MANITOBA TARGETS DRUG-IMPAIRED DRIVERS

MANITOBA will be the first province in Canada to bring in a law that lets
police take drug-impaired drivers off the road.

Justice Minister Gord Mackintosh said the changes will allow police to
administer roadside drug tests to drivers suspected of being high on
marijuana, cocaine or prescription medication. Such testing is not
recognized under current law in Manitoba.

Those who fail the tests under the planned changes will have their driver's
licences suspended for 24 hours or more, depending on the circumstances.

Mackintosh also said it's possible that offenders may also have their
vehicles impounded for up to a month, although that it still being considered.

"This is overdue," Mackintosh said yesterday. "The police need legal tools
to detect, apprehend and charge for drug-impaired driving."

Details of the amendments to the Highway Traffic Act, three years in the
making, are still being completed, but Mackintosh said they will be
introduced in next month's legislative session and should be law by the
spring. Mackintosh said that at the same time, Ottawa is considering
toughening up the Criminal Code of Canada to include driving while under
the influence of drugs and refusing to submit body fluids for testing.

Mackintosh said the issue of drug-impaired driving came up last week in
Quebec when provincial justice ministers met their federal counterpart,
Federal Justice Minister Martin Cauchon.

Because the federal Liberals are intent on decriminalizing possession of
small amounts of marijuana -- Mackintosh calls it the "dope bill" --
provincial justice ministers have asked for tougher penalties for those who
"toke and drive."

In Manitoba, the administrative changes mean drug-impaired driving will
carry the same penalties as drunk driving.

It also closes a loophole in the Highway Traffic Act by letting police, for
the first time, demand a suspected drug-impaired driver perform a
standardized field sobriety test. If the driver fails three short tests to
display proper mental and physical co-ordination, the officer can revoke
that person's driving privileges for 24 hours or more. A driver who refuses
to take the test can be charged with refusal, and then face the same
consequences.

Quebec and British Columbia have similar laws, but they do not give police
the power to take a driver's licence on the spot, even if the suspect shows
obvious signs of drug impairment. The exact wording of the new provincial
law is still being considered, but whatever the final product, it's being
met with approval from police and Mothers Against Impaired Driving.

"At last our officers will have an additional tool to see whether a
motorist is drug-impaired and get them off the road," said Winnipeg police
Const. Andy Golebioski, who heads up impaired driving initiatives for city
police.

"This justice minister is genuinely concerned about impaired driving and
the safety of all Manitobans."

"This will allow the Crown to prosecute drug-impaired drivers," MADD
Winnipeg president Rod Sudbury said.

Under the proposed Criminal Code amendments, police will get the power to
demand a blood, saliva or urine sample to test for drug use. A positive
finding would lead to an impaired driving charge, and refusal to take the
test would have its own criminal sanction.

The upcoming changes to the Criminal Code would essentially mirror current
penalties for alcohol impairment and refusal to give a breathalyser sample.

Both the provincial and federal changes would recognize that getting drug
users off the road is more important than people's right not to incriminate
themselves when being questioned by police.

Golebioski added city police are training officers to recognize drug
impairment.

He said four officers have been specially trained as drug recognition
experts. The goal is to have 10 to 12 officers trained, so that a drug
recognition expert is available during all shifts.