The Chief of Police in Dryden admits there will be growing pains when marijuana officially becomes legalized this year.
Doug Palson says the biggest challenge will be enforcement and determining if a driver is impaired.
Palson notes police across Canada are all in the same boat, stressing they don’t yet know the impact on officers, staff and community organizations and partners.
Palson says it will also challenge the human resources and staffing side of their organization due to the potential of increased workload.
He notes that anytime there is change, there will be struggles, but stresses it’s happening and they must all adapt.
Officers are now receiving training in field sobriety techniques, with the province footing the bill.
Palson says techniques to determine if there is impairment include walking tests, strength of the odour and checking to see if the pupils are dilated.
