Addictions/Detoxification Strategy was laid out for the community to see at a press conference at the Marlboro Inn. It is an impressive document. The background demographic paper by Linda Nosbush should be required reading for residents in Prince Albert for the wealth of information and insight it contains about our city. The plan itself reflects the fact that the steering committee on this issue had representation from a wide array of agencies and interest groups. The strategy details preventative measures and response plans for both immediate and long-term treatment. [continues 259 words]
It was tough to find a seat Wednesday night at a local rally against alcohol and substance abuse. Several hundred people of all ages turned up at the Prince Albert Exhibition Centre to lend their support to a local addictions strategy and awareness campaign. The rally was one of two events in the city Wednesday. Earlier in the day, members of a local committee working on an addictions and detox strategy officially unveiled its plan to members of the public and provincial government officials. [continues 239 words]
Three years ago, a 13-year-old Prince Albert teenager tried crystal meth for the first time. She didn't feel pressured to do it. She just decided to try it. "It's always your own choice," said the teen, who is now 16. Since the girl is less than 18 years old, her name has not been published to protect her identity. Four months later, the young teenager tried crystal meth again. She started doing the drug just on weekends, but that soon turned into every day for the next three years. [continues 511 words]
CANWOOD -- A health official is alarmed at the jump in the number of new HIV cases in the health region over the past few months. Usually there are two new HIV cases in the Prince Albert Parkland Health Region in any 12-month period. But since August, there have been six, said Dr. Leo Lanoie, medical health officer for the region. Even worse than the sharp increase, he said, is that five of the six are women and they are all in the sex trade. [continues 295 words]
Local community members say they want a plan to deal with addictions that includes more than just jail time and hospital visits. About 20 people gathered at the City Police station Friday to talk about ways to deal with the level of drug and alcohol abuse locally, especially among youth. Members of the group say the cycle of jail and hospital visits is not enough to help those addicted to alcohol or drugs such as crystal meth. "It's just an ongoing cycle with no result," city Councillor John Swystun said at the meeting. [continues 308 words]
The Mountie is one of Canada's proudest symbols. People around the world recognized the distinguished figure in red serge. The image calls up respect and dignity. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police helped form this country, and remain at the heart of efforts to keep order and justice in "the true north strong and free." The loss of four RCMP members during an attempted arrest at a grow-op near Mayerthorpe, Alta. is truly a national tragedy. Peter Christopher Schiemann, Anthony Fitzgerald Orion Gordon, Lionide Nicholas Johnston and Broack Warren Myrol were all attempting to carry on the proud RCMP tradition and fell in the line of duty. The service says it's the worst such massacre since the Northwest Rebellion of 1885. [continues 151 words]
The Saskatchewan government has developed a strategy to help fight some powerful drug addictions in the province. The government's crystal meth plan includes 25 initiatives to target drug abuse through prevention, treatment, education and a reduction of supplies used to make the drug. Saskatchewan Health Minister John Nilson said the plan is an integrated approach to the issue of crystal meth abuse, based on consultations throughout the province. The government has also appointed a legislative secretary to the premier to look into other ways to expand on current addictions services, he said. [continues 185 words]
The family of a woman who died after drinking vomit laced with drugs at a local correctional centre is suing for damages. The family of Sonia Faith Keepness filed a lawsuit last week against both the provincial and federal governments. The family is looking for more than $700,000 in damages. The statement of claim alleges that staff involved with the Pine Grove Correctional Centre, where Keepness was serving time when she died, knew that inmates were abusing the drug methadone. [continues 356 words]
Focus has been growing in recent weeks on the need to reclassify methamphetamines as a Schedule 1 drug under the Controlled Substances Act. Right now, meth is considered a less serious Schedule 3 drug than Schedule 1 drugs such as cocaine and marijuana. Is this off base? Yes. Should the law be changed by Parliament? Absolutely. But is changing the act is going to do anything to help communities ravaged by the effects of crystal meth? Not really. Calling for housekeeping in the Controlled Substances Act on this issue is like vacuuming the carpet in a house where the roof is caving in. [continues 206 words]
The Saskatchewan Party is making plans to take the province's crystal meth problem into its own hands. "Frankly, we're not going to wait anymore," says party leader Brad Wall. On Wednesday, the Saskatchewan Party released its five-point plan on reducing the use of crystal meth and other addictive substances in Saskatchewan. The proposed plan advocates treatment programs specifically for children and the re-establishment of an independent addictions foundation. The foundation would be staffed by experts specializing in up-to-date treatment options, said Wall. [continues 356 words]
Community agencies united at a workshop Friday to wage war on Prince Albert's burgeoning crystal meth problem. "We can't use one lens to deal with crystal meth," said Linda Nosbush, an organizer of the crystal methamphetamine workshop. "It's important for the community to come together to understand the complex nature of crystal meth addiction." On Friday morning, staff from Parkland Ambulance, Victoria Hospital, Saskatchewan Rivers School Division, Prince Albert fire department, and the City Police and RCMP's joint forces unit gave presentations on how crystal meth is affecting their areas. It was the first time such groups have met to discuss the drug's effect on Prince Albert. [continues 442 words]
