Justin Trudeau and the Liberal Party began the process of legalizing marijuana by submitting a pair of bills last week: one to manage and regulate the use, sale, and growth of marijuana, the other to beef up impaired driving laws.

For the Morden Police Service, announcements like this and the Liberals' campaign promise in 2015 to cease prohibition on pot presents an interesting problem.

Some people, according to Morden constable and drug investigator, Devin Bell, readily admit to driving under the influence of marijuana. They assume they are unaffected by

the drug and, since it's almost legal anyway, it's not a problem.

"Lately, we've issued a number of 72-hour driver's suspensions in the last few weeks [following field sobriety tests]," said Bell.

"They have no problem admitting [they've consumed marijuana] because they don't think it's a big deal. But, when I'm brought in to conduct the testing, you can clearly see their not okay to drive. They perform very poorly on the tests," he explained.

Bell said the distinct, pungent smell of marijuana smoke is one of the strongest indicators of the presence of marijuana. It's similar to that of a skunk.

"We say that 'marijuana smells like marijuana,'" said Bell.

Depending on the amount of pot smoked by someone, the effects can be similar to excessive alcohol consumption.

The new legislation, now in the House of Commons, would permit possession of up to 30 grams of cannabis (dried or fresh) by adults at least 18 years of age. Buying or selling marijuana outside of the laws, aimed to be in effect July 1, 2018, will carry serious criminal penalties.

Today, there is not a legal amount of marijuana a person can have in their possession, save for medical purposes.

"We've had sentences ranging from fines to probation orders," said Bell.

Until the legislation passes, if it will at all, Morden Police plan to continue educating people in the area about marijuana and other drugs through school and public presentations.