CAUCHON ADMITS TO REEFER MADNESS

OTTAWA -- Justice Minister Martin Cauchon says he's no pothead, even if he
enjoyed a joint in his youth.

Cauchon, who is considering decriminalizing the drug, admitted yesterday to
having smoked a joint.

"I'm 39 years old. I was elected first when I was 31 years old. Yes, of
course I tried it before, obviously," Cauchon said.

He added that he no longer smokes dope, but refused to say whether the drug
negatively affected him.

"My own experience can't tell you if it's harmful or not," he said.

Prime Minister Jean Chretien sidestepped a direct question on whether he's
ever smoked pot, answering that decriminalizing the substance is under review.

"I don't know these things. I cannot comment on the value," Chretien said.

"When I was young the word marijuana did not exist," Chretien said later.
"I didn't know about the word. After that it was too late for me to try it."

Cauchon is considering decriminalizing marijuana to eliminate a patchwork
of laws that sees those caught with weed treated differently from one
region to the next.

Senate and Commons committees are both studying the decriminalization of
marijuana.

"We may end up changing the system," he said.

Cauchon said one alternative would see fines handed out for possession of
the soft drug instead of court action.

"That would be more effective as a society in a sense that it would be
easier to apply for the police forces and organizations in all of Canada."