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Simplepowa
In Pursuit of Knowledge


Registered: 03/06/09
Posts: 4,310
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Pot-smoking Mountie has uniform seized by RCMP
#19202950 - 11/28/13 10:41 PM (10 years, 2 months ago) |
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Cpl. Ronald Francis, who has medical marijuana prescription, says officers showed up at his N.B. home
CBC News Posted: Nov 28, 2013 6:41 PM AT Last Updated: Nov 28, 2013 11:05 PM AT
A Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer who believes he should be able to smoke medical marijuana while in uniform has had his uniform seized by fellow Mounties.
Cpl. Ronald Francis, who serves with J Division in New Brunswick, told CBC News two officers showed up at his home at Kingsclear First Nation Thursday evening.
Francis said his cousin shot video as the officers took his regular working uniform — "anything that identified me as a member of the RCMP: my work shirts, work pants, my jackets, my gloves, my hat, my cap badge."
"I worked hard for that uniform," he said. "I bled for that uniform. I cried for that uniform for 21 years... They ordered me to give the only thing that I've lived and identified with for 21 years."
His red serge uniform was not seized as it was at his girlfriend's, but he has been ordered to hand it over to the commissionaire at J Division tomorrow at noon, he said. Francis said he will follow the order.
"But they will not get back their medal for my 20 years of exemplary service with the RCMP."
'They ordered me to give the only thing that I've lived and identified with for 21 years'- Cpl. Ronald Francis
He still has his badge, as he is still a police officer, but he said he is currently on medical leave.
"It was very emotional for me," Francis told CBC-Radio's As It Happens, fighting back tears.
"I spent 20 years of my life in service to this country and stood up for the members that stand up for the Canadian public and they took one of the things that was most valuable to me 'cause I earned that uniform, like any other member of that division."
The seizure of his work clothes came after Francis was pictured smoking marijuana while wearing his red serge uniform.
RCMP officials had previously told him he could not smoke the drug while in uniform.
Francis said he knows the two officers who seized his uniform and one of them "almost broke down crying" as well.
"But I don't blame them," he stressed. "They're following orders, it's not their fault." Emotional toll
Francis said the media attention since his story went public Thursday morning has been overwhelming, but he expected it. He said he was speaking out to draw attention to the need for more mental health services within the RCMP.
Francis believes the order to take his uniform came from the RCMP commissioner's office in Ottawa.
He said he was also served with documents earlier in the day by the acting district commander, ordering him to turn in his uniform, not to speak to the media, or represent the RCMP or their views.
"So basically they're trying to disavow me," he said.
"The heavy hand’s coming down on me, but I knew I’d have to prepare for that," said Francis. "It’s got to change before more people die."
Francis received a prescription for medical-grade marijuana on Nov. 4.
He says marijuana has helped him to calm down and reduces his PTSD symptoms.
His prescription allows for three grams a day, which he estimates to be nine to 15 joints, though he said he doesn’t typically smoke that much.
Francis' story drew quick criticism from members of the RCMP and the public.
“Definitely a member that has been prescribed medicinal marijuana should not be in red serge taking his medication,” said RCMP assistant commissioner Gilles Moreau. “It would not be advisable for that member, it would not portray the right message to the general public, it’s definitely not something we would support or condone.”
Francis said he's not at all surprised with the backlash, but he said he's exhausted all other options, and going public is the only way things will finally change internally at the RCMP.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/pot-smoking-mountie-has-uniform-seized-by-rcmp-1.2444352?cmp=fbtl
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Carl Sagan - "Who are we? We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far more galaxies than people." --- Robert Pirsig - "When one person suffers from a delusion it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called religion." --- Brian Cox - "[One] problem with today’s world is that everyone believes they have the right to express their opinion AND have others listen to it. The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense."
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shivas.wisdom
בּ



Registered: 02/19/09
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Re: Pot-smoking Mountie has uniform seized by RCMP [Re: Simplepowa]
#19203007 - 11/28/13 10:58 PM (10 years, 2 months ago) |
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Interesting.
On one hand, I want to side with the pot smoking cop--if he is prescribed it for medical reasons, he should not be prohibited from using it as required.
But on the other hand, should we allow an on-duty officer to intoxicate themselves--even the minor amount that would be caused by marijuana? Different example, would we want commercial airplane pilots using medical marijuana while on duty?
I'm curious why a person suffering PTSD to the point that they must medicate is even able to remain on duty, rather then being granted leave--I'm assuming this is why he was in uniform, the article isn't clear and it does mention that he is now on medical leave--if he was just wearing the uniform for shits and giggles while not actively working, frown on him.
I'm too lazy to look it up, but I wonder how similar situations involving prescribed opiates would play out--I figure the medical marijuana model should reflect this.
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deCypher



Registered: 02/10/08
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Re: Pot-smoking Mountie has uniform seized by RCMP [Re: Simplepowa]
#19207762 - 11/30/13 08:42 AM (10 years, 2 months ago) |
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Fucking sad, even for Canadians.
-------------------- We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.
 
