DECRIMINALIZING MARIJUANA DOESN'T LEAD TO INCREASED USE: STUDY

OTTAWA -- Decriminalizing marijuana does not lead to increased use, says a
new U.S. study published in the American Journal of Public Health.

The researchers also found no evidence to back up claims that marijuana is
a "gateway drug" that leads to use of harder drugs.

The conclusions came from interviewing marijuana smokers in Amsterdam,
where marijuana can be legally purchased in licensed 'coffee houses,' and
San Francisco, where people who are caught smoking pot can receive a
criminal record.

"Our findings do not support claims criminalization reduces cannabis use
and that decriminalization increases cannabis use," says the study by a
University of California sociology professor and two professors with the
Centre for Drug Research at University of Amsterdam.

Although the findings are a bit of a boon to the Canadian government's plan
to relax marijuana laws, a bill to decriminalize possession of less than 15
grams is in jeopardy and may not pass should Prime Minister Paul Martin
call an election later this month as expected. The bill has been stuck in
its final stages for more than a month because the Conservatives, who
oppose the legislation, have proposed numerous amendments in an attempt to
block its passage.

"We'll have to see how it goes next week," said Mario Lague, communications
director in the Prime Minister's Office. "We would like to see it move
forward and now we're caught with this."

If the bill clears the House of Commons, it would still have to go to the
Senate for final approval, where it could receive a rough ride because the
upper chamber has already issued a report calling for complete legalization
rather than decriminalization.

Critics of the proposed legislation warn it will lead to increased use,
threaten public health and create a stepping-stone toward more dangerous,
harder drugs.

In the U.S. study, the researches interviewed about 500 randomly selected
marijuana users who reported that they had smoked pot at least 25 times.
The questions included their age when they started smoking marijuana, how
often they smoked, their level of intoxication and their use of other
illicit drugs.

The researchers, who say it is the first comparative study examining
whether criminalization constrains drug use or decriminalization increases
it, reported striking similarities between marijuana users in the two cities.

The mean age when they started smoking was 16, and their mean age when they
started using marijuana regularly was 19. The study also found that the
majority of users smoked similar amounts, even during their peak years of
usage, and the vast majority in both cities did not exceed 28 grams per
month. That is about 28 cigarettes, depending on how they are rolled.

The average age of interviewees was 31 in Amsterdam and 34 in San Francisco.

Sophie Roux, a spokeswoman for the Canadian Police Association, which
opposes marijuana decriminalization, said there are also studies showing
that relaxed laws lead to increased drug use.

The Canada Safety Council cited the latest study in a letter Thursday to
Justice Minister Irwin Cotler.

"The study casts doubt on the idea that criminalizing is an effective
deterrent -- or a wise director for public policy," said president Emile
Therien.

The council opposes a new bill to change the Criminal Code to make it
easier for police to nab people who take drugs and drive. The group would
rather see licence suspensions for people who are caught driving under the
influence of drugs.