The light can often go out for those trying to beat an addiction. But that does not mean they should stop trying, say organizers of a candlelight walk Monday night in support of drug and alcohol addictions awareness. Dianne Nielsen, director of the Prince Albert Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse which hosted the walk, said the candles represent the path to healing. "When we do the walk, we know the candles are going to go out," Nielsen said. "And then we light them again, and we cover them up, and it needs a lot of lighting up again and trying again." [continues 279 words]
Cigarettes and crystal meth addictions are the target of the upcoming addiction awareness week. A dramatic increase in crystal meth use in junior high and high schools has caused "tremendous worry" in the local community, said Murray Wotherspoon, a member of the Prince Albert Addiction Awareness Committee. This is the first year crystal meth awareness will be prominently promoted during Saskatchewan Addiction Awareness Week, a provincewide initiative that runs Nov. 14-20. Prince Albert has participated in the awareness week for more than 20 years. The week features several events aimed at providing information about different addictions [continues 313 words]
It may be ignored by most people, but the truth is there are about100 women and girls working in the sex trade in Prince Albert. Fortunately for these women, there are people who refuse to close their eyes to the problem and instead provide a friendly face and a helping hand. Ruth Gillingham and Carrie McCloy are just two of the employees at the Youth Activity Centre who work closely with the sex-trade workers. Both provide youth with things such as food, as well as help with addictions, housing and social services. Gillingham and McCloy also work in the Outreach Van, which goes out four nights a week to provide sandwiches, juice and condoms for people on the street. [continues 656 words]
"Are you scared of me yet?" he asked as he forced her into the trees with a sawed-off shotgun pressed between her shoulder blades. Before he tied her to a tree, Hope shot five hits of cocaine to escape what was about to happen to her. That was a few years ago. Hope -- her real name is not used for safety reasons -- is now 38 years old and has been a sex-trade worker in Prince Albert for nearly 26 years. [continues 1342 words]
First Nations elders want to help end the cycle of drug use among youth in their communities. Kokums and Mosums Against Drugs and Alcohol have organized the first KAMADA Walk marathon against drugs and alcohol Thursday through Sunday. Kokum and mosum are Cree for grandfather and grandmother. The four-day, 146-kilometre walk will start in Sturgeon Lake and end in Sandy Lake with a stop in Prince Albert. Wanita Bird, a mentor with the Federation of Independent Schools in Canada and one of the event organizers, said she and her co-workers wanted to do something to curb the use of drugs and alcohol among young people. [continues 334 words]
A 33-year-old woman has been acquitted of drug trafficking after a provincial court judge found City Police violated her rights during her May 2002 arrest. Kimberly Ann Lafond was found not guilty Tuesday in Prince Albert provincial court of possession for the purposes of trafficking. "The violations (of Lafond's rights) here went far beyond ones of a mere technical nature and were extremely serious," Judge Rosemary Weisgerber wrote in her 56-page decision. Specifically, Weisgerber found police did not have a right to arrest Lafond after pulling over the van she was riding in. Weisgerber said a strip search and subsequent body cavity search were also unjustified. [continues 316 words]
Cannabis is becoming more and more a way of life for Canadians, according to a report from Stats Canada released on Wednesday. And the numbers indicate educators, law-makers and those setting public policy need to pay close attention to the trend. In 1989, 6.5 per cent of Canadians reported using pot and hashish. That rose to 7.4 per cent in 1994. The 2002 figure reached 12.2 per cent. Predictably, pot and hash are most often used by young people. Almost four out of every 10 teens aged 18 or 19 reported using marijuana or hashish in the year studied. About three in 10 of those aged 15 to 17 reported cannabis use. Use among those in their early twenties was also significant. [continues 268 words]
Pot smokers might not like the Supreme Court of Canada's decision verifying the validity of Canada's marijuana laws, but the decision was the correct one. Even as the federal government contemplates changes to the laws regarding possession of marijuana, the right to change the law should be left up to Parliament - not the courts. The role of the courts is ensure the laws are properly applied and follow the Constitution and Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The courts can't decide that a law doesn't apply on any other grounds. [continues 282 words]
Drug use is prison is a reality, but it might be more frustrating for people that the Correctional Service of Canada appears resigned to the fact that they can't stop it. With an estimated 80 per cent of people in federal penitentiaries in Canada already dealing with a drug or alcohol problem, it's hard to curb further substance abuse inside jails, said Tim Krause, the communication manager for the Prairie region of the Correctional Service of Canada. "The only way that you could stop it completely is if you had a prison on an island somewhere that had nobody coming and going into the institution," Krause said. [continues 276 words]
The total number of Nipawin youths who have overdosed on morphine in the span of a week has grown to 17 and criminal charges could result, says a provincial RCMP spokesman. Three youths, both male and female of unknown ages, were admitted to Nipawin Union Hospital Sunday night, said Cpl. Brian Jones. One youth has since been released. A male has been sent to hospital in Saskatoon. The condition of the third youth is not known. There is no indication that the drugs were part of a suicide attempt, Jones said. This incident follows a morphine overdose in Nipawin last week at the same house, Jones said. At that time, 15 young people became sick after ingesting morphine tablets at a house party sometime during the evening of Aug. 13 or the next morning [end]
