About nine states in the U.S. have been bribed (re/ federal funding) to enact laws to imprison (!) drivers who have detectable levels of illegal drugs, even pot, whether they are impaired or not. This plague is now spreading to Canada.

 
The War on Natural Plants Escalates

From NORML website at:
http://www.norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=3442

Canada: Parliament Contemplates Drug Testing Motorists

Ottawa, Ontario - Members of Parliament are considering legislation that would amend the Criminal Code to allow motorists to have their bodily fluids tested for the presence of illicit drugs and/or inactive drug metabolites.

The proposal, Bill C-32, is similar to pending US federal legislation that seeks to criminally sanction anyone who operates a motor vehicle "while any detectable amount of a controlled substance is present in the person's body, as measured in the person's blood, urine, saliva, or other bodily substance." If passed, C-32 would allow law enforcement officers to request a sample of a driver's urine or saliva "to determine whether the person has a drug in their body," if the officer has "reasonable grounds" to believe the motorist is under the influence of a controlled substance.

The proposal further states that a "qualified medical practitioner" may draw blood samples from drivers in certain cases. Proponents of the bill argue that Parliament must approve C-32 before moving forward with plans to decriminalize the use and possession of small amounts of marijuana. However, according to a 2002 Senate Special Committee on Illegal Drugs, "Cannabis alone, particularly in low doses, has little effect on the skills involved in automobile driving."

NORML Executive Director Keith Stroup criticized Bill C-32, stating:
"At a minimum, this proposal should identify parent drugs, not inactive drug metabolites - which, even when confirmed, do not indicate recency of drug use or impairment. Further, it should include references to scientifically sound cut-off levels correlating drug concentration to impairment of performance similar to the 0.08 BAC standard that already exists for drunk driving. These amendments would offer a reasonable alternative to C-32's present language."

For more information, please contact either Keith Stroup or Paul Armentano of NORML at (202) 483-5500.

Comments:

* Testing for driver-impairing Corporate Drugs not on the dance card. This makes laws arbitrary and illegitimate.

* Such laws are authoritarian reactions to popularity of Medical Marijuana initiatives in US and Canada. Such laws would mean that patients would not be able to drive, for perhaps WEEKS after a dose ... if ever, if need for daily or frequent medication is needed.

* In the US, Probable Cause is constitutionally-required before a search is permitted. Therefore, bodily searches for traces of THC, if there's no cause to suspect pot use, are patently illegal. No matter. Laws are for people, not corporate/gov't entitites.

* Had a toke of de-facto legal pot in Amsterdam a week or so ago? In the US, detection of that could send one to prison if tested on the roads.

* Such laws open up opportunities for saboteurs/infiltrators/enemies to put a little pot in one's chocolate brownies to get them busted big time for DUI. Do prosecutors have to prove one knowingly took pot? If not, the injustice expands.

* Check economic links between legislators who push such laws, and corporate interests who have motives to keep natural, public-domain drugs out of competition. Ditto for judges, jurors in any subsequent cases.

* What US interests have gone to Canada to push this outrageousness? See, if Canada doesn't go along with the U.S. plan, it will be BAD for "Tourism" if Canadians are jailed in the US for what's legal in Canada.