CROFFORD WANTS TO 'PUSH THE LIMITS'

Community Resources and Employment Minister Joanne Crofford says she
will "push the limits" of the Child and Family Services Protection Act
by having police apprehend children under 18 years exposed to drug
abusing situations.

Crofford confirmed Wednesday that one young person under 18 years was
already apprehended by RCMP on Tuesday night and voluntarily agreed to
go into drug rehab -- the result of her new directive to social
workers that the minister admits is being implemented in the wake of
recent Saskatchewan Party demands for stiffer laws to force children
under 18 years into drug treatment programs.

"We're forcibly removing them ... What I can say, generally, is we are
testing such an (under) 18 (year-old),' said Crofford, adding that she
is prohibited from talking about the specifics of any such case.
"We'll be guided by some of what happens in that test as to what we do
next."

The minister admitted that the department still doesn't have authority
to detain such youth who refuse to go into drug rehab treatment, but
one of the things that will be carefully monitored is whether
"short-term apprehension" by police is actually "a more successful
intervention" than social workers simply talking to youth in drug
abusing situations.

The minister also would not comment on whether what the test case she
referred to was the same one the Opposition raised in the assembly
last week -- a 17-year-old living with a person her worried
grandmother and mother described as a known 40-year-old drug trafficker.

However, Sask. Party MLA June Draude told the assembly Wednesday that
police did apprehend the girl in question -- a 17-year-old described
as "Mary" -- Tuesday night and that she was taken to a hospital.

"She had been awake for many days and hadn't eaten days," Draude said.
"There were three social workers there. They fed her and she had agree
to voluntarily to go into a centre.

"Today is her grandmother's birthday. She said it was the very best
birthday present she could have ever had."

Draude also would not confirm that Mary was the test case to which
Crofford referred.

But even though the girl did agree to voluntarily go into treatment,
Draude said the situation is still unacceptable because the current
law that doesn't automatically force youths into drug rehab does not
allow the police to react quickly enough.

"When you need to (apprehend) that child, you have to do it now when
you know where the kid is," she said, adding that a big problem in
Mary's case was the way the 40-year-old drug trafficker kept moving
her around.

Asked about Crofford's concern about the lack of treatment facilities
other than detention facilities for youths with criminal records,
Draude said her preference was for the legislature to pass her bill
now and sort out any problems later.