FEDS TACKLE TOKING AND DRIVING WITH NEW IMPAIRED DRIVING RULES

Police will have the right to demand a blood or urine sample from
people they think are stoned while driving starting the day after Canada Day.

Bill C-2, the Tackling of Violent Crime Act, will come into force July
2. It will toughen existing impaired driving laws in what some people
praise as a step forward and others criticize as infringing on
personal rights.

"It pre-emptively prevents me from driving at all," said medicinal
marjiuana user Russell Barth.

Barth concedes that some inexperienced, teenage pot smokers shouldn't
be behind the wheel, but he fears the changes will lead to police
profiling drivers with "unconventional haircuts."

"I look like Jesus," said the hirsute 39-year-old.

"The cops are going to take one look at me and say, 'I'm getting this
hippie to walk the line.' "

Barth calls the changes "reefer madness" based on questionable
science, which demonizes marijuana.

"That is so invasive," he said.

'Long Time Coming'

Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) spokesman Greg Thomson, whose
18-year-old son Stan was one of five teens killed in a drug and
alcohol-related crash nine years ago, considers the changes a "huge
victory."

"It's bittersweet," he said.

He described as "deadly" the perception among young people that
marijuana is a drug that doesn't cause significant impairment.

"Unfortunately, in society, we need legal deterrents," he said. "This
has been a long time coming."

As of Wednesday, drivers caught under the influence of alcohol and/or
drugs face a maximum life sentence if they cause death, and a maximum
10-year sentence if they cause bodily harm with a blood alcohol
content over .08%.

They will be charged with a criminal offence if they refuse or fail to
comply with a demand to provide physical sobriety tests or bodily
fluid samples. Tougher mandatory penalties include a $1,000 fine for a
first impaired driving conviction, a sentence of 30 days in jail for a
second offence and 120 days in jail for a third offence.

Impaired drivers will face an 18-month maximum penalty on summary
conviction compared to the current six-month maximum.

Niagara Falls Conservative MP Rob Nicholson said the changes prove the
Harper government is delivering on its pledge to crack down on crime.

"As of July 2, if you are caught driving impaired, you will be held
fully accountable for your actions," he said.

Thomson hopes that years from now society will regard toking and
driving the way drunk driving is considered after 20 years of
education and enforcement.