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david bratzer

On the street, you can see the harm caused by drug laws

Submitted by Nicole Seguin on Thu, 07/29/2010 - 5:57pm
By David Bratzer, Ottawa Citizen Special
 
Like many other police officers, I have witnessed the tragedy of the HIV epidemic first hand. It is one thing to read the statistics demonstrating the connection between illicit drug use and HIV; it is another matter entirely to patrol the streets, day in and day out, repeatedly arresting men and women infected with the HIV virus.
 
Our country has one of the finest health-care systems in the world, but our laws surrounding drug use result in unnecessary disease and death.
 
In this context, the recent announcement of the Vienna Declaration has bolstered my conviction that drug prohibition is a national policy failure.
 

Complaint lodged over local officer's gag order

Submitted by Nicole Seguin on Thu, 03/04/2010 - 6:45pm
By Louise Dickson, Times Colonist
 
The B.C. Civil Liberties Association has filed a complaint with the Victoria Police Board after Chief Jamie Graham ordered one of his officers not to speak at a local drug forum.
 
Const. David Bratzer, who does public speaking on behalf of the U.S.-based non-profit organization Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, known as LEAP, was asked to join a panel of speakers at a City of Victoria harm-reduction forum last evening, attended by about 120 people.
 

The Muzzling of a Cop

Submitted by Nicole Seguin on Wed, 03/03/2010 - 8:46pm
Norm Stamper, Huffington Post

David Bratzer is a young, soft-spoken police officer with the Victoria (British Columbia) Police Department. He comes from a law enforcement family; two of his brothers are VicPD officers. Thoughtful, well spoken, Bratzer loves being a cop and serving his community. But now he's been ordered not to air his views on the most compelling of all public safety issues.

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