cannabisnews.com: Ontario Police Chiefs Denounce Inaction on Pot Law Ontario Police Chiefs Denounce Inaction on Pot Law Posted by CN Staff on June 18, 2003 at 08:39:39 PT Press Release Source: Canada NewsWire Richmond Hill -- In a stinging rebuke to elected officials who have failed to act on a recent court decision effectively legalizing the simple possession of marihuana in the province, Ontario Police Chiefs today issued an open letter to the citizens of Ontario warning that lives are being put at risk because of this inaction and called on Ontarians to demand action from their elected representatives. "At a time when the combined efforts of all levels of government seem to be focused on creating healthier lifestyles, preventing smoking, getting people off drugs, and prolonging life, we are shocked that law enforcement and the citizens of Ontario have been left in a state of confusion, uncertainty and danger over the laws relating to the Possession of Marihuana." said Chief Tom Kaye, President of the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP). A recent ruling by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice found that simple possession of marihuana is no longer an offence "known to law". While the decision is being appealed by the federal Department of Justice, Ontario Courts are already refusing to hear charges of possession of marihuana. The message from the court is disturbing, said Kaye, and leaves police with no legislative authority to fulfill their duties to serve and protect their communities when it comes to possession of marihuana. For example, he noted that the ruling means police officers can charge an individual who is drinking a beer while driving a motor vehicle but can do nothing if that individual drives while smoking a marihuana cigarette. Similarly, a 12-year- old cannot legally obtain a cigarette, but can possess and smoke marihuana. Kaye also noted that organized crime is heavily involved in marihuana grow operations and in the distribution of homegrown marihuana in Canada and overseas and that violence is often a result of these lucrative operations. The court ruling will only encourage this type of activity, said Kaye. The open letter was issued today as senior police leaders concluded the OACP's 52nd Annual General Meeting in Richmond Hill. The OACP is urging Ontarians to contact Prime Minister Jean Chretién, Premier Ernie Eves, and their local MPs and MPPS to demand an end to the state of legal limbo in which police officers find themselves in regarding the simple possession of marihuana in Ontario.June 18, 2003AN OPEN LETTER TO THE CITIZENS OF ONTARIO FROM THE ONTARIO ASSOCIATION OF CHIEFS OF POLICEAt a time when the combined efforts of all levels of government seem to be focused on creating healthier lifestyles, preventing smoking, getting people off drugs and prolonging life, we are shocked that law enforcement and the citizens of Ontario have been left in a state of confusion, uncertainty, and danger over the laws relating to the possession of marihuana. A judge of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice recently ruled that simple possession of marihuana is no longer an offence "known to law". This decision is being appealed by the federal Department of Justice, however, in the interim, Ontario courts are refusing to hear charges of possession of marihuana. While the federal government has been wrestling with the notion of decriminalizing the drug, the courts have, in effect, LEGALIZED the simple possession of cannabis in Ontario. The message created by this court decision is disturbing. Police have been left with NO legislative authority for action as they strive to fulfill their duties to serve and protect the citizens of Ontario:* Drinking a beer while driving a motor vehicle is an offense, while smoking a marihuana cigarette while driving is not! * A 12-year-old cannot legally obtain a commercially manufactured cigarette made of tobacco, but they can possess and smoke marihuana, even within a school environment! * While it is contrary to most city by-laws to smoke tobacco in public places, it is not an offence to smoke marihuana!Carnage caused by impaired drivers each year includes hundreds of victims killed and thousands injured. There is no satisfactory process to assist police to identify drivers under the influence of marihuana. Evidence clearly indicates that organized crime is heavily involved in marihuana grow operations in the neighbourhoods of our communities and in the distribution of homegrown marihuana in Canada and internationally. Violence in our communities is often a result of these lucrative operations. Our communities require immediate resolve to this issue. To ensure the safety of our communities, especially our children, the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police urges the Citizens of Ontario to demand a speedy resolution to this critical public safety issue by contacting the office of the Prime Minister, the Premier of Ontario, and their local Members of Parliament. Note: Public Safety At Risk Due to "Confusion, Uncertainty" Over Court Ruling.Premier Ernie Eves -- E-mail: webprem gov.on.caPrime Minister Jean Chretién -- E-mail: pm pm.gc.ca For further information: Chief Tom Kaye, President, OACP - (519) 373-2123; Supt. Ron Taverner, Chair, OACP Substance Abuse Committee - (416) 808-2314; Joe Couto, OACP Media Relations - (416) 270-0372Complete Title: Ontario Police Chiefs Denounce Government Inaction on Pot Law Source: Canada NewsWire (Canada)Published: June 18, 2003Copyright: 2003 Canada NewsWire Ltd. Contact: cnw newswire.caWebsite: http://www.newswire.ca/Related Articles & Web Site:Cannabis News Canadian Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htmJudge Allows Marijuana Ruling To Standhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16592.shtmlNo Laws Ban Possession of Marijuanahttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16321.