cannabisnews.com: Marijuana Laws Need Updating





Marijuana Laws Need Updating
Posted by CN Staff on December 15, 2002 at 08:30:09 PT
Editorial
Source: Toronto Star 
Canada's marijuana laws have been on the books since the 1920s and are not working. The country's police chiefs first made that claim years ago. Justice Minister Martin Cauchon has, however cautiously, toyed with decriminalizing simple possession, a position first enunciated by the Le Dain Commission 30 years ago.Now a special parliamentary committee looking into the non-medical use of marijuana is the latest to join the call for decriminalization for simple possession of cannabis for personal use.
The committee believes possession of small amounts of cannabis should become a ticketing offence, much like a traffic violation. That's the procedure now used in most European countries. Eleven states in the United States also issue tickets for simple possession, a point sometimes overlooked by officials south of the border who have denounced any hint that Canada might relax its laws. Furthermore, U.S. research suggests there is no appreciable difference in the level of cannabis use in states that ticket and those that jail.Still, no one is arguing that marijuana use is a positive — unless referring to its ability to ease pain in the gravely ill. What's held up reforms for so long has been the legitimate concerns that relaxed laws for non-medical use would increase pot smoking.But it's clear the status quo is not an option. Police chiefs say they could do a better job cracking down on more dangerous drugs and on traffickers if they could free up resources now used to enforce possession laws.Those possession laws have become so discredited because they have been unfairly applied. Possession is virtually ignored in some areas of Canada, but harshly prosecuted in others. Only about 5 per cent of the roughly 20,000 Canadians charged each year with possessing a small amount of marijuana go to jail. It's difficult to defend a law that lets the vast majority off with a fine, while those who are in the wrong place at the wrong time end up in jail.The parliamentary committee recommends trafficking in any amount of marijuana should remain a crime. We'd like to go a step further and see strict new provisions for anyone convicted of trafficking to minors.Any reform will only come after fierce debate, with reasonable people making reasonable points on both sides of the argument.However it plays out, it would be inexcusable for the government to avoid taking any action on making marijuana available to people dying of cancer, AIDS or other serious illness.Reasonable people on both sides can agree on that. Source: Toronto Star (CN ON)Published: December 15, 2002Copyright: 2002 The Toronto Star Contact: lettertoed thestar.com Website: http://www.thestar.com/ Related Articles & Web Site:Cannabis News Canadian Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htmTime To Get Off The Pothttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14986.shtmlHigh Time for Law Changehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14985.shtmlUnder The Maple Leaf: Pot Politics http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14973.shtml
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