Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Police Cite ‘Fewer Issues Than Expected’ After Legalizing

Police in Saskatoon – the largest city in Saskatchewan, Canada – said they’ve arrested less than 200 people for cannabis offenses in the year since legalization and that they “experienced fewer issues than were expected.”

In a report issued November 28, police said 11 of those charges were federal, including: sales and distribution (6), possession over the legal limit (2), distribution to minors (1), an illegal sale to an adult, and an illegal dispensary. The non-federal charges include: possession or consumption in a vehicle (55), possession by a minor (50), consumption in public (31), possession of “cannabis known to be illicit” (18), possession over 30 grams in public (16), sales- and distribution-related charges (12), and distribution to a minor (1). Police filed no charges for cannabis consumption on school grounds.

The report notes that just eight of 292 driving while impaired violations from Oct. 17, 2018 to Oct. 17, 2019 were directly related to cannabis intoxication. Since July 2019, the agency has employed a Draeger 5000 Roadside Screening Device “at every sobriety checkpoint” to test for both cannabis and cocaine and have used it 12 times; nine drivers tested positive for THC, while two drivers were cleared of driving under the influence due to the device’s results.

Saskatoon Police said that the largest illicit cannabis bust in the city was part of “an operation with a larger scope” in which a “known street gang member” had about 3.5 kilograms of cannabis and 960 grams of concentrates.