MLA Kash Heed backs pot legalization campaign
The Canadian Press
Posted: Oct 18, 2012 8:32 AM PT
Last Updated: Oct 18, 2012 12:04 PM PT
Liberal MLA Kash Heed, who has said he won't be seeking re-election, has joined the Stop the Violence B.C. campaign saying he believes continuing pot prohibition is futile. (Stop the Violence B.C.)
Related
External Links
(Note:CBC does not endorse and is not responsible for the content of external links.)
A former B.C. public safety minister and police chief has joined the growing campaign by prominent leaders calling for the legalization of marijuana.
Liberal MLA Kash Heed, who has said he won't be seeking re-election, has joined the Stop the Violence B.C. campaign saying he believes continuing pot prohibition is futile.
Heed says his 31 years in law enforcement, including as West Vancouver police chief and a stint heading the Vancouver Police drug unit, brought him to believe criminalization fuels gang violence.
Former Attorney General Geoff Plant, who also endorses the campaign, says Heed has shown political courage by speaking out against what he feels are failed laws and is urging political leaders to base policy on evidence.
Heed says he'll use his remaining time in office to reach out to provincial leaders in an attempt to ensure discussions about more effective public health and safety strategies become part of the debate before the May election.
Last month, the Union of B.C. Municipalities passed a resolution calling for the decriminalization of cannabis.
Share Tools
Latest British Columbia News Headlines
- Teen's death sparks call for social services information
- The Alberta government wants to see changes on how provinces share information about children under the protection of social services. more »
- Christy Clark thanks Liberal MLAs in Vancouver
- B.C. Premier Christy Clark thanked her newly elected and re-elected MLAs in Vancouver on Thursday, who gathered for the first time following the Liberals' surprise victory in last week's provincial election. more »
- Pickup truck backs up over mother, 2 children in tent
- A 20-year-old woman has been arrested for allegedly backing her pickup truck over a mother and two children who were sleeping in a tent at a campsite in northeastern B.C. more »
- Fever medicine for infants, children under recall
- Quality concerns with a Chinese producer of acetaminophen have prompted a recall of four fever medications meant for infants and children. more »
Must Watch
Top News Headlines
- Greg Weston: Senate scandal may be Harper's worst hour
- The widening Senate scandal that the prime minister flippantly tried to dismiss as a 'distraction' just days ago has instead become arguably Stephen Harper's worst hour. more »
- 3 injured in Washington state bridge collapse
- A Washington state bridge over a river collapsed Thursday evening, dumping two vehicles into the water and sparking a rescue effort by boats and divers who searched the chilly waterway north of Seattle. more »
- Federal Court won't remove MPs over robocall allegations
- The Federal Court says it won't throw six MPs out of their seats over allegations of widespread vote suppression through automated robocalls in the 2011 federal election. But Judge Richard Mosley did find that fraud occurred in the election. more »
- 3D printers give rise to 'desktop manufacturing'
- Customizable objects from plastic dollhouse furniture to medical prosthetics can now be designed and printed out by almost anyone at the press of a button, and is going to lead to an 'explosion of new stuff,' predicts author Chris Anderson. more »
- 3 injured in Washington state bridge collapse
- Pickup truck backs up over mother, 2 children in tent
- Vancouver man abandons Porsche on B.C. ferry
- Teen's death sparks call for social services information
- Men found dead in B.C. lake wore oversized life-jackets
- Christy Clark thanks Liberal MLAs in Vancouver
- B.C. teen saves pet dog in 'terrifying' cougar attack
- 750 homes sliding away in Quesnel, B.C.
- Johnsons Landing homes must be abandoned, says report