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CidneyIndole
www.shroomery.OG



Registered: 05/16/05
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Re: Pot-smoking Mountie has uniform seized by RCMP [Re: shivas.wisdom]
#19208907 - 11/30/13 02:47 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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Interesting story. Kind of funny. Sad, of course. But also kind of funny.
"Why funny," you ask? I guess it's just the tone of the whole thing. Like this guy is upset and/or somehow surprised that he faced consequences for using an illegal drug while in uniform. Had this gone down in the USA, I'm certain pretty much everyone involved would probably say "Well fucking DUH... what did you expect?" rather than show sympathy.
To be clear, I'm not saying this as if it's a good thing. Just pointing out the difference.
Quote:
shivas.wisdom said: But on the other hand, should we allow an on-duty officer to intoxicate themselves--even the minor amount that would be caused by marijuana? Different example, would we want commercial airplane pilots using medical marijuana while on duty?
Wait... did it mention that he was on duty at the time? If so, I missed that part. "In uniform" is not necessarily the same as "on duty." I suspect they would be upset about a cop smoking in uniform even if he was off duty. Because it gives a certain impression. Cop-as-scofflaw, for one. And for another "Cannabis laws are so fucking ridiculous even cops don't respect them."
Which are probably not messages the administration wants to convey.
-------------------- ------------------------ I am me. We are You.
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Juicin
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Registered: 10/27/13
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Re: Pot-smoking Mountie has uniform seized by RCMP [Re: Simplepowa]
#19208914 - 11/30/13 02:49 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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The only way I have any pity is if he has ALWAYS let people walk on marijuana related charges. And forced his fellow mounties to do the same
Which of course he hasn't
So fuck him
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Simplepowa
In Pursuit of Knowledge


Registered: 03/06/09
Posts: 4,310
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Re: Pot-smoking Mountie has uniform seized by RCMP [Re: Juicin]
#19209106 - 11/30/13 03:54 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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Eh guys, what this guy was doing was LEGAL.
It was a prescribed medicine, no other than oxycontin or adderall or any other antipsychotic or whatnot.
Cops having a prescription for oxycontin can easily crack down on people possessing it illegally (without a prescription).
Same for him with cannabis. He had the right to use it (he has a prescription, hence it is LEGAL for him as any other medicine prescribed) and it was also his duty to arrest people without a prescription of cannabis because it is the current state of law, that you like it or not (but he was doing a desk job so no arrest).
Cop having oxycontin can use it on the job, they can also use antidepressant, and any other medicine they have prescribed.
But using cannabis for his PTSD with a prescription on his working time, it was a big no no, why? Stigma around cannabis.
He was doing a desk job because of his PTSD, he was not driving or carrying a gun, nothing of that. But police didn't like it so he is now on forced medical leave.
All of this story is crap imo. All a game of look and image surrounding the RCMP.
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Carl Sagan - "Who are we? We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far more galaxies than people." --- Robert Pirsig - "When one person suffers from a delusion it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called religion." --- Brian Cox - "[One] problem with today’s world is that everyone believes they have the right to express their opinion AND have others listen to it. The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense."
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Simplepowa
In Pursuit of Knowledge


Registered: 03/06/09
Posts: 4,310
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Re: Pot-smoking Mountie has uniform seized by RCMP [Re: Simplepowa]
#19209173 - 11/30/13 04:16 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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Veteran Mountie stripped of his uniform for publicly smoking medical marijuana weeps as he hands in red serge
Canadian Press and Jen Gerson | 29/11/13 | Last Updated: 29/11/13 9:08 PM ET
A New Brunswick Mountie who has run afoul of a policy that says RCMP officers can’t smoke medicinal marijuana while in uniform has returned his red serge and accused the government and the force of not doing enough to support RCMP members with post-traumatic stress disorder.
Cpl. Ron Francis wept as he arrived Friday at the RCMP headquarters in Fredericton after he said he was ordered to return the dress uniform.
“Members of the RCMP are not sacrificial to the government or to the organization,” Francis said. “They are people and they deserve the right to be protected while they go to work and be taken care of by the Canadian public that they defend.”
But he did not return a 20-year exemplary service medal, removing it before handing over the iconic Mountie uniform, hat and boots.
“They can have their uniforms, but this is my medal. I earned this with my blood, my sweat, my tears,” he said.
“I have not one flaw on my service record. My only flaw is I stuck up for the Canadian people.”
The RCMP says its officers who are prescribed medicinal marijuana should not be in red serge or regular uniform while taking their medication as it would not portray the right message to the public.
The force has declined interview requests but said in an email Thursday that it continuously looks at strengthening supports for officers with operational stress injuries and is looking at its policies to define how it manages members who have been prescribed medicinal marijuana.
But Imelda Perley, a Maliseet elder who accompanied Francis on Friday, said the RCMP did not do enough to help Francis deal with post-traumatic stress disorder.
“I think they have a responsibility to all their RCMP officers, whether they are aboriginal or non-aboriginal, to give alternative ways of looking at who they are and not what they are supposed to do,” Perley said.
Conservative MP Erin O’Toole, a former captain with the Royal Canadian Air Force, said he believes the RCMP were justified in ordering Francis to return his uniform.
“I think reasonable accommodation should be given, and I think the Mounties were providing that to him,” O’Toole said in Ottawa.
“Having worn a uniform myself, I think they made the right decision. And I think he should accept that as well because if you’re part of an institution like that, whether it’s the Canadian Forces or the RCMP, you have to understand the importance of the values and respect that the uniforms — in particular the red serge, one of Canada’s probably most respected world images — you have to preserve that.”
http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/11/29/mountie-video-recorded-smoking-medical-marijuana-returns-red-serge-to-rcmp/
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My question is then, what is the right message? Not using any medication and suffer terribly from PTSD?
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Carl Sagan - "Who are we? We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far more galaxies than people." --- Robert Pirsig - "When one person suffers from a delusion it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called religion." --- Brian Cox - "[One] problem with today’s world is that everyone believes they have the right to express their opinion AND have others listen to it. The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense."
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Juicin
Stranger

