Quebec Premier François Legault speaks to reporters following discussions between Canada's premiers and Indigenous leaders at the Council of the Federation meetings in Halifax on Monday, July 15, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darren Calabrese

MONTREAL - The Quebec government has quietly relaxed its approach to people caught with small quantities of illegal drugs, following a federal law intended to divert drug users from the criminal justice system.

In April 2023, the province published a guideline recommending that cases of simple drug possession should only be prosecuted when there is a public safety risk. In response, Quebec's director of prosecutions issued a new directive detailing that drug possession could be a threat to public safety in the context of organized crime, violence or when minors are present.

At the time, however, Premier François Legault's Coalition Avenir Québec government made no public announcement of the change. The notice, which was published in the province's official gazette, was reported for the first time this week by Le Devoir.

Several municipal police forces say they were not informed of the new direction for prosecutors, and that their methods for dealing with drug possession have not changed.

Louis-Philippe Généreux, a criminal lawyer at a legal aid office in Joliette, Que., said he suspects the government wanted to avoid appearing to "trivialize" illegal drugs.

"The idea was not to … send the message that it's a free-for-all, that anyone can start carrying drugs and there won't be any consequences," he said in an interview Tuesday. "The mentality is to concentrate legal efforts on the right people, the source of the problem, and not the symptom at the bottom of the ladder, which is unfortunately the user."

Généreux said he became aware of the change last fall, in the months following the publication of the new directive, and he believes it's already having an effect on the province's criminal justice system. Prosecutors are more often choosing not to pursue charges against people caught with small quantities of drugs, he said, or are directing them to an alternative measures program that could entail treatment or community service.

The new guidance followed on the heels of a federal law, passed in November 2022, which required police and prosecutors to consider alternatives to laying charges for the simple possession of drugs. Bill C-5 was meant to divert people who commit minor drug offences from an overburdened criminal justice system, and to reduce recidivism by keeping people out of jail.

Emanuelle LeBlanc, a spokesperson for Quebec Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette, said Tuesday the new guideline was issued "to comply with these legislative changes."

Municipal police forces in Quebec City, Gatineau and Laval confirmed to The Canadian Press that they were not informed of the new guideline when it was published. They say their work remains unchanged, despite the fact that fewer cases of simple drug possession are being prosecuted.

"(The guideline) has no impact on police practices, and does not alter their work," LeBlanc said. "Simple possession remains a criminal offence for which police officers are called upon to intervene."

Jean-Sébastien Fallu, a professor of psychoeducation who studies substance abuse at Université de Montréal, said he suspects the CAQ government didn't want to draw attention to the change because it's off-brand for a right-leaning party that has taken a conservative approach to drugs, including strict regulations for cannabis consumption.

"It's not something the government wants to publicize," he said. "It's not something that appeals to its electoral base, nor is it consistent with its positions."

In January 2023, British Columbia became the first province in Canada to decriminalize simple possession of certain illicit drugs. That decision allowed people to carry small quantities of drugs for personal use without facing criminal charges. Earlier this year, however, the province moved to reintroduce a ban on drug use in public places.

Bill C-5 and the Quebec directive take a different approach. If people choose not to finish an alternative program, LeBlanc said, they could still end up facing prosecution.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 16, 2024.

News from © The Canadian Press, 2024