Researchers hope to open more minds about the potential of psychedelic drugs to combat anxiety, depression and other maladies
Source: LSD: A wonder drug once again?
BUDTENDERS – While police continue to arrest and charge these employees the Province of Ontario is hiring its own budtenders. Hypocrisy or an attempt to dominate the market?
Both police and the courts are beginning to question the wisdom of arresting illegal marijuana dispensary workers while the shops’ owners continue to thrive.
Source: Why arresting ‘budtenders’ won’t stop illegal pot shops | CBC News
HIV CRIMINALIZATION – The Nova Scotia Court of Appeal has determined that “people with a low viral load are at negligible risk of transmitting the virus even if not using a condom, and therefore do not have a legal duty to disclose their status.”
The case affirms that people with a low viral load are at negligible risk for transmitting HIV
Source: Why this Nova Scotia boxer’s acquittal is big news for Canadian HIV criminalization
Youth Justice and the New Toronto Courthouse – This is an interesting view of the workings of our youth court system.
Ontario’s Ministry of the Attorney General is building a new courthouse in Toronto that will combine most of the city’s criminal courts, including all three youth courts, in one location downtown. Designed by a world-renowned architect and filled wit
A Tesla full of lawyers. Very predictable.
CRIMINAL RECORDS CHECK – It’s no wonder you don’t know what the present and long-term results of being in contact with the police will be. The rules have been decided but Ontario has not made them into law yet.
Two years after Ontario unanimously passed legislation banning police departments from sharing information on innocent residents, the law is still not in force.
Source: Editorial | Ontario should finally implement law on police background checks
MANDATORY MINIMUM SENTENCES – Parliament needs to remove them all from the criminal code. “There were 29 offences carrying a mandatory minimum sentence of imprisonment as of 2015, according to the Department of Justice, and several more that carry mandatory minimum punishments that do not include prison time.”
Cheyenne Sharma was a 23-year-old single mother living in poverty at the time of her crime
Source: Judge strikes mandatory minimum sentence in drug case involving Indigenous woman | National Post
FUTURE TORONTO ONTARIO COURT OF JUSTICE – This is bound to be controversial in many ways. For one, all of the “borough” courts (North York, Etobicoke, Scarborough, College Park, Old City Hall and 311 Jarvis) will be consolidated into one downtown central location for the entire city of Toronto. (Except for Etobicoke which will continue to be used but only for in custody bail hearings.) It will be across the street from the Superior Court of Justice courthouse and the Ontario Court of Appeal. One location for everything. Parking?
Infrastructure Ontario and the Ministry of the Attorney General has announced that a fixed-price contract has been awarded to EllisDon Infrastructure to build the new 17-storey Ontario Court of Justice Toronto.
Source: Ontario Court of Justice Ready To Go Behind Toronto City Hall | Urban Toronto
THE POWERFUL TRUTH: Why So Many Women Won’t Report Sexual Abuse – This is a worthwhile read.
Guest blogger Garry Rodgers, former Royal Canadian sex crimes investigator, shares his perspective as to why many women still won’t report sexual abuse. He speaks about sexual abuse disclosures from his professional and personal experience. Don’t miss this incredibly informative and thought-provoking post!
Source: The Powerful Truth: Why So Many Women Won’t Report Sexual Abuse by @GarryRodgers1 – Rachel Thompson
THE JURY Pt. 4 – EMOTIONAL DAMAGE – Some trials can be horrific and disturbing. We as Judges, Crown Attorneys and defence lawyers know this all too well and it can be very difficult for jurors too. As well as financial cost there can be an even greater emotional cost.
The evidence in particularly brutal trials can leave jurors suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. But in many jurisdictions across the country, jurors are simply thanked and dismissed after the verdict with little or no support to cope with what they witnessed.