Busted for some pot 20 yrs. ago, a DUI, petty theft, etc. - Don't expect to get into Canada

[GreenTea]

And soon, not the rest of the world either? So you can't escape your past or this country, ever?

Going to Canada? Check your past
Tourists with minor criminal records turned back at border

There was a time not long ago when a trip across the border from the United States to Canada was accomplished with a wink and a wave of a driver's license. Those days are over.

Take the case of 55-year-old Lake Tahoe resident Greg Felsch. Stopped at the border in Vancouver this month at the start of a planned five-day ski trip, he was sent back to the United States because of a DUI conviction seven years ago. Not that he had any idea what was going on when he was told at customs: "Your next stop is immigration.''

Felsch was ushered into a room. "There must have been 75 people in line," he says. "We were there for three hours. One woman was in tears. A guy was sent back for having a medical marijuana card. I felt like a felon with an ankle bracelet.''

Or ask the well-to-do East Bay couple who flew to British Columbia this month for an eight-day ski vacation at the famed Whistler Chateau, where rooms run to $500 a night. They'd made the trip many times, but were surprised at the border to be told that the husband would have to report to "secondary'' immigration.

There, in a room he estimates was filled with 60 other concerned travelers, he was told he was "a person who was inadmissible to Canada.'' The problem? A conviction for marijuana possession.

In 1975.

Welcome to the new world of border security. Unsuspecting Americans are turning up at the Canadian border expecting clear sailing, only to find that their past -- sometimes their distant past -- is suddenly an issue.

<snip>

"People say, 'I've been going to Canada for 20 years and never had a problem,' '' Lesperance says. "It's classic. I say, 'Well, you've been getting away with it for 20 years.' ''

A prior record has always made it difficult to cross the border. What you probably didn't know was that, as the Canadian Consulate's Web site says, "Driving while under the influence of alcohol is regarded as an extremely serious offense in Canada.''

So it isn't as if rules have stiffened. But what has changed is the way the information is gathered. In the wake of 9/11, Canada and the United States formed a partnership that has dramatically increased what Lesperance calls "the data mining'' system at the border.

The Smart Border Action Plan, as it is known, combines Canadian intelligence with extensive U.S. Homeland Security information. The partnership began in 2002, but it wasn't until recently that the system was refined.

"They can call up anything that your state trooper in Iowa can,'' Lesperance says. "As Canadians and Americans have begun cooperating, all those indiscretions from the '60s are going to come back and haunt us.''

<more>

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/02/23/MNGCAO9NSB1.DTL

[Purveyor]

1. Interesting info. Thanks for posting. n/t

[Tsiyu]

2. It's not your daddy's Freedom

And freedom isn't free and all that....Interesting report.

[Zensea]

3. Full disclosure is the best way -- you can't assume you're immune

I had a DUI back in 1978.
I went into Canada driving in a car last year.
The border guard asked me if I'd ever been convicted of a criminal offense.
I told him straight up I had.
I'm sure he looked it up to check.
He let me in even though I was driving but he did specifically say they frowned on such things.
Maybe he figured it was so long ago, back when I was 22 and now I'm 50?
Maybe he figured because I was being upfront about it?
When I got back, I looked up the laws and I called the Canadian consulate to find out & from what I could determine, whether they let you in is fairly discretionary but if you go through the channels it is highly likely they will let you in. Plus, you increase your chances if you check it out beforehand instead of just assuming you are immune -- which is a traditional American arrogance that I was guilty of myself.

To be honest, I got hassled quite a bit more when I came back into the United States than when I left. I felt like I was dealing with a basic policeman when I went into Canada. I felt like I was dealing with the military when I came back into the United States.

[GOTV]

7. What are the "channels"...

... I've been to Canada before and I'm planning to go again. I was also convicted in 1980. I'm not even entirely sure what the conviction was for any more - I remember it was not what I was charged with. I think it might have been open container.

Anyway, what are the channels other than showing up at a border checkpoint?

[Zensea]

11. Contact the Canadian Consulate directly

Actually, the information is in the article linked to in the original post.
When I called them after I got back from my trip it sounded like it was basically just a formality which is what led me to believe it had a lot to do with being upfront and honest -- which is the experience I already had had at the border myself.

[Matariki]

4. This is Canadian law - not US customs

About a dozen years ago, I traveled to Victoria with a friend who didn't have a driver's license. He was pulled into the 'secondary' screening room without any explanation. After they searched their databases and found no felonies on his record, they explained that not having a drivers license was a red flag for things like DUIs. Apparently people with felonies are not allowed into Canada and DUIs are a felony in Canada.

