Nunavik police brace for impaired driving, youth access as legal pot nears

From left, KRPF’s deputy chief of operations Jean-Guy Lalonde, chief Michel Martin and deputy chief of administration Benoit Plante, who speaks to a meeting of the KRG’s regional council in Kuujjuaq Nov. 29. (PHOTO BY SARAH ROGERS)

KUUJJUAQ—The Kativik Regional Police Force says it has seized a record amount of marijuana in the region so far this year, more than double what police saw last year.

By this time in 2016, KRPF officers had seized some 15,500 grams of pot, compared to the 32,341 grams police have confiscated so far in 2017—which represents an estimated street value in the region of more than $1.6 million.

“There’s already a movement,” the KRPF police chief, Michel Martin, told Kativik Regional Government councillors on Wednesday, Nov. 29.

“People are already attracted to marijuana, maybe because they think the law is changing. But it hasn’t yet.”

The influx of marijuana comes as the federal government moves forward with legislation that will legalize the small-scale possession of marijuana across Canada in July 2018.

Bill C-45, which legalizes recreational marijuana, and Bill C-46, which makes amendments to the Criminal Code aimed at deterring people from driving while impaired by cannabis, have passed through the House of Commons and are now before the Senate.

The Quebec government has tabled its own legislation on how the substance will be regulated in the province.

Bill 157 would create the Quebec Cannabis Society, which would sell the product to adults at least 18 years old as an arm of the province’s liquor body, the Société des Alcools du Québec.

The new entity will be able to sell 30 grams of marijuana at a time. But Quebecers will only be able to smoke it in certain areas and they cannot grow their own plants at home.

Michel said the KRPF has a number of concerns about the impact the legalization will have on the region’s youth—and on public safety in general.

“We are not ready,” Martin said. “The big problem for police is, how do we prove that you’re under the influence of marijuana?”

Part of Quebec’s legislation stipulates zero tolerance for drivers who are high on marijuana.

That poses a big challenge for police forces in Quebec who are required to train officers to be able to detect when a driver has been smoking pot.

The training is required for officers to produce the evidence they need to convict impaired drivers, which includes a saliva test done on the spot.

But the KRPF said it’s a five-week training session, most of which must be done in the South, will take officers out of the communities. Martin said the KRPF will enroll its first officer in the training in January.

Nunavimmiut leaders at this week’s KRG regional council say they’re worried about the region’s access to weed—especially access among youth.

KRG chair Jennifer Munick attended a September meeting in Quebec City on cannabis use in Indigenous communities.

“The topic that was most discussed was cannabis consumption among youth,” she told KRG councillors, referring to research that has shown marijuana can alter brain activity in adolescent users.

Nunavik police say they’re already working on an awareness campaign with health authorities in the region, one they plan to roll it out in Nunavik schools next year.

But some councillors said they want their communities to play a stronger role in regulation and prevention ahead of the changes.

“We are aware that the KRPF will be responsible for upholding the law,” said Kangiqsualujjuaq KRG councillor and mayor Hilda Snowball.

“But our municipalities will be affected a lot. When it comes to small villages, we have some different ideas and collaboration will be important.”

Under Bill 157, Quebec will have the ability to adapt its legislation to the needs of Indigenous communities. The bill is not expected to be adopted until the new year.