LET'S LEGALIZE POT AND TAX IT

Whatever proposed solutions emerge later this month at the workshop to
develop a community drug strategy, action will inevitably hinge on
resources.

Early intervention initiatives, harm-reduction measures, treatment and
law enforcement all cost money and, as we all know, the war on drugs
is exceedingly expensive.

It has also become increasingly clear that on the policing end we are
often not getting value for our money.

Earlier this year, Statistics Canada noted that the drug crime rate
has risen 42% over the past decade and stands at a 20-year high,
driven mostly by increases in pot possession.

It is time to take a serious look at whether the enormous amounts of
money spent on enforcement could be redirected to other areas where we
might see some benefits.

And so, once again, I plead for a common-sense approach to the drug
war that will, in one fell swoop, deprive criminals of much of their
drug profits.

Legalize pot, tax it and use that revenue to fund treatment programs
for people addicted to truly dangerous drugs.

Our current approach is laughable, as was illustrated this week when
Richard Bate was fined $2,500 and given a nine-month conditional
sentence for growing marijuana.

Firefighters discovered $20,000 in plants in an Edmonton basement
after dousing a blaze that broke out when Bate and a friend were
cooking up hash on the stove.

Trivial fines are typical in grow-op cases. There's no deterrent, it
doesn't stop people from smoking pot and it's a waste of police time
and resources.

So why bother prosecuting for marijuana offences at all? Of the
approximately 90,000 police-reported drug incidents annually,
three-quarters are for cannabis. There is no benefit to continuing to
prohibit a drug that is relatively benign.

Instead, we should focus on prosecuting those who traffic in much more
harmful drugs such as cocaine, heroin and synthetic menaces like
crystal meth.

And we should impose lengthy sentences on dealers and routinely seize
their homes, vehicles and other assets under proceeds-of-crime
legislation.

As for the addicts, unless they've committed related crimes of
violence, forget about sending them to jail, where they can get all
the drugs they want.

On that note, Alberta is about to set up drug courts, as has been done
in Toronto and Vancouver. The model emphasizes treatment over
incarceration, with the goal of improving an addict's social stability
and reducing criminal behaviour associated with substance abuse.

Participants must follow a structured outpatient program and attend
counselling. Random drug tests are mandatory.

Drug treatment courts are also relatively cheap - $8,000 per offender
in Toronto, for instance, compared with $50,000 to incarcerate a drug
offender for a year.

Ottawa has pledged to back more of these initiatives and an Edmonton
committee studying the issue is about to apply for federal funding for
a drug court. Calgary probably won't be far behind.

As for the tax money we'd reap by legalizing marijuana, it could be
used to build more treatment facilities. The Alberta Alcohol and Drug
Abuse Commission has youth treatment centres in Edmonton and Calgary,
but none in the rest of the province. That's a perilous gap.

We could also use tax money from pot on a host of programs to prevent
kids from becoming addicted to drugs in the first place.

Recently, I wrote about a long-term home visitation program in
Edmonton that promotes positive parenting and child development. We
need such initiatives in every community.

The key is prevention, says veteran criminal lawyer Karl Wilberg. "By
the time the police and lawyers and judges come along," he says, "it's
way too late."