DRUG ADDICTION BILL HAS TIES TO PARK

To force a crystal meth-addicted youth into a detox centre today, they must
have either committed a crime or become wards of the province.

A Conservative MLA is hoping to broaden the options for frustrated
parents and teens.

Red Deer-North MLA Mary-Anne Jablonski has introduced a private
member's bill, the Protection of Children Abusing Drugs (Bill 202),
which has just started its path through the Alberta
Legislature.

PEP strong motivator for MLA

A Sherwood Park support group, Parents Empowering Parents (PEP),
helped her write the legislation which, if passed, will let parents or
guardians involuntarily enter youth under the age of 18 into a detox
centre if a commissioner deems them in need of treatment.

Jablonski, who's chaired the Alberta Youth Secretariat for the past
four years, says PEP, other desperate parents, and even drug-addicted
young people prompted her to introduce the bill based on the same
legal principles as Alberta's groundbreaking Protection of Children
Involved In Prostitution Act.

"I think PEP was one of the first motivators," said Jablonski, who met
the local parents at a meth conference.

Alberta has a few private centres that can treat drug-addicted young
people but the youth must go voluntarily, and their parents need the
financial means to send them.

AADAC also offers community-based programs, but once again, it's a
voluntary form of treatment.

Parents desperate to help

"Under the age of 18, parents have the responsibility to keep their
kids safe, but they need the ability to do that," said Audrey
Bjornstad, a founder of PEP.

The act will let parents enter their children in a safe house for five
days, during which time an expert would assess them to determine if
they're addicted and "at-risk."

If they need help, the youth can volunteer for treatment. But if they
refuse, their parents can have them secured in a treatment centre for
up to 90 days.

"This is huge," said Bjornstad. "We have all dealt with this. They're
incapable of making the decision while using drugs."

She points out the legislation has many checks and balances in that
it's a court process, it involves a legal assessment, and the youth is
offered the option of volunteering for treatment. Even if they're
secured in a centre, they can choose to move to voluntary,
community-based treatment as they recover.

Foundation the prostitution law

The bill is based on the child prostitution law because the courts
have upheld that legislation and Jablonski also expects challenges to
Protection of Children Abusing Drugs.

As for treatment centres, which aren't in large supply, because the
legislation wouldn't kick in until July 2006, Bjornstad says the
province has lots of time to build some.

Jablonski is confident the bill will get a good ride through the
Legislature, but she says it needs public support.

"I'm relying on parents to come forward," she said. "Let their MLAs
know that they want them to support it."

Bjornstad has started a petition (available at Norm-Ed Rehabilitation
Centre on the northeast side of Franklin's Inn) to offer another
avenue of support for Bill 202.