CANNABIS CHALLENGES
Regional police getting ready for impending legalization.
The Cape Breton Regional Police Service is attempting to prepare for the impending legalization of cannabis but it’s unclear how much it will cost to put the necessary supports in place, Chief Peter McIsaac says.
In a report to the board of police commissioners Tuesday, McIsaac outlined some of the measures that the service is taking to prepare for the change. The federal government is set to legalize the recreational use of cannabis next year but it hasn’t been explained yet how it will be regulated and distributed. While the law will be federal, it will be left to the provinces and municipalities to regulate it, he said.
McIsaac said there will be a significant impact on provinces and municipalities although exactly what it will mean is not yet known.
“It’s going to be cultivated within your community, it’s going to be regulated, it’s going to be inspected, it’s going to be consumed, so the municipalities are the ones who are going to be dealing with it on a daily level,” he said.
“Whether (the provinces are) going to regulate it like alcohol and tobacco and they’re going to control it, I suspect that’s going to happen, but nobody knows. But the bottom line is, this stuff is going to be within the municipality.”
McIsaac attended a symposium in May conducted by agencies including the Union of Nova Scotia Municipalities and the Nova Scotia Health Authority aimed at preparing municipalities for the legislation, due to go into effect July 1, 2018.
Legislation will control the production, distribution, sale and possession of cannabis but McIsaac said there will be issues related to youth as well as public health and safety created in the process.
Drug-impaired driving is expected to increase with easier access to cannabis, McIsaac said. There are currently no set limits to quantify impairment related to drugs, he said.
Roadside devices are currently being tested but will only determine the presence of a drug, not the level of impairment.
“What the roadside screening device will do is give reasonable grounds to believe that a driver is drug-impaired and the ability to demand further evaluation or a blood sample, which is a very expensive process on its own,” McIsaac said.
There are currently four members of the regional force trained as drug recognition experts. McIsaac said accessing the necessary training is very expensive and currently requires sending an officer to the United States. The service is lucky to have one officer a year attend the training, he said, adding they could probably use at least a dozen trained officers, with three to four available for each platoon.
He warned that the additional time associated with those processes could result in the police service seeking additional members. McIsaac said the current approach to cannabis isn’t working, noting young people can buy a joint easier today than they can purchase cigarettes.
He added the legislation will also reduce the role of organized crime in the distribution of cannabis
Until the legislation is in place, current laws involving the possession and trafficking of marijuana will be enforced, McIsaac said.