Registered: 10/27/13
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Re: Pot-smoking Mountie has uniform seized by RCMP [Re: Simplepowa]
#19210600 - 11/30/13 11:23 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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And they would be hypocrites for doing all those things. People who enforce drug laws are ignorant. People who use drugs and enforce drug laws are ass holes.
edit - legal or not
Edited by Juicin (11/30/13 11:24 PM)
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Simplepowa
In Pursuit of Knowledge


Registered: 03/06/09
Posts: 4,310
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Re: Pot-smoking Mountie has uniform seized by RCMP [Re: Juicin]
#19210618 - 11/30/13 11:30 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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People who enforce drug law: it is their job.
Be mad about the lawmaker, not the cop.
The cop has a family that need his salary too, and in his task he is asked to enforce the law.
If he doesn't do it, he'll maybe get laugh by his work companion, but most likely get his ass out of a job.
Would you not do what your boss says you should do? Do you want your pay? Maybe not, then you are different from some people then, assume the difference and be tolerant to other who are not all just like you.
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Carl Sagan - "Who are we? We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far more galaxies than people." --- Robert Pirsig - "When one person suffers from a delusion it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called religion." --- Brian Cox - "[One] problem with today’s world is that everyone believes they have the right to express their opinion AND have others listen to it. The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense."
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Juicin
Stranger

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Re: Pot-smoking Mountie has uniform seized by RCMP [Re: Simplepowa]
#19210644 - 11/30/13 11:37 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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Everyone has a choice, and people know what's right and wrong.
The law has nothing to do with being a shitty person
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Simplepowa
In Pursuit of Knowledge


Registered: 03/06/09
Posts: 4,310
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Re: Pot-smoking Mountie has uniform seized by RCMP [Re: Juicin]
#19210673 - 11/30/13 11:47 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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People have different "right" and "wrong" than you. That's for sure.
Not everybody love to think about things in life or to take initiative, some are really happy by following order.
And some will put everything they know in doubt and question things non stop.
These people are not shitty, they are different, with different value, different priorities, different background in life that makes them who they are today (mixed with some genetics giving probably a good base personality), etc.
And indeed everyone has a choice, but being tolerant is a choice too.
If people were more tolerant, maybe JFK, Mahatma Gandhi and John Lennon wouldn't have been killed for trying to spread peace and be more open minded.
Be careful of your way of thinking.
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Carl Sagan - "Who are we? We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far more galaxies than people." --- Robert Pirsig - "When one person suffers from a delusion it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called religion." --- Brian Cox - "[One] problem with today’s world is that everyone believes they have the right to express their opinion AND have others listen to it. The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense."
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Juicin
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Posts: 897
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Re: Pot-smoking Mountie has uniform seized by RCMP [Re: Simplepowa]
#19210688 - 11/30/13 11:50 PM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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Yea different values like I'm ok to get stoned but you're not
What the fuck kind of value system is that?
Like I said if you don't use drugs you have the moral high ground. If you have ever used depressants/stimulants/psychedelics legally or illegally you've lost the moral high ground. And cross the line into being an ass hole.
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Simplepowa
In Pursuit of Knowledge


Registered: 03/06/09
Posts: 4,310
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Re: Pot-smoking Mountie has uniform seized by RCMP [Re: Juicin]
#19211811 - 12/01/13 10:08 AM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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I don't think you understood what I just explained.
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Carl Sagan - "Who are we? We find that we live on an insignificant planet of a humdrum star lost in a galaxy tucked away in some forgotten corner of a universe in which there are far more galaxies than people." --- Robert Pirsig - "When one person suffers from a delusion it is called insanity. When many people suffer from a delusion it is called religion." --- Brian Cox - "[One] problem with today’s world is that everyone believes they have the right to express their opinion AND have others listen to it. The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense."
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Juicin
Stranger

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Re: Pot-smoking Mountie has uniform seized by RCMP [Re: Simplepowa]
#19211911 - 12/01/13 10:36 AM (10 years, 1 month ago) |
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I don't think you understand the concept of do as I say not as I do
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