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #19 posted by mayan on June 18, 2003 at 18:32:02 PT Music to the Ears "Kaye also noted that organized crime is heavily involved in marihuana grow operations and in the distribution of homegrown marihuana in Canada and overseas and that violence is often a result of these lucrative operations."Why is organized crime involved? Money. Why is cannabis worth so much money? Years of prohibition. Why is violence often a result? Money. Why is cannabis worth so much money? Years of prohibition.If this plant had been legal all of these years would there be any of these problems? The answer is obvious to any thinking individual. I never thought that the sound of squealing pigs could be so blissful! Music to the ears,indeed! Now go and fight real crime, you dolts.The way out is the way in... The Screwing of Cynthia McKinney: http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=16172Bush's 9/11 coverup? http://salon.com/news/feature/2003/06/18/911/index_np.html An interview with 9/11 antiwar author Don Paul: http://onlinejournal.com/Commentary/061303Feldman/061303feldman.html [ Post Comment ] Comment #18 posted by global_warming on June 18, 2003 at 17:32:37 PT: That Is Too Easy ....The police have been given a real break, here. No longer will they have to work overtime, filling out voluminous piles of reports, dealing with evidence, appear in court and generally ruin someone's life over a plant. They've been freed from that. You'd think they'd be grateful for lessening their already crushing work load and be able to re-assess their priorities. Maybe even catch some murderers, rapists and chiild molestors.But nooooo. They aren't grateful at all; they want to return to the same vicious cycle of ruining the lives of cannabists.Most of these cops, rcmp, and the dea, are mere faggots, frightened little children, afraid of any real justice, afraid of any real danger,..Let them try, to go after the real powerful drug trafficars, they will shit in their pants, they will retire early..End the "War On Drug Users", it is Imoral, Start the "War On Truth" Vote For Truth Vote For Justice Vote to end Ignorance and Brutallitygw [ Post Comment ] Comment #17 posted by JSM on June 18, 2003 at 15:33:01 PT Liars Folks, never forget...prohibitionists lie thru their teeth and will do anything in this "moral" crusade. That is why they are so dangerous. [ Post Comment ] Comment #16 posted by Sam Adams on June 18, 2003 at 12:45:31 PT Better pipe down, officer, those pinko-commie judges might just ban doughnuts if you make 'em angry enough...... [ Post Comment ] Comment #15 posted by kaptinemo on June 18, 2003 at 12:27:15 PT: TANSTAAFL, indeed Where's Manny, The Prof, Wyoh, and of course, Mycroft, when you need 'em? :)For those who haven't the foggiest, go read Heinlein's "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" for a stirring tribute to libertarianism and the origin of TANSTAAFL - as in "There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch."Science fiction, yes...but their fictional battle against a tyranny run by unthinkingly callous government comfortably distant from the deadly problems it creates is eerily similar. [ Post Comment ] Comment #14 posted by cloud7 on June 18, 2003 at 11:16:08 PT afterburner exactly right, I hadnt really considered just how often we read articles of police thinking of themselves as the law and not the enforcers of it when it comes to anything related to cannabis. [ Post Comment ] Comment #13 posted by afterburner on June 18, 2003 at 11:10:26 PT: Chief Kaye Do Your Real Duty: Stop Harrassing Pot. "The message from the court is disturbing, said Kaye, and leaves police with no legislative authority to fulfill their duties to serve and protect their communities when it comes to possession of marihuana."Chief Tom Kaye, President, OACP, you do Not have a duty to protect your community from small amounts of marijuana [sic] possession of less than 30 grams. The Ontario Superior Court has ruled that the former law regarding this former offense is Unconstitutional and invalid. Therefore, your job is to uphold the rest of the laws and stop trying to be a law-maker!ego transcendence follows ego destruction when the law-makers make laws that the people of Canada want and the courts will accept as Constitutional, and the law-enforcers enforce the legal and Constitutional laws. [ Post Comment ] Comment #12 posted by goneposthole on June 18, 2003 at 11:10:01 PT tanstaafl TANSTAAFLIT'S NOT FAIR I TELL YA [ Post Comment ] Comment #11 posted by goneposthole on June 18, 2003 at 10:59:22 PT poor babies A lot of crying and whining by the Ontario police chiefs.From the Toronto Hemp Company website:DON'T PLEAD GUILTY, DON'T ACCEPT A "DIVERSION." MARIJUANA POSSESSION IS LEGAL IN ONTARIO. IF YOU ARE FACING POSSESSION CHARGES, WHETHER YOU HAVE A LAWYER OR ARE REPRESENTING YOURSELF, BRING THIS DECISION INTO COURT AND YOUR CASE MUST BE DISMISSED OR STAYED. COURTS IN OTHER PROVINCES HAVE ALSO FOLLOWED THIS PRECEDENT, FINDING THAT IT IS UNFAIR FOR MILLIONS OF ONTARIANS TO BE TREATED DIFFERENTLY FROM THOSE IN THEIR PROVINCE. YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!!!"It is completely illegal for police in Ontario to take away your pot (as it is legal now), and I plan to oppose this policy at a rally at 