VOLUNTEERS DRINK TO HELP COPS

New Sobriety Testing Comes To York

Several volunteersstepped up to the bar in the name of public-police
co-operation earlier this week.

Under police supervision, volunteers consumed varying types and
amounts of alcohol to assist York Regional Police officers taking part
in new standardized field sobriety testing yesterday and Tuesday,
aimed at helping police get more alcohol and drug-impaired drivers off
the streets.

York is the first police force in Ontario to receive the specialized
training, Staff-Sgt. Tom Carrique said.

And while the training does not include technological improvements
with breathalyser equipment, it will provide officers with better
skills to assess drivers who may be impaired, Staff-Sgt. Carrique said.

With impending legislation to decriminalize marijuana, York police
took the initiative from colleagues in the United States to provide
training.

"It teaches officers how to rule out alcohol. (Standardized sobriety
testing) gives officers heightened awareness of those impaired by
alcohol and in identifying those impaired by other means," he said.

Chief Armand La Barge has also long lamented the fact York officers
and, indeed, police across the country, are ill-equipped to deal with
what he predicts will be a spike in drug-impaired offences, should
federal marijuana decriminalization legislation gain approval.

Lawmakers in the U.S. have given police power to demand blood or urine
samples to detect drugs, but in Canada no such law exists, "We know
people are consuming drugs and driving," Staff-Sgt. Carrique said.

In 2002, for the first time since the RIDE campaign began, York
officers charged more motorists with drug offences than drinking and
driving.

Last year, officers charged 12 motorists in York Region with
possession of a controlled substance at RIDE spotchecks. So far this
year, there have been 13 such charges laid, Staff-Sgt. Carrique said.

The discrepancy is attributable to a period when pot was
decriminalized in 2003, thereby preventing officers from laying
charges for possession of the drug, Staff-Sgt. Carrique said.

Last December, the Supreme Court overturned the decision to
decriminalize marijuana by the governing Liberals, making possession
of the drug illegal once again. The Liberal government's plan has
called for fines, rather than criminal penalties, such as jail time
and a criminal record, for anyone caught with a small amount of
marijuana. Meanwhile, police hope to train 50 officers this year, with
the goal of having at least one officer trained with additional
sobriety skills on the road at all times, proving impaired-by-drug
charges in court remains an uphill battle, he said.

"For a full-fledge drug recognition program, legislation is required
to successfully prosecute" drug-impaired drivers, Staff-Sgt. Carrique
said.

The two-day training session ended yesterday and police expect 27
officers will be putting their new skills into use by tomorrow.

All volunteers were driven home by officers at the conclusion of each
session.