LIBERALS MOVE TO LIGHTEN PENALTIES FOR POT USERS, GET TOUGH ON GROWERS

OTTAWA (CP) - The Liberal government moved Tuesday to eliminate criminal
penalties for simple possession of marijuana, drawing praise from lawyers,
cautious support from doctors and brickbats from police, opposition MPs and
some of its own backbenchers.

Under legislation introduced by Justice Minister Martin Cauchon, possession
of up to 15 grams of pot - enough to roll about 15 or 20 joints - would be
a minor offence that carries no criminal record.

Violators would be ticketed and ordered to pay fines ranging from $100 to
$250 for youths and from $150 to $400 for adults.

People caught with between 15 and 30 grams could get the same treatment if
they're lucky. But they could also, at the discretion of police, be charged
in criminal court and face up to six months in jail.

While the bill would ease up on small-time users, there would be no respite
for illicit growers and dealers. The maximum sentence for grow operations
would be 14 years in prison, up from the current seven, with the length of
term increasing in proportion to the amount grown.

The penalty for trafficking would remain unchanged - a maximum life
sentence, although in practice the toughest terms handed out in recent
years have been about 20 years for major dealers.

Ottawa also plans to set aside an additional $245 million over the next
five years to beef up law enforcement efforts and to fund education,
information, research and treatment programs aimed at curbing drug use.

Cauchon, who hopes to push his bill through Parliament by the end of the
year, acknowledged the government is sending a double-edged message.

Casual pot smokers will no longer face the threat of jail, and young people
won't automatically be saddled with criminal records that haunt them for
life - one of the government's chief reasons for moving ahead with the
changes. But toking up will still be against the law.

"I want to be clear from the beginning," said Cauchon. "We are not
legalizing marijuana and have no plans to do so. What we are changing is
the way we prosecute certain offences."

Health Minister Anne McLellan echoed that view as she outlined the
$245-million education and enforcement plan that accompanied the new
legislation.

"We do not want Canadians to use marijuana," said McLellan. "We especially
don't want young people to use marijuana. That is why an important part of
our drug strategy will focus on strong public education messages to inform
Canadians of the negative health affects of marijuana."

The Canadian Medical Association welcomed McLellan's commitment to
prevention and treatment but warned more funding will be needed.

"We can only view today's announcement as a first step," said Dr. Dana
Hansen, president of the group.

The Canadian Bar Association congratulated Cauchon for his "courage and
leadership" and called decriminalization of minor possession a positive move.

"The heavy hand of our criminal law should be reserved for problems that
cause serious harm," said bar president Simon Potter.

But Randy White, the Canadian Alliance critic for police issues, contended
the Liberals should have imposed a five-gram limit if their goal was to
decriminalize possession for personal use.

White predicted that, because of the discretionary aspect of the bill, 30
grams rather than 15 will become the practical cut-off point for criminal
proceedings.

"When you're talking about minor, personal possession and you're talking in
the neighbourhood of 40, 50 joints on you, I doubt very much whether that
is a personal possession."

Dan McTeague, one of several Liberal backbenchers uneasy at the prospect of
decriminalization, said the bill has "serious deficiencies" and could leave
young people with the impression it's all right to smoke dope.

He also termed the measures against growers inadequate, despite the 14-year
maximum sentence.

"Everyone knows you never get the maximum," said McTeague.

Marjory LeBreton, a Conservative senator and vice-chair of Mothers Against
Drunk Driving, said the legislation should not be passed until provisions
against marijuana-impaired driving are strengthened.

Federal officials say anyone driving under the influence of pot can be
prosecuted under the same impaired driving laws that apply to alcohol. But
critics note there is no roadside breathalyser technology for marijuana and
say the laws must be amended to allow police to demand blood samples.

David Griffin, spokesman for the Canadian Police Association, which
represents some 28,000 rank-and-file officers across the country, called
the federal initiative a "hastily put-together package that is held
together by Band-Aids and duct tape."

Reaction from some provincial governments was also negative.

"This is not a harmless drug and we shouldn't be introducing this into the
community for our young people to smoke," said Ontario Attorney General
Norm Sterling.

British Columbia, home of the so-called B.C. Bud, was also unhappy with
Ottawa's initiative.

"They don't have any idea how the tickets will be collected; they don't
have any idea how the infrastructure will be set up," said B.C. Solicitor
General Rich Coleman.

"They're going to spend tens of millions of dollars in advertising what
they're doing and putting very little money into fighting the issues of
organized crime with regards to marijuana."

Alberta Justice Minister Dave Hancock said Ottawa is on the wrong track
with its reforms: "I don't think you get rid of crime by removing the crime
from the books and saying it's OK now."

The spectre of decriminalization in Canada has raised the hackles of some
U.S. officials as well, but Solicitor General Wayne Easter, the minister
responsible for the RCMP, played down the American concerns.

"Certainly, there will be probably some reaction," said Easter. "But they
understand that we do have . . . the sovereign right to make our own laws.
And there is a recognition that the current laws are not working."

U.S. Ambassador Paul Cellucci, who has warned of potential border slowdowns
as U.S. customs officers pay closer attention to travellers headed south,
was not available for comment Tuesday.

Cauchon noted that a dozen U.S. states have already done away with criminal
sanctions for simple possession of pot.