POT POSSESSION CHARGES CLOG COURTS, LAWYER

EDMONTON - While Edmonton lawyers complain that marijuana possession
charges are clogging courtrooms, neighbouring British Columbia has
turned its attention to bigger drug offenders.

On Monday, Justice Canada stayed roughly 4,000 marijuana possession
charges laid in a 26-month span because of a legal loophole in
medicinal marijuana legislation.

Nearly a quarter of those charges, 890 of them, were laid in Edmonton.
That's more than all of British Columbia, at 717.

While Edmonton Police spokesman Wes Bellmore said he wasn't surprised
at the numbers because of the city's "huge drug problem," British
Columbia RCMP weren't surprised either -- because of their selective
enforcement.

"Our efforts have been strategically put on the higher levels of the
drug trade, the grow operations," said Cpl. Dale Carr of the RCMP's E
Division.

Carr said that selective approach has been beneficial, allowing RCMP
in B.C. to more effectively combat organized crime and the drug trade.

"We don't feel it's necessary to have a zero tolerance on possession.
You don't necessarily have to go to the court system to get someone to
understand that possession of a controlled substance is illegal."

In Edmonton, the court system is being used too much to prove that
point, said Rod Gregory, president of the Criminal Trial Lawyers'
Association.

He believes marijuana use would be better treated as a health issue
than a criminal one. "It's a tremendous expense to the criminal
justice system. Certainly, there are better ways to use the courts'
time."

Gregory said he doesn't think Edmonton has a large enough drug problem
to wa rrant so many charges, a sentiment echoed by the Council on Drug
Abuse.

"I've never heard anything that suggested Edmonton had that prevalent
a problem," said Jim McCoubrey, president of the council.

Marliss Taylor, who works with drug users as part of the Streetworks
program, agrees. "I don't think drug use in Edmonton is worse than
anywhere else. It's a problem everywhere."

Edmonton Police Det. Clayton Sach points out that it isn't just
possession charges that are being laid in the city. He's part of the
four-man Green Team, two of whom are RCMP, who tackle marijuana grow
operations.

Since 2001, the Green Team has shut down 225 operations and seized
49,388 plants.

Even with those numbers, Sach lamented the lack of resources -- a
concern heard in the past from Chief Bob Wasylyshen -- that he said
prevents police from shutting down as many operations as they would
like.

Although Sach said the numerous charges are due to tough enforcement,
he doesn't believe police are making a concentrated effort to crack
down on possession. He's even skeptical about how much good such charges do.

"Something like that isn't going to deter you," he said. "It's like
getting a liquor ticket."

Sach said that a small number of the possession charges could have
originally been trafficking charges that were reduced.

He points to one case where a man was found with two baggies of pot
and a lot of empty baggies that could have been for marijuana
distribution.

"In a perfect world, we could convict him," Sach said. But the charge
was lessened to possession to make a conviction more likely.

Laying marijuana possession charges is also a costly measure for
Edmontonians, said Gregory, because such a trial is not covered by
legal aid.

The maximum penalty for marijuana possession in Canada is six months
in jail and a fine of up to $1,000.