ALARM RAISED OVER TOKING AND DRIVING

Motorists Who Drink And Drive Face Stiff Fines If Caught By Police But What
About Those Who Toke And Drive?

That's the question being asked by the Brant/Brantford drinking and driving
countermeasures committee these days.

As pressure mounts to decriminalize possession of small amounts of
marijuana, committee members are pressing the federal government to
introduce measures to protect people who may be hurt by those who smoke up
and drive.

"We want to make sure the rights of victims are protected in court," said
Lawrie Palk, the committee's co-chairman. "Right now, there is a legal
limit for alcohol and police have a way of measuring how much a driver has had.

"But not with marijuana."

At present, there is no device that can measure marijuana impairment. Nor
is there any legal limit or set standard to help police and the courts
determine what constitutes impairment by use of marijuana.

That's something the local committee would like changed.

The committee is calling for the development of a device that can measure
marijuana impairment and a legal limit to help guide police and the courts.

"Right now, cases get thrown out of court because there's no way to prove
someone's ability to drive was impaired by marijuana," Palk said. "There
are some tests but they're cumbersome and unreliable.

"What we need is legislation for marijuana impairment that mirror the laws
about drinking and driving."

A survivor of an impaired driver in 1988, Palk has mild but permanent brain
damage. He has become an advocate for safer roads and the elimination of
impaired driving.

The accident had a major impact on his life and he doesn't want anyone else
to suffer the way he has over the years.

He has sent letters to federal Justice Minister Martin Cauchon, Ontario
Premier Ernie Eves and others seeking their support for legislation
covering driving while impaired by marijuana.

"The matter of marijuana decriminalization is a life and death issue and
victims' issue," Palk said. "Imagine yourself or a family member who is
travelling on the roads one day and he or she is hit by a
marijuana-impaired driver.

"The case goes to court in 2003 and the judge is unable to offer any
consolation to a victim because the facts are that levels of what is
impairment under marijuana are not measurable and, what is more, there is
no device that is able to measure true impairment under law."

Alcohol impairment can be measured and the legal limit for motorists is
Ontario is 80 milligrams of alcohol per 100 millilitres of blood.

People also have to realize that decriminalizing marijuana doesn't mean
"open season" for pot smokers, Palk said.

"They seem to be moving towards decriminalizing marijuana under 30 grams
and what it means is that when people get caught with it they will get a
fine," he said. "It will be like a parking ticket and they won't get a
criminal record."

But Robin Ellins, of the Cannabis Culture Shop/Friendly Stranger in
Toronto, said there is no proof that marijuana consumption impairs
someone's judgment.

"There's a big difference between cannabis and alcohol when it comes to
driving," Ellins said. "(It) may change the way you think about things but
it doesn't impair your ability to drive.

"Once you cross the line with alcohol, you're inebriated and your judgment
is impaired."

Cannabis Connection, in downtown Toronto, is dedicated to the
decriminalization of marijuana/hemp and bills itself as a centre for the
dissemination of cannabis information and retail products.

Instead of focusing on the substance, law enforcement officials need a test
to determine if someone is capable of operating a motor vehicle or not
(ATTRIBUTION).

Problems on the highways are caused by someone who has mixed substances
such as prescription drugs and alcohol or marijuana and alcohol, not
someone who has consumed marijuana, XXXXX said.

Most consumers of cannabis don't mix substances, he said.

While marijuana amplifies the negative effects of alcohol, it is still
alcohol, not cannabis, that's causing the problems, he added.

But Richard Garlick, of the Canadian Centre for Substance Abuse, believes
more work needs to be done concerning marijuana use and driving.

It has been shown through experiments that marijuana consumption does
impair judgment. However, the impairment is mild compared to alcohol,
Garlick said.

But in terms of real-life situations, it is difficult to determine how much
it has impaired someone's judgment.

"We just don't know enough about how it (marijuana consumption) impairs
judgment and I think more work has to be done in that area."

Tests used to determine if someone has used cannabis can only detect if it
has been used, not when it was used, because the active ingredient of
marijuana can stay in the body for days and weeks.

Someone who uses cannabis becomes cautious and will drive slowly whereas
someone impaired by alcohol becomes reckless and drives faster, Garlick said.

Police in other countries have started to use the Drug Recognition Expert
System to determine if a motorist is stoned on drugs. It's a very
sophisticated system in which a police officer looks for physical signs and
clues of drug use.

The first training session using the program has recently been completed in
Canada and that may be the way of the future, he said.

Of greater concern at present, said Garlick, is the impact of the
consumption of marijuana in combination with drinking alcohol, especially
among young people.

A young person experimenting with alcohol for the first time may use it in
combination with marijuana with disastrous results if he or she gets behind
the wheel of a car, he said.

Many young people, he believes, have received the ?don't drink and drive'
message loud and clear. So instead of drinking, they use marijuana.