Police deal with shortage of trained drug experts

Calgary Police Service ready to handle new cannabis laws

When cannabis becomes legal in October, only 30 Calgary Police Service members will have completed a drug recognition certification that helps officers assess impairment levels in people.

Over the weekend, the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police said it is well short of its goal of having 2,000 officers trained as certified Drug Recognition Experts (DRE), with just 733 receiving the specialized training as of May nationwide.

Given the current rates of training, the association believes it will take more than five years to reach its benchmark of 2,000 officers receiving this certification.

In Calgary, the 30 officers who will be trained represent a ratio of one trained officer for every 40,000 people — a number just under the full capacity of McMahon Stadium.

The training — within the International Drug Evaluation and Classification Program — entails about three weeks of classroom work and a week of field certification in the United States.

A further 250 officers have been trained to conduct the standardized field sobriety test, which can be used to assess the impairment level, either from drugs or alcohol, in an individual.

But Sgt. Rick Butler, who heads the force’s alcohol and drug recognition unit, said while only a handful of the force’s 2,093 sworn members has the expertise to make assessments about a person’s drug impairment in the field, they ’re prepared for the looming new reality.

“CPS is ready now for the new legislation to be enacted,” he said.

“Certainly, we’re as prepared now as we’re going to be as far as DREs go. Unfortunately, (for assessing drug impairment) we don’t have a little magic box that you can blow into.”

Just three years ago, Calgary’s service was down to five certified DREs, who administer a 12-step evaluation, which includes biological testing to determine the type and level of impairment.

Currently, officers are able to use urine samples to help determine drug usage, but come the new year they’ll also be able to test blood, which can determine other types of drugs in a suspect’s system and potentially result in stiffer penalties.

Butler said the need for officers trained to spot drug-impaired drivers is vital, as jurisdictions that previously legalized marijuana also registered a spike in offences linked to drug impairment.

“We have seen an increase in collisions and charges from drugimpaired driving in each of the areas that have already brought in legislation,” he said. “We’re expecting to see that here as well.”

However, the service is still ramping up its training of officers to prepare for the impact of Bill C-45, the federal Cannabis Act, and Bill C-46, which will make changes to the Criminal Code.

Butler said the Calgary Police Service has already booked officers to take DRE courses in 2019 and 2020 and hopes to double the number of those certified in the next three to five years.

Meanwhile, the service is aiming to have one-third of frontline officers trained to administer the standardized field sobriety test in the next three years, while also making it part of standard training for new recruits.

Last March, the Calgary Police Commission, a civilian oversight body of the service, heard that part of the challenge in this area is the lack of federal funding for the training, which is essentially borne by police agencies already facing difficult budgetary decisions.

Butler added the certification classes are also in high demand, prompting the need to book them months in advance.

“To this point, we’ve not been in a situation where we can’t respond (to a call) with a DRE,” Butler said.

“We have enough resources in place that even if we double

We have seen an increase in collisions and charges from drug-impaired driving in ... the areas that have (legalized pot).

the amount of charges coming through, we’ll be able to handle it.”

— With files from The Canadian Press