SASK. HIGH ON DRUG CRIMES LIST

Province Ranks Second In Nation; Saskatoon Sixth

Drug offences in Saskatchewan have almost doubled in the last decade, and
the province now has the second-highest rate of drug-related offences in
the country, according to Statistics Canada.

The province had 351 drug-related incidents per 100,000 people in 2002,
Statistics Canada says in a new report based on police reports.

Only B.C. had a higher rate of drug-related offences, with 544 incidents
per 100,000 people.

The national average is 295 and includes possession, trafficking and
production offences related to cannabis, cocaine, heroin and other drugs.

Saskatchewan also had the second-highest increase in the number of drug
offences, with a 97 per cent increase since 1993.

In all, the police-reported crime rate is at a 20-year high, up by an
estimated 42 per cent since the early 1990s.

There were 92,000 drug offences in Canada in 2002, the most recent year for
the study.

Broken down by city, Saskatoon has the sixth-highest rate among census
metropolitan areas with 306 drug offences per 100,000 people.

That places it ahead of larger cities like Toronto, Calgary and Winnipeg,
which had rates of 211, 206 and 200 respectively. Regina's rate was 198.

Rural Saskatchewan was even higher, which shows that police across the
province are taking drug offences seriously, according to Cpl. Brian Jones
of the RCMP. "(It) would seem to indicate that our resources are being used
effectively to detect it."

In recent years, society has been moving towards a more restrictive
attitude when dealing with drug use and related offences, said Michelle
Robson of add iction services with Saskatoon Health Region.

As a result, the justice system is used more often than the medical system
to deal with the problem, she said.

Staff Sgt. Blair Ritchie of the Saskatoon Police Service's integrated drug
unit said he isn't sure why Saskatoon is so high on the list, but he says
that the service is very aware of drug offences.

In addition to the integrated drug unit, which has officers from the RCMP
and city police, patrolling officers also keep an eye out for drug-related
crimes in Saskatoon. That may not always be the case in other cities,
Ritchie suggested.

"In some areas they're just short of people and they just don't have time
to enforce it, I guess," he said.

"We've had some fairly major investigations we've done over the years and
we have lots of criminal intelligence as to drug activity and whatnot."

When asked, Ritchie said the presence of gangs in the province may account
for some of the offences.

"Gangs are there to make money," he said. "Any time you got criminal
activity, drugs are going to be involved, that's a pretty safe statement to
make."

A report by the Criminal Intelligence Service Canada last August found that
Saskatchewan had Asian gangs selling drugs to other gangs, such as
aboriginal gangs, involved in street-level trafficking of drugs like
cocaine, marijuana and methamphetamines.

The Statistics Canada does not report specifically on crystal
methamphetamines, use of which has seen an increase recently in Saskatoon
and Regina. Across the country, most incidents were cannabis possession
offences.

"I don't think drug use is any worse in Saskatoon (than) it is anywhere
else in Canada," said Ritchie, noting that different police services often
have different reporting methods.

"Next year, who knows, we may be at the bottom of the list," he said.

Jones said there should be more educational programs about the dangers of
drug use.

"It doesn't mean that drugs have become any safer or healthier for people
to use," Jones said.

Young adults and adolescents have the highest rates for drug-related
offences, according to Statistics Canada.

Robson said younger generations have a more open attitude towards using a
variety of drugs.

"This generation too is raised by baby boomers, primarily, who have more
experience with multi-drug use, whereas baby boomers' parents had more
experience with alcohol-only use," she said.