PROPOSED LAWS ADDRESS GROW-OPS, METH LABS

New criminal legislation is going after organized crime, marijuana
growers, meth lab cooks and youth offenders who commit serious crimes.

Last week, federal Justice Minister Rob Nicholson, who was in Langley
two weeks ago, introduced legislation targeting B.C.'s growing drug
cultivation problem.

Amendments to the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, which currently
doesn't contain any minimum penalties, would create mandatory prison
sentences for crimes that include trafficking for or by organized
crime or if a weapon or violence is involved.

Mandatory prison sentences will also be for production of illegal
drugs that pose a potential security, health or safety hazard to
children or a residential community.

This part of the new legislation will help send the right message to
neighbours who have to live beside dangerous meth labs that could blow
up at any time.

"When neighbours see the people who had the meth lab back living in
the house, it sends the wrong message," said Nicholson in an earlier
interview with The Times.

The legislation proposes increasing maximum penalties for drug
production from seven to 14 years, and it toughens penalties for the
trafficking of date-rape drugs like GHB and flunitrazepam.

B.C. has one of the highest rates of drug production in the country,
with the incidence of grow-ops at nearly three times the national
average according to 2004 statistics, said South Surrey-White
Rock-Cloverdale MP Russ Hiebert. Additionally, the pace of meth labs
in B.C. is spiking at a rate consistent with the rate of marijuana
cultivation in the early 1990s.

Nicholson has also introduced legislation to make youth more
accountable for crimes.

"Criminal behaviour must have meaningful consequences, whether the
offender is an adult or a youth," said Nicholson.

Among some of the proposals is one to detain youths before their trial
and make bail more difficult if they pose a danger.

"These amendments to the Youth Criminal Justice Act are intended to
help hold young lawbreakers accountable to their victims and their
community, and instil within them a sense of responsibility for their
delinquent or criminal behaviour."

On Wednesday, Nicholson also announced proposed amendments to the
Criminal Code to crack down on identity theft. If passed, the bill
would give police extra tools to catch those in possession of people's
identity.

Currently, using someone else's information to commit a forgery or
make fake identification is against the law.

But it's not illegal to collect, possess or traffic other people's
identity documents, such as passports, credit cards and driver's
licences, as long as the information is not used to commit a crime.

This glitch in the law stops police being able to charge suspects in
possession of stolen ID.

The proposed legislation would carry maximum five-year prison
sentences.