cannabisnews.com: Pot Plan No Ticket to Fly, Chiefs Say!





Pot Plan No Ticket to Fly, Chiefs Say!
Posted by FoM on August 27, 1999 at 05:52:39 PT
By Rob Granatstein, Sun Media
Source: Edmonton Sun
TORONTOA proposal by Canada's police chiefs' to ticket those found with a little pot instead of charging them with a criminal offence is a step in the right direction, but not good enough for some people.
"It would be better than what they are doing now - saddling people with criminal records," said Jim Wakeford, one of two people in Canada legally permitted to use marijuana for medicinal purposes.The resolution, announced by the chiefs this week at the end of the Canadian Association of Police Chiefs conference in Hamilton, calls for alternative ways of charging people for possession of small amounts of pot.And that's not the same as legalizing cannabis, the chiefs emphasize."We're against the legalization of all currently illicit drugs," said Brockville Police Chief Barry King. He said the chiefs will be calling on the federal government to act on establishing alternative methods of justice.The chiefs believe ticketing those with small amounts of pot will not only help ease the backlog in the courts, but will offer more flexibility for the police to recommend rehabilitation, counselling or other alternatives.Lawyer Alan Young, who frequently defends people charged with the possession of small amounts of pot, agrees with Wakeford that reducing the conviction to a summary offence isn't enough."It's extremely short-sighted to replace one mode of prohibition with another," Young said."However, I welcome any progessive step, and the ticketing regime is what has been used in all jurisdictions that have formally decriminalized." They include some U.S. states and parts of Australia. Pubdate: Friday, August 27, 1999 
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Comment #1 posted by m.j.franklin on August 28, 1999 at 10:25:01 PT:
comment: pot plan no ticket...
I hope every one who read this article aprecciated the value of the issue addressed. Legalization is a big step from where we stand now...but taking steps toward decriminalization are more realistic, as it would decrease taxpayers' cash getting spent on people doing manditory minimums for relatively small amounts of pot. Wouldn't you get a ticket than get arrested? Either way you are ultimately still getting caught, fined and possilbly sentenced to X hours of counseling or what not. If a lot of people come together on this cause, the result could surprise a lot of others. 
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