Top Stories (2007) -
(432 items)
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| Nov 30, 2007 |
Ministers Guilty Of Trafficking 'Sacrament' Hamilton's high priest of pot, who turns 75 next month, faces a possible jail sentence after being convicted of selling the holy sacrament to an undercover police officer. A Superior Court jury deliberated eight hours Wednesday night before finding Walter Tucker and fellow minister of pot, Michael Baldasaro, 58, guilty of all five charges. They will be sentenced Jan. 24. |
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| Nov 29, 2007 |
Judge's Death Puts Pot Trial In Jeopardy The death of B.C. Supreme Court Justice Robert Edwards has jeopardized a lengthy and costly criminal trial involving an important constitutional challenge of the marijuana law. In most criminal cases, when a judge is unable to follow through to judgment, a mistrial is declared. In this case, a rare hearing has been scheduled in Vancouver tomorrow to see if there is a way to save the huge expense incurred and the evidence already presented. |
| Nov 24, 2007 |
BC Civil Forfeiture Act -- Facts Figures There are now about 60 cases involving about $5 million in cash and assets, including real estate, vehicles and jewelry believed to be the profit from crime and other unlawful activity. |
| Nov 24, 2007 |
Crime Rate: A 25 Year Low According to Statistics Canada, the national crime rate fell to its lowest level in 25 years last year. Since 1991, the crime rate is down by 30 per cent after steadily increasing through the '60s, '70s and '80s. |
| Nov 24, 2007 |
We Need An Open, Comprehensive Grow-Op List Two weeks ago in this column, I asked whether listing agents should be required to disclose that a home was, or might have been, a marijuana grow operation, or whether they should disclose only if the seller tells them it was a grow-op? |
| Nov 23, 2007 |
Harper's Misguided War on Pot Justice Minister Rob Nicholson's new package of mandatory sentences for marijuana dealers, announced on Tuesday, seems to involve some perverse incentives. Under the bill, a grower who is caught with between one and 200 plants and is found to have the intention of trafficking will receive a non-negotiable minimum of six months in prison, unless he can show that he is eligible for judicially ordered treatment under the auspices of a drug court. The maximum penalty for having a few pot plants on the premises will be increased to 14 years. |
| Nov 22, 2007 |
The Marijuana Trade Scores of Vietnamese "family units" using fear, trust and relatives have taken a stranglehold on the multi-billion dollar illegal B.C. bud trade in Canada. The operations, which revolve around how debts are repaid and secrets kept, are primarily organized through family ties and are dotted across the country. |
| Nov 21, 2007 |
Ottawa Proposes Mandatory Jail For Growers, Dealers The Conservative government unveiled historic legislation Tuesday to create the first mandatory prison terms in Canada for people convicted of trafficking illicit drugs. |
| Nov 21, 2007 |
Just Your Average Ganja-Growing Soccer Mom Showcase Television Helps Break More Taboos With Cult Favourite Weeds NEXT TIME YOU light a spliff and sit in front of the tube, why not flip to a show that portrays the industry of the reefer you're enjoying? A new phase in the presence of marijuana in the entertainment media seems to be signaled by the rising popularity of Weeds, the blazed comedy/drama carried by the cable network Showcase |
| Nov 21, 2007 |
Hemp Helps With Green Movement As environmental consciousness increases, a plant with great potential to accommodate our generation's awareness has re-emerged, but its negative associations leave some obstacles to overcome. |
| Nov 21, 2007 |
Federal Drug Plan Denounced The Conservative government's plan to slap drug dealers and marijuana grow operators with stiff sentences is a U.S.-style "war on drugs" that won't solve Canada's problems, critics warn. |
| Nov 21, 2007 |
ON:
Cops Publicize Grow-Op Sites Moving into a new place in Windsor and want the peace of mind of knowing it wasn't previously used as a marijuana growing operation? Windsor police can help. |
| Nov 21, 2007 |
Drug Law Will Fill Jails, Expert Warns B.C.'s already crowded jails will need to squeeze in another 700 marijuana growers per year if new mandatory sentences are enacted, an analysis of sentencing figures suggests. "You basically need a new prison to facilitate that," said Darryl Plecas, a criminologist at the University College of the Fraser Valley who studies marijuana sentencing. "You're going to have hundreds, if not thousands, of people going to jail who aren't going now." |
| Nov 21, 2007 |
District Explores Hemp Production Diversity is a key component in any economy and the District of 100 Mile House is exploring the cultivation of industrial hemp as a potential source of economic development. |
| Nov 17, 2007 |
The Dangers of Keeping Pot Illegal The benefits to Canada's justice system of legalizing marijuana would be immediate. Police would have more time to investigate real crime, including cracking down on harder drugs. The courts wouldn't be bogged down by trivial pot charges. Jail cells could be reserved for actual criminals. |
| Nov 16, 2007 |
Alberta Seeks New Use For Hemp A new two-year, $2.25-million project hopes to find ways to blend Albertagrown hemp fibres with locally produced plastics to create more sustainable materials. |
| Nov 15, 2007 |
Pot Activists Hail Ruling (Invalid law) Marijuana activists are hailing a recent court ruling as the beginning of the end of Canada's prohibition on pot, but the Crown dismisses the decision as non-binding. A trial judge in Oshawa, Ont., threw out charges of simple possession of marijuana against three young men on Oct. 19, relying on a previous court ruling that found Canada's pot law unconstitutional. In making his decision, Judge Norman Edmondson cited a decision last July by a fellow judge of the Ontario Court of Justice. [ See: <a href="http://thepotlawhasfallen.ca/" target="_blank">http://thepotlawhasfallen.ca/</a>, especially if you have been charged with possession of cannabis ] |
| Nov 15, 2007 |
Toking Your Way To Success So last week a swiss study was published saying teens who use only cannabis appear to function better than those who also use tobacco, and are more socially driven and have no more psychosocial problems than those who abstain from both substances. |
| Nov 12, 2007 |
Trustee In Drug Bust Plans To Attend Board Meeting A Turtle River School Division trustee facing drug charges said he will attend Tuesday evening's board meeting, to prevent fellow trustees from kicking him off the school board. |
| Nov 12, 2007 |
Legalize Pot, a Key Drug Fuelling Gang Wars Policy of Prohibition Only Helps Organized Crime Pocket the Profits From a Multi-Billion Dollar Industry ...The rise of gangs in this province is due primarily to the immense profits to be had from B.C. bud. |