EMERY HANDOVER DELAY CRITICIZED

U.S. officials say they're irritated by the slow speed of Canada's
response to extradition requests.

And they say a prime example is the case of Vancouver marijuana seed
king Marc Emery, who faces a request for extradition to the U.S. to
face charges of marijuana distribution and money laundering.

"This 'Prince of Pot' -- Emery -- he still hasn't had his first
extradition hearing," said Jeff Sullivan, criminal prosecution chief
for the U.S. Attorney office in western Washington State.

"It's those kinds of things that are frustrating to us."

Sullivan told Canadian and U.S. mayors gathered at the recent Cascadia
Mayors Council in Surrey that the U.S. is much faster than Canada in
handing over wanted suspects.

The conference also heard an appeal for greater information sharing
between Canadian and U.S. police.

Sullivan said senior U.S. officials are prepared to share all American
criminal record information with the RCMP, in exchange for a similar
flow of data on Canadians south to U.S. forces.

Langley City Mayor Peter Fassbender predicted any move to share
Canadian records would be contested, but said he has no problem with
the proposal.

"If you're not doing anything wrong, you should have nothing to be
afraid of," Fassbender said.

"If you are doing something wrong, I want to make sure we have every
tool in place for our enforcement officers to be able to catch you.

"If that means sharing information, fine. I don't mind the U.S.
authorities knowing that I exist and where I live, because I have
nothing to be afraid of."