ROLL OUT THE PARDONS

On Wednesday, Canada became the second, and largest, country to legalize recreational cannabis. On the same day, the federal government followed up on its sea-changing new law by announcing it would also introduce legislation that makes it easier to obtain a criminal pardon for past convictions of simple possession.

At any other time in modern history, such a move would have been as momentous as legalized weed itself. Today, in this new era where Canadians can visit a government-sanctioned corner store and buy weed as they would a bottle of wine, the news seemed anticlimactic. It was overshadowed by reports of pot shops opening to enthusiastic crowds.

The Liberal plan to waive the fee and the waiting period for criminal pardons of cannabis possession is no minor footnote for those convicted under the previous law, now acknowledged by the government itself to be archaic and overreaching.

The pardon legislation would affect some 500,000 Canadians, which according to nonprofit group Campaign for Cannabis Advocacy, is how many people have been busted for simple pot possession. More than 17,000 were charged in 2016 alone.

Until Wednesday, simple possession of up to 30 grams of marijuana has been punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 and six months in jail.

Those criminal records are a black mark that can seriously hinder the offender’s ability to travel abroad, find a job or home, obtain child custody and they handicap one’s future dealings with the justice system. It’s a disproportionately harsh and enduring punishment for a law no longer on the books and for an act now considered as banal as carrying a six-pack of beer.

Worse, recent journalistic and academic investigations found the possession law was not administered evenly. In some jurisdictions, data suggest police were far more likely to mete out possession charges for Indigenous and black Canadians than for white people.

For committing such a minor and a victimless crime, those with possession records applying for a pardon must wait five years after the conviction is handed down and pay $631. Both requirements seem unnecessarily draconian, especially viewed in the light of legalization.

With inconsistent enforcement, widespread usage, increased public acceptance, and the advent of legalized medical marijuana, cannabis has existed in a legal grey area for years. It’s time that all the laws around it fall in line with the times.

Local editorials are the consensus opinion of the Journal’s editorial board, comprising Mark Iype, Dave Breakenridge, Sarah O’Donnell and Bill Mah.