HALIFAX POLICE CHIEF PROPOSES DRUG COURT

So many of Halifax's crimes are committed by drug addicts that a
special court is needed to handle their cases, the city's police chief
says.

"When you see repeated robberies and repeated thefts from motor
vehicles, they're feeding a habit," Chief Frank Beazley said in an
interview at city hall this week.

"So if you can get them the services that they need, if they can get
away from the addiction, you'd reduce crime."

The chief's endorsement of a Halifax drug court comes after a plan for
public safety, stemming from the Mayor's Roundtable on Violence held
in late 2007, was presented to regional council on Tuesday.

Chief Beazley said that first and foremost among the plan's 64
recommendations are hiring a new public safety officer and creating a
new 32-officer division in the coming weeks. But no new money will be
spent staffing the unit as officers already working in crime
prevention will be used.

Other initiatives, like the drug court, could be rolled out in the
near future, he said.

The province is already planning for a mental health court to open on
April 1. Staff are being hired and a courtroom in the Dartmouth
Justice Centre is being retrofitted.

The drug court would be a spinoff of that endeavour, Chief Beazley
said.

"What we've talked about in our committees is, 'Can it be more than
just a mental health court?' " he said.

But talks on funding still need to be held, he said, and the money
should come from the federal government because drug crimes fall under
the federal Controlled Drugs and Substances Act.

Provincial Justice Minister Cecil Clarke told regional council he has
already had discussions with his federal counterpart and will return
to Ottawa at some point to further those talks and address other
justice-related issues.

"With the drug court, it really allows us to deal with those types of
issues, the impacts, the types of conditions, the programs," Mr.
Clarke said at city hall on Tuesday.

"Otherwise, they get clustered into the overall system."

The objective, Chief Beazley said, would be to run a "two-tiered"
mental health and drug court system, along with regular court. He even
envisions a domestic violence court in the foreseeable future. "But
you have to take one at a time."

Specialized courts already exist in Saint John, N.B., Ottawa and
Toronto, he said.

"If there is a mental health issue or a drug addiction issue - and
with their consent and the court's consent - you can take them out of
the mainstream court system and put them into these specialty courts,"
Chief Beazley said.

The focus then becomes the person and his or her problems, he
said.

"So it's about getting them housing again, or addiction services. It's
about working with them."

But the chief said it's not the proverbial slap on the
wrist.

"You hold them accountable," he said. "They come back to the court
weekly, or biweekly (every two weeks), and they have to tell the judge
that they've attended counselling, met with their doctor or admit
whether they've used drugs."

Coun. Mary Wile (Clayton Park West), a member of the Mainland North
Drug Awareness Committee, said Wednesday that treatment is key.

"I think sometimes people should be directed to take a treatment
program, because it sometimes is beyond their own will to do something
like that," she said.

But Ms. Wile is concerned that there wouldn't be enough drug treatment
centres to handle the number of people needing them.

"We'd need to ensure that the facilities are there so that people get
the help they need," she said.

Ms. Wile said the drug awareness committee tries to help people by
preventing problems from starting.

"Our goal is to get into the school systems to talk to the kids about
smoking, alcohol and drugs," she said.

"It's focusing on our youth, seeing if they will reconsider before
they progress any further on drugs."