Public Safety committee  I apologize for rephrasing it, but is your question, if tobacco were a permitted substance in the prisons, would that lessen the currency of other drugs within the prisons or the damage that other drugs would do in the prisons? Is that the nature of your question?

Public Safety committee  Yes, I think that's probably true. Anything that becomes a currency and a scarce commodity will become tradeable in a limited supply-demand situation. So whether or not tobacco is harmful and is a drug and should be limited in the prison or not, I don't comment on that, but I thi

Public Safety committee  Well, certainly false positives do occur. I think one of the previous witnesses mentioned that. You touch a petrol station, whatever can come onto your hand, so certainly that is the case. My own experience is that I'm treated well when I come into a prison, so the suspicion is l

Public Safety committee  Is your question why someone would bring drugs into prison, what the economics are of bringing drugs into prison for those who are throwing it over the wall, the family member or whoever is bringing it in?

Public Safety committee  I think it varies from individual to individual. Certainly on an anecdotal basis there's great profitability in taking what would be an average street supply and putting it into a very limited demand-supply situation.

Public Safety committee  Do you want to speak to that?

Public Safety committee  It can be paid in cash; it can be paid by some arrangement of group or gang activity; it—

Public Safety committee  That person will be released one day; there will be debts owing.... It can be any number of economic advantages. It doesn't have to be cash. It could be protection; it could be debts owed.

Public Safety committee  I think primary would be to address the programming that is currently excellent, as I understand it, in an integrated way for the individual. A person is not a family dysfunctional person for six months and then another six months later a drug-addicted person and then six months

Public Safety committee  We know that approximately 80% of the people who arrive at a federal or provincial prison have some addiction issues, so interdiction inside or abstinence inside doesn't necessarily lead to any behavioural change. One of the things we advocate is that environmental change is key;

Public Safety committee  You're right in saying that when someone has the kind of background that Mr. Sampson described, “choice” is a very difficult word to use. I really applaud you for the work you did as a volunteer. Volunteers are incredibly effective with people in the system. As a volunteer organ

Public Safety committee  Three minutes. Matt's family couldn't cope with his behaviour. Ultimately, Matt left his family home and went to Vancouver. Under the influence of drugs he committed a crime. He was found fit to stand trial, was not found “not criminally responsible”—which would have directed hi

Public Safety committee  Thank you very much. Thank you for the invitation to appear before the committee to discuss this important issue of drugs and alcohol and the impact on rehabilitation of offenders. Before addressing this issue, I would first like to give you a brief overview of the work of my