Legal Ease, June 10

Is marijuana legal in Canada?

No.

It is and remains a criminal offence to possess or distribute marijuana.

The law in Canada has not changed – marijuana is illegal (except that marijuana produced under licence for prescribed medical reasons is legal).

The illegality of marijuana does not mean it is rare. Marijuana is the most commonly used illegal drug in Canada.

Almost half — 44 per cent — of Canadians say they have used marijuana at least once in their lifetime. About half of all high school students have used marijuana at least once in the last year.

As a practical matter, the police have far more important things to deal with than marijuana, but that doesn’t change the law.

If the police come across someone with marijuana they will likely lay charges.

As the president of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, Clive Weighill, said “police officers are not anti-marijuana, but they are still police officers and they need to enforce the law.”

Historically, about 40,000 Canadians are charged every year with possession of marijuana – these charges are still perfectly valid legally. About 600,000 Canadians have criminal records for possession of marijuana.

The confusion over the legality of marijuana is largely a result of the government saying it will legalize the drug sometime in early 2017.

That statement makes everyone hesitate to prosecute marijuana charges with much vigour. If something is going to be legal next year why waste resources on it today?

That said, if you are convicted of any marijuana offence, it will lead to a criminal record and problems in international travel and getting work.

As mentioned, possession of marijuana remains a criminal offence in Canada.

You don’t have to own to marijuana to be convicted of possession — you just have to have the marijuana.

In order for the judge to convict you of marijuana possession, the prosecutor must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you:

• had control of the marijuana; and

• knew the marijuana was there.

So let’s suppose your boyfriend left a small bag of marijuana in your bedroom.

You don’t smoke marijuana but you don’t have a problem with him using it. If you knew it was there and had control of your bedroom, you may well be at risk of a possession charge.

Beyond possession, is there a danger of a charge of trafficking?

As long as you pass on marijuana to someone else – even for no profit at all – you are trafficking the drug. Trafficking is a much more serious offence than simple possession, and has greater penalties.

The penalties available for possession are significant. For possession of 30 grams or less of marijuana the penalty is a maximum fine of $1000, six months in jail, or both — that’s a serious penalty.

For trafficking (less than three kilograms) you can get five years less a day in jail.

Realistically these penalties are seldom imposed in full, but the risk is there.

The bottom line is that until marijuana is legalized, it makes good sense to steer clear of it.

James Morton is a lawyer practicing in Nunavut with offices in Iqaluit. The comments here are intended as general legal information and not as specific legal advice.