Canada's police chiefs suggest tickets, not charges, for marijuana possession | CTV News

Canada's top cops say handing out tickets for illegal possession of small amounts of marijuana could be more efficient than laying criminal charges.
Delegates at the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police annual meeting have passed a resolution that says officers need more enforcement options to deal with people caught with pot.
Association president Jim Chu, who is chief constable of the Vancouver Police Service, said having the option of writing tickets to penalize pot users caught with less than 30 grams of the drug would reduce policing and court costs.

The association said its ticketing proposal would require changing federal law, but that does not mean the chiefs support the legalization of marijuana.
Chu said some officers, when confronted with simple possession, find laying charges isn't worth the effort.

"Quite often they're turning a blind eye to it because there's the problem of going off the road to process the paperwork," he said.

Tuesday, November 2, 2004
Liberals reintroduce marijuana bill

Paul Martin's Liberals reintroduced a controversial bill Monday that would decriminalize marijuana possession and replace criminal charges with fines for anyone caught with up to 15 grams of the drug.
The new possession bill comes with the same old warning from Justice Minister Irwin Cotler: This doesn't mean marijuana will be legalized in Canada.

"Marijuana use is and remains illegal," he said. "What we have done here is alter penalty frameworks."

If the bill passes, adults who are caught with less than 15 grams of marijuana could be fined up to $400, but would not be left with a criminal record.

Ottawa police Chief Charles Bordeleau told the Citizen the measure would give police an important “third option” as an alternative to the current choice of either laying criminal charges or not. Since officers usually choose the latter, he said a ticket would also “provide some meaningful consequences to an offender’s actions.”
...
When police charge people with possession, they’re faced with several extra steps, including collecting evidence and prosecution. Changes in drug laws haven’t been followed by changes in drug usage in other jurisdiction, because users aren’t dissuaded by the law, Moore said.

“People don’t make their choice about whether or not they’re going to smoke pot on whether it’s in the Criminal Code,” she said. “There’s no reason to think that, if you move toward a decriminalization model, that everyone and their grandmother will become a pothead.”

Other jurisdictions, including some Australian and U.S. states, have tried the ticketing method and found it actually increases enforcement, said Eugene Oscapella, an Ottawa lawyer who teaches drug policy in the University of Ottawa’s criminology department,

Regina's police chief is among those calling for changes to the way the marijuana law is enforced.
...
From the offender's perspective, a ticket would require a fine to be paid, but there would be no criminal record resulting.

Edmonton’s police chief says people caught smoking pot should be fined, not criminally charged.

Calgary Police Association president Howard Burns welcomed the move, noting officers often run into a dilemma when they encounter a young person “experimenting with life.”

“You catch them with a small amount of marijuana, well, right now that’s a criminal offence,” he said. “It’s a situation where technically they’re guilty of a crime and really they should be charged but the officer uses their discretion.”

Burns said police sometimes “turn a blind eye” in such situations and simply seize and destroy small amounts of marijuana, rather than burdening the justice system with additional costs and a young person’s life with a criminal record.

Waterloo Regional Police chief Matt Torigian says handing out tickets for illegal possession of marijuana would reduce police and court costs.

"A young 19-year-old kid is found to have a small amount of marijuana on him. Is it really necessary for that person to have a criminal record?" Torigian said in a telephone interview with The Record from Winnipeg, where he is attending the annual meeting of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police.

"Curtman" said


Looks like the dumb-on-crime Harper government needs a rethink. There's no evidence that harsher penalties will deter anybody, and lots of evidence that the penalties are already too harsh.

"Freakinoldguy" said
you might have noticed I posted that the decriminalization of pot is likely going to happen here in BC and it's about time. But in fairness I did also post that you and your type would get out and try and torpedo this initiative because it didn't suit your agenda of legalizing all drugs.

Dana Larsen, the man at the head of a B.C. campaign to force a provincial marijuana referendum, thinks a proposal to ticket Canadian pot smokers is a bad idea.

“I’d rather see revenue generated through legalization, regulation and taxation rather than fining the people who happen to be unlucky enough to get caught by police,” he told The Langley Times in an interview.

According to 2011 data collected by Larsen’s Sensible BC marijuana decriminalization campaign, out of the province’s 16,578 police reports of marijuana possession, 3,774 led to criminal charges. If the country’s police associations adopt the proposed ticketing system, then everyone caught with small amounts of pot will be subject to fines, Larsen argues.

“Better to just leave pot smokers alone,” said a Sensible BC tweet on Wednesday.

"OnTheIce" said


Looks like the dumb-on-crime Harper government needs a rethink. There's no evidence that harsher penalties will deter anybody, and lots of evidence that the penalties are already too harsh.

"Jabberwalker" said
What a great idea. It's far better than filling up the jails for spurious reasons and it defers the question of legalization until some sort of consensus about it can be reached.

"Curtman" said
What a great idea. It's far better than filling up the jails for spurious reasons and it defers the question of legalization until some sort of consensus about it can be reached.

"Jabberwalker" said
What a great idea. It's far better than filling up the jails for spurious reasons and it defers the question of legalization until some sort of consensus about it can be reached.

"Curtman" said
Harpers prohibition policies go against the wishes of Canadians.

Spin it any way you like, its still true.

"Curtman" said

As was discussed here before, legalization has more support in Canada than decriminalization does. The consensus is that decriminalization addresses the freedom issue, but not the issue of prohibition fuelling growth of organized crime.

It was a great idea a decade ago, but the national conversation has moved passed it to legalization.