4.20 p.m. in Toronto, in front of police HQ, on Thursday, June 19. I'll be smoking and possessing and since the police cannot arrest me, they can't take it away from me. Well, THEY CAN TRY. Who's with me in front of Toronto Police HQ on the 19th?" - Marc Emery, marc cannabisculture.com, www.cannabisculture.com Thursday, June 19, 2003, 4:20 p.m., Toronto Police HQ, 40 College Street, Toronto, Ontariohttp://www.torontohemp.com/have a nice day [ Post Comment ] Comment #10 posted by WolfgangWylde on June 18, 2003 at 10:42:59 PT Hey, Coppers... ...How 'bout a little cheese with your whine? [ Post Comment ] Comment #9 posted by FoM on June 18, 2003 at 09:39:07 PT Driving and Accidents Something has always bothered me about the excuse of driving while impaired. There are lots of people and lots of roads and high speed cars in our modern world. Just those facts will cause more accidents. Isn't that why we pay for insurance to pay when an accident happens? [ Post Comment ] Comment #8 posted by Ethan Russo MD on June 18, 2003 at 09:38:24 PT: Good Points Cloud 7 raises good points. There are people willing to push the envelope, such as Marc Emery with his planned event in Toronto.However, it behooves the majority of people to behave responsibly, and demonstrate that the sky will not fall if the status quo continues, and there is no possession law in Ontario. [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by cloud7 on June 18, 2003 at 09:35:13 PT conspiracy? I dont know if this is what the cops intended with this message (probably so), but by saying it is ok to smoke at school grounds and while driving they hope to get some people to follow through with these ideas. Then, when something like this happens they can cause a media ruckus about the school children smoking up during lunch break or stoned drivers barreling down the highway out of control. I feel like the dice are rolling on cannabis prohibition and we're just waiting for them to land. [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by lombar on June 18, 2003 at 09:19:56 PT Yeah Right.. "At a time when the combined efforts of all levels of government seem to be focused on creating healthier lifestyles, preventing smoking, getting people off drugs, and prolonging life, we are shocked that law enforcement and the citizens of Ontario have been left in a state of confusion, uncertainty and danger over the laws relating to the Possession of Marihuana." said Chief Tom Kaye, President of the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP). Oh? That's the governments efforts? What about all the cuts to services in Ontario? What about all the homeless people the government out there created? In B.C. the government has been busy transfering wealth upwards and privatising. The current aims of the various governments is to implement the will of the Bilderbergers world wide. They are only concerned with extending the lives of the 'valued' citizens.Well the law has been gone for awhile now, the sky has not fallen, the fabric of society is not (any more) shattered. The 'carnage' on the highways is no greater otherwise this guy would be harping about it. [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by kaptinemo on June 18, 2003 at 09:17:38 PT: By their works, ye shall know them... And by their foolish attempts to sway the public, antis are making it become even more obvious that their entire position is untenable.The police have been given a real break, here. No longer will they have to work overtime, filling out voluminous piles of reports, dealing with evidence, appear in court and generally ruin someone's life over a plant. They've been freed from that. You'd think they'd be grateful for lessening their already crushing work load and be able to re-assess their priorities. Maybe even catch some murderers, rapists and chiild molestors.But nooooo. They aren't grateful at all; they want to return to the same vicious cycle of ruining the lives of cannabists.Recently, while I was on hiatus, I read here of a case where a police candidate was refused employment because he was too intelligent. It would appear that some Canadian police hire from the same shallow end of the gene pool that some US police forces get theirs from, if they can't recognize that less work = good idea for them. Perhaps a month of the back-breaking labor I was forced to perform to earn my daily bread after the Feebs ruined me might teach them to have a better appreciation for a lightened workload. [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by Commonsense on June 18, 2003 at 08:56:26 PT What an irresponsible letter... I can't believe this idiot would have something like this published. Driving while stoned has not been legalized in Ontario, but this idiot has just told everyone it is perfectly legal to do so. Smoking pot on school grounds is also not allowed. But he's now told all twelve year old Ontarians that it is just fine to spark up a doobie at school. These idiots are always screaming about what message decriminalizing or legalizing and regulating marijuana would send, and now look at the messages this buffoon is sending. Unbelievable. [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by FoM on June 18, 2003 at 08:54:01 PT Jose Good come back and link! [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by Jose Melendez on June 18, 2003 at 08:49:27 PT I have a suggestion... Go fight real crime. ATTENTION LAW ENFORCEMENT: Criminalize Prohibition Here [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by darwin on June 18, 2003 at 08:45:32 PT He he he... This squeling makes me giggle! [ Post Comment ] Post Comment