New Mandatory Minimum Drug Sentences in Canada Stir Controversy May 5, 2009
Posted by Ernesto in : Addcition, Canada, Drug Laws and Regulations, Narcotics, Substance Abuse , trackback
Yesterday (May 04) the Canadian all-party committee held a meeting to hear from opponents and supporters alike on the new Ottawa drug policy that calls for mandatory minimum sentences for drugs like marijuana, which has been approved by the government to 3,000 Canadians for medicinal use. The newly proposed Canadian drug penalties would call for an automatic two year sentence for offenders selling small amounts of drugs near schools, parks, malls and other youth hangouts. Additionally, marijuana growers caught selling even one plant would also be jailed.
The Harper Government’s mandatory minimum bill would be the first of its kind in Canada. It would supersede Canada’s current sentencing protocol, which gives judges the discretion to sentence as they see fit. Nonetheless, the bill is receiving a lot of resistance from opponents whom argue that the bill will only fill jails with small time crooks, while the drug lords will continue to thrive and roam freely. The issue has seemed to split between conservative and liberal parties in Canada; conservatives favoring the bill, while liberals oppose it. Also, supporters of the new bill seem to ignore the action of the neighbors across the border, in states like New York, where mandatory minimum sentences have been recently overturned/revoked by the state’s legislation.
Currently, the mandatory minimum sentences that exist in Canada’s law books for sentencing only pertain to murder and offenses involving firearms.
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