By Ashley Legassic

Kamloops RCMP predicts business as usual on legalization day

Oct 16, 2018 | 2:44 PM

KAMLOOPS — Anticipation and excitement have been building around the federal legalization of cannabis, but despite the only government-run store in B.C. setting up shop tomorrow, Kamloops RCMP are predicting business as usual.

Detachment spokesperson Cpl. Jodi Shelkie says officers aren’t anticipating much difference once recreational marijuana is legalized and the first government-run recreational cannabis store opens in Kamloops tomorrow, Oct. 17.

“Even though cannabis will be legal tomorrow, we don’t anticipate that there’s going to be a huge surge of people going to the store, the legal store in Kamloops,” Shelkie says. “We don’t have extra patrols on, but we are anticipating that if something does happen we do have plans to respond to it, but at this time we don’t believe there will be much different than there is today.”

Shelkie adds there’s nothing to indicate there will be a huge surge of people smoking marijuana in public, but similar to events like 4/20, officers are prepared if anything happens. However, there won’t be extra patrols on.

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As for illegal dispensaries still operating in the city come tomorrow, things will be status quo — for now.

“We’re working in conjunction with the City of Kamloops to determine what steps we will be taking in the future, and also the province has a cannabis enforcement team that they’ll be using to go to these illegal cannabis stores and doing enforcement with them,” Shelkie says. “We’ll be working with the city and in the future the province will be using their enforcement teams.”

If something overtly illegal happens at these stores, Shelkie says police will act on reports, but until the wrinkles of a new substance being legalized are ironed out, the RCMP will deal with the dispensaries how they have been already in conjunction with the City.