|
Vice - Drugs - Fenantyl. R. v. Campbell
In R. v. Campbell (SCC, 2024) the Supreme Court of Canada dismissed a criminal appeal, this from a dismissal of an Ontario Court of Appeal, and that from a trial judge's finding that convicted the defendant "of trafficking and possession offences under the CDSA and sentenced him to a term of imprisonment".
Here the court briefly characterizes the drug 'fentanyl':[132] The severe dangers posed by fentanyl trafficking were highlighted by Moldaver J. in R. v. Parranto, 2021 SCC 46, [2021] 3 S.C.R. 366, at paras. 94-97, but bear repeating. Fentanyl is a highly addictive and extremely powerful opioid pain reliever and sedative intended to be administered in medical settings. It is estimated to be up to 100 times more potent than morphine and about 25 to 50 times more potent than heroin. A lethal dose can be less than two milligrams, or about the size of a single grain of salt. Fentanyl is also much cheaper than other drugs, and so drug dealers will often mix small amounts of it with other drugs to create a cheaper product with similar effects, thus significantly increasing their profits. Because fentanyl is visually indistinguishable from other hard drugs, it exposes vulnerable drug users to the risk of serious harm, including brain damage, organ damage, coma, and death. Over the past decade, fentanyl-related deaths have increased dramatically across Canada, leading to what various courts have described as a “national crisis” (para. 96). As Moldaver J. warned, “[a]s grave a threat as drugs such as heroin and cocaine pose, that threat pales in comparison to the one posed by fentanyl and its analogues. . . . [F]entanyl has altered the landscape of the substance abuse crisis in Canada, revealing itself as public enemy number one” (para. 93).
|
