Subject:  (Real) CNN Story from yesterday (May 28) |
Author:
Matt
| [ Next Thread |
Previous Thread |
Next Message |
Previous Message
]
Date Posted: 18:28:22 05/29/03 Thu
Canadian government moves to reduce pot penalties
Police, U.S. officials warn of consequences
OTTAWA, Canada (Reuters) -- The Canadian government overrode objections from the United States and police groups on Tuesday and introduced legislation to end criminal penalties for the possession of small amounts of marijuana.
Under the bill, people caught with 15 grams (half an ounce, or enough for about 15 to 30 joints) or less of cannabis would only be fined, and criminal penalties would be reduced on those growing up to 25 marijuana plants.
"We have to ask ourselves as a society, does it make sense that a person who makes a bad choice can receive the lasting burden of a criminal conviction?" asked Justice Minister Martin Cauchon.
"A criminal conviction can limit career opportunities and make travel to other countries difficult. These factors, coupled with the possibility of a jail sentence, amount to sanctions that are disproportionate."
He said police would have more resources to go after large growers, flourishing especially in British Columbia and Quebec, and maximum penalties would be increased for big growers.
But Canadian Police Association Executive Officer David Griffin said police would have nowhere near enough resources to address the rising supply and said with no minimum sentences the courts would still be able to let growers off lightly.
"What we are looking for is to send a clear message to Canada's young people that drugs are harmful, that drugs and driving kill and that people who sell drugs to kids will go to jail," Griffin said.
"We asked for resources. We asked for support, and what we received instead was a hastily put-together package that's held together by Band-aids and duct tape."
'Canada is a different place with different values'
U.S. anti-drug czar John Walters has warned that this law could force a clampdown at the U.S. border and thus potentially hurt the world's richest trading relationship.
"What assurances can this government give us that its pet project on marijuana isn't going to jeopardize legitimate trade with the United States?" demanded Stephen Harper, leader of the Canadian Alliance, Parliament's largest party.
"Canada is a different place with different values," Cauchon shot back.
A dozen U.S. states actually already have decriminalized the possession of small amounts. California, for example, provides for a fine of $100 for one ounce (28.5 grams). Ohio lets people with as much as 100 grams off with a $100 fine.
Canada would levy a C$150 ($110) fine on adults and C$100 for youth for up to 15 grams.
For 15 to 30 grams, the Canadian bill would give police the discretion of handing out a fine or pressing for a summary conviction which, as at present, could result in up to six months in jail -- though that is rarely imposed now.
The Canadian Alliance's Randy White said he had been prepared to support decriminalization of 5 grams, but he said 15 grams to 30 grams would raise questions of the person's intent. "If you're talking about someone carrying 50 to 60 joints with them, I'd hardly call that minor personal possession," he said.
Bill's passage not assured
Though Prime Minister Jean Chretien's Liberals have a comfortable majority in the House of Commons, the bill's passage is not in fact assured.
Cauchon hopes it will pass by the end of the year. But the government's legislative agenda is complicated by the active race to replace Chretien as prime minister, particularly given the animosity between him and front-runner Paul Martin.
In September the Liberals elect delegates to the party's November leadership convention. Ottawa is rife with speculation that the Parliament will simply grind to a halt in the autumn should Martin take an unassailable lead of delegates.
Some of Martin's backers are among the loudest opponents of the marijuana bill.
[
Next Thread |
Previous Thread |
Next Message |
Previous Message
] |
|
Feedback: 