NEW LEGISLATION TAKES AIM AT DRUGGY DRIVERS

Federal legislation designed to make it easier on police to catch
drivers under the influence of illegal drugs is welcome and overdue,
said Montreal police Station 1 Cmdr. Michel Lecompte.

"My one comment was it's about time," he said, adding the new
legislation will allow police to continue to impress upon motorists
the importance of being sober and safe on the road.

"I still remember the '50s and '60s, at Christmas, everybody used to
go get drunk at parties and take their cars, but times have changed
with the increasing deterrents for drunk driving. Today, (Station 1
police) hold 15 to 20 different operations every year. It's a
different world now," he said.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced last week his minority
government would soon introduce legislation that will allow police
more tools to detect drug-impaired drivers, increase penalties for
drug-impaired driving, strengthen presumptions of breath and blood
tests and promote awareness about drunk driving with partners like
Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD).

"Our government recognizes the need to target drug-impaired driving.
We are prepared to take action to prevent future drug-impaired
incidents. The objective of the proposed legislation is to avoid
reckless deaths and injuries of innocent people," Harper said while
attending the launch of MADD's annual Red Ribbon campaign in
Kitchener, Ont. last Thursday. "In fact, we hope to make drug-impaired
riving as socially unacceptable as drunk driving has become amongst
adults and teens alike," the PM added.

Lecompte, a longtime anti-drug crusader, agreed.

"Anything the government can do is welcome. It's a start, because we
know we will never be able to stop them all. There will always be the
minority of the population who will get drunk and drive, or borrow a
car if they don't have their own. We can stop it 99.9 per cent,
though. Anything they can do in government to help us on the street is
welcome," he said.

MADD West Island president Graham Doughty said the best way to stop
drivers from getting behind the wheel under the influence of anything
- - illegal drugs or alcohol - is to increase deterrents.

"The best way to stop people from doing something is to motivate them
not to. Hopefully, this will make people think twice before they get
behind the wheel and drive when they are under the influence of
anything," said Doughty, who founded the West Island chapter of MADD
in 2004. Doughty's daughter Amber and friend Dahlia Sinclair were
struck and killed by a driver Doughty believes was drunk, on Cartier
Avenue in Pointe Claire in 2000.

He added that the extra tools for determining if a driver is under the
influence of drugs will help police keep roadways safe.

"The fact is, in this day and age,m there are probably as many 'drug
drivers' on the road as there are drunk drivers and the police will
now be able to get them off the road easier, and that's good for
everybody," he said.