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Off-duty Ottawa police officers will be permitted to use cannabis once it’s legal in Canada later this month, Chief Charles Bordeleau said Monday, as long as they’re “fit for duty” when they report for work.

The policy is similar to the one for drinking alcohol or even using prescription drugs, he said.

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“An individual, an officer, needs to be fit for duty when showing up for work. We have different assessment methods to be able to determine whether that person is fit for duty or not,” Bordeleau said before a meeting of the police-services board that oversees the force.

Some other cities have imposed a stricter standard. Calgary’s police department, for instance, has banned recreational cannabis use among its officers if there’s any possibility they could be “operationally deployed” unexpectedly. There’s no sure way of knowing how long it might take to come down from a marijuana high, so Calgary’s told all officers who aren’t restricted to desk duties they’re just required to abstain at all times.