Windsor police are reminding people that buying pot from a retailer is still illegal in the city. And it's not an April Fool's joke.
With brick-and-mortar businesses in selected Ontario cities opening legal cannabis stores Monday, Windsor does not yet have one. Therefore, police said you can still be charged if you buy marijuana from a business in the city and business owners can still be charged with selling it.
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has allowed 25 cities to be the first to open stores that sell legal weed. Windsor was on the original list to get a store, and Windsor City Council voted in January to opt-in for a brick-and-mortar store. However, a licence has yet to be awarded for a Windsor pot business and a location, subject to provincial authority, has yet to be selected.
With the closest retail store opening today located in London, Windsor police Constable Talya Natyshak said cannabis, for now, can still only be purchased legally online in Windsor, and it's up to landlords in the city to make sure they understand the law surrounding cannabis.
"The Windsor Police Service will continue to actively investigate the illegal selling of cannabis and any landlord found to be complicit with an illegal store may be charged under the Provincial Cannabis Act," said Natyshak.
Complete information from AGCO on how the Cannabis Act pertains to landlords is available on their official website.
