Proposed stricter drug penalties ‘draconian,’ Liberals say

A Conservative government proposal that would make the punishment for using date-rape drugs to commit crimes the same as the punishment for using cocaine is "draconian", opposition Liberals say.

If Bill S-10 comes into effect you will still be able to give over-the-counter painkillers to your friend, but hold onto your Tylenol 3: trafficking codeine, an active ingredient in the pill, would carry a stiff penalty.

Bill S-10 amends the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (CDSA) to impose new mandatory minimum punishments for trafficking, possessing, selling and illegally manufacturing certain drugs and substances. The legislation is part of the Conservative government's tough on crime agenda.

The CDSA currently lists “date-rape drugs” in Schedule III, a category for certain drugs deemed less dangerous than those in Schedules II or I. Some Schedule I drugs are commonly used to treat conditions such as insomnia and therefore contain powerful sedatives, but are often misused to commit sexual assault.

What else is in the bill?

Bill S-10 would move date-rape drugs to Schedule I. This would make the possession, trafficking and use of these drugs to commit crimes subject to a minimum mandatory sentence of one year and a maximum sentence of life in prison.

The problem with the bill is that it is “blindly draconian," says Senator George Baker, Liberal critic of Bill S-10.

“It treats a university student who has exchanged a controlled drug with another student the same way as a professional criminal, who has exchanged a truck-load of the same drugs.”

So while Tylenol 3, a medication used to treat mild pain, is not considered a date-rape drug, it contains codeine, a substance currently listed as a Schedule I drug. Conviction for possessing or trafficking such a drug is subject to the mandatory minimum sentence.

The Conservative government is making a clamp-down on crime a priority.

But while treating date-rape drugs more seriously may look like getting tough, it may have no impact on conviction rates. “It treats a university student who has exchanged a controlled drug with another student the same way as a professional criminal, who has exchanged a truck-load of the same drugs.”

Some date-rape drugs have to be detected within 24 hours, notes Sgt. Claude Parent of Ottawa Police Services. Otherwise, traces of the drugs are no longer in a victim’s system, making a conviction impossible.

Despite that problem, the bill has supporters.

“There is a divergence of opinion within the Canadian chiefs association on the effectiveness of mandatory minimum penalties,” says Barry MacKnight, chair of the drug abuse committee of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police. “But there are certainly issues in that bill that we support…we believe that enforcement should be primarily focused on those who profit from the sales of drugs in communities.”

Do the studies support “tough on crime”?

While drugs like Rohypnol and GHB are commonly associated with date rape, alcohol is the substance used most often in sexual assaults.

A June 2010 Statistics Canada study indicates that police-reported dating violence had steadily increased between 2004 and 2008 for both men and women, with women the most common victims.

"There have been substantial increases in the rates of cocaine offences and "other" type drug offences (such as crystal meth and ecstasy) over the past decade, up by 80 per cent and 168 per cent respectively. The rate of heroin offences, on the other hand, has dropped, by 41 per cent," a 2009 study by Statistics Canada found.

“The problem”, said Parent, is that most sexual assaults go unreported, so “we cannot know for sure the real statistics, and of those assaults, which ones were committed with the help of date-rape drugs.”

There are many conflicting opinions on whether mandatory sentences really help in deterring drug-related crimes. Even a 2002 Department of Justice Canada’s Research and Statistics Division study stated that, “Drug consumption and drug-related crime seem to be unaffected, in any measurable way, by severe [Mandatory Minimum Sentences].”

Bill S-10 is currently in its first reading in the House of Commons. Opposition leaders say the bill cannot be allowed to pass as it is and they will focus on amending it to narrow its scope. But if it gets through the House, you might land a hefty jail term for sharing that Tylenol 3.

Date-Rape Drugs and the Courts

Stricter penalties for sexual assaults involving drugs may not do much good if rapes aren’t reported or if prosecutors fail to prove that drugs were used. The courts face a number of challenges when they try to show that Rohypnol (flunitrazepam) and GHB (gamma-hydroxybutyrate), two drugs commonly associated with date rape, were used in an assault. Click on the image below to find out more.