So your subject line about Bush wanting to keep you in the US is a bit misleading. On the other hand, the new US law requiring a passport to travel to and from Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean is a whole other story.

[GreenTea]

8. However, Bush's bullshit "war on terrorism" & the suspect 9-11 is the cause for this change

It's Bush's war for profit and he's selling it as anything else...BushCo is the root and cause for these changes!

[Zensea]

12. It's not Bush, it's modern technology

Bush might have sped up the process a bit, but it was inevitable.
The article itself says that according to the Canadians nothing really has changed except for the fact that they have better information processing than before.
I blame Bush for a lot of things, but frankly it's a bit silly to blame him for this, for the advent of the computer age.

[Matariki]

24. I encountered this CANADIAN law before Bush was ever in office. n/t

[LaPera]

5. Thanks, and to think that being popped for a joint years ago...

That the US will become one big prison, a Berlin Wall if you will.

[RaleighNCDUer]

14. First there was Escape from New York, then Escape from LA --

I guess next it will be Escape from USA.

Where's Snake Pliskin when you need him?

[Kolesar]

23. the computer who wore tennis shoes

[PLF]

6. I hope it damages it Canadian economy to the point where they abandon it

[petepillow]

22. oh it will, unless they are being "compensated" in other ways by the US for

striking fear in the wayward hearts of americans. isn't that the repuke method? either get scared straight or rot in hell... smoething like that.

[leftofthedial]

9. So king george can't get into Canada then?

He had a DUI.

He had numerous much more serious offenses as well, but they've apparently been scrubbed.

[meegbear]

10. When I used to go to Montreal for Gay Pride, we were warned about this ...

we would go up in a tour bus and before we'd reach the border, we'd get "the lecture".

Basically we were told that usually, the border people will scan the passenger list and that was it (this was after 9/11). But they may also come on board and ask if anyone has been in jail or in court. We were told if you were, don't speak up, not even you were in for jury duty. If you do, you will be taken off and questioned/checked.

Of course, they may ask you to get out and get checked anyways. That did happen once, but we all had passports and we all checked out.

[fed-up]

13. lots of info posted on earlier thread-link below

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2742228
Going to Canada? Check your past-Visitors with minor criminal records turned back

[madinmaryland]

15. I guess that's why Shooter and Bush have not been to Canada recently!!

[guodwons]

16. What do you think happens going from Canada to US?

This problem has existed more substantially for Canadians trying to get into the US for many years. If you were charged with possession in Canada you cannot get across the border into the US. I've had senior people on my teams who wanted to move to US based positions but couldn't because of charges in their past.

[mzmolly]

17. What a bunch a hozers ey?

:P Actually, this is sad and surprising.

[The Backlash Cometh]

18. Our southern border most be more porous than our Northern one.

[vincent_vega_lives]

19. Huh, I drove up to Montreal just this past October

Absolutely No problem to or fro. Standard "What is the purpose of your visit" question.

Coming back, only standard customs question.

My wife has a green card and still no delay.

[orleans]

20. tell your kids/teens about this folks....give them another reason

not to drink & drive

if we ever thought canada was going to be our safe haven if the shit really hits the fan here we'd better be fucking careful

i was there for several months in the early 80s and really loved canada. it would break my heart to think i could never go back--or take my daughter with me.

[orleans]

21. persons who are inadmissible to canada:

"Members of Inadmissible Classes include those who have been convicted of MINOR OFFENCES (including shoplifting, theft, assault, dangerous driving, unauthorized possession of a firearm, possession of illegal substances, etc.), or of INDICTABLE CRIMINAL OFFENCES (including assault with a deadly weapon, manslaughter, etc.). As well, those who have been convicted of DRIVING WHILE INTOXICATED (DWI) are considered Members of an Inadmissible Class. Driving while under the influence of alcohol is regarded as an extremely serious offence in Canada.

"Those who have received TRAFFIC VIOLATIONS (including parking/speeding tickets, etc.) and other minor violations (i.e. littering, etc.) most likely will NOT be prohibited from entering Canada. Similarly, those who have JUVENILE CONVICTIONS (convictions for crimes committed while under age 18) most likely will NOT be prohibited from entering Canada unless they could have been tried as an adult for their offences.
http://geo.international.gc.ca/can-am/seattle/visas/inadmissible-en.asp