**Une version française de cette pétition est disponible à : https://c.org/NkswqYSPnQ

I am the mother of a teen who has been groomed, exploited, and lured away from home by drug dealers, with law enforcement refusing to intervene. Through this nightmarish experience, I have discovered some large gaps in the Canadian justice system, which enable dealers to prey on kids.

Police have informed me that they are not interested in prosecuting small time dealers; they cannot investigate reports of drug trafficking without an eye witness willing to testify in court; they cannot use minors as informants; they have no budget for surveillance or other forms of investigation; they cannot search a minor’s phone or social media account for evidence; and they cannot provide witness protection.

Julie Nystrom is a mom in Vancouver who hired a private investigator to gather evidence about her teenage daughter’s drug dealer, but even that evidence was not enough to launch a police investigation: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/thecurrent/drug-dealer-teen-clients-vancouver-jay-1.7396385

The vast majority of drug trafficking to minors is taking place online, with police unequipped to stop it: https://portage.ca/en/social-media-and-illicit-drug-sales-one-click-away-from-addiction/

Kids are also being groomed by drug trafficking organizations across Canada, pulled into a criminal world beyond their comprehension, with no laws protecting minors from criminal exploitation. For a recent example, see The Fifth Estate’s report about young boys in Toronto being lured to trap houses in Northern Ontario: https://www.cbc.ca/news/fifthestate/fifth-estate-missing-black-boys-9.7057451

Grooming and drug use can both have long term consequences on youth mental health. Overdose and suicide are the leading causes of death among Canadian teens. If they survive long enough, criminally exploited kids become adult dealers, and the cycle continues.

This situation is fuelling both the drug crisis and the youth mental health crisis in Canada, and the effects go beyond individual children & families. The recent school shooting in Tumbler Ridge is a horrific example of what can happen when mental illness is fuelled by drug use in a young developing brain.  

For these reasons, I created a petition on the House of Commons website, asking the federal government for a comprehensive legal framework to protect minors from predatory drug dealers. That petition has now closed with 710 signatures, and will be presented in parliament in April. If you signed it, thank you! Let’s keep the momentum going with this petition, too!

“Let all that you do be done in love.”—1 Corinthians 16:14