Sober reality sets in as police hand out first fines for violating cannabis laws

CTV National News: The dawn of legal marijuana History was made in Canada after the legalization of marijuana sparked the curiosity in many hoping to buy the product. Vanessa Lee reports.

The celebratory mood that marked the legalization of recreational cannabis lost a bit of its high for some consumers who found themselves with hefty fines for allegedly violating the law around pot use.

Hours after people lined up outside Newfoundland cannabis stores to buy the first legal bud in Canada, police in St. John's, N.L., say they ticketed a man accused of having more than 30 grams of weed in a public place without a licence.

The Ontario Provincial Police took to Twitter early Wednesday to post a photo of a $215 ticket given to someone who allegedly had a baggy of marijuana in their car, telling people to, "Arrive alive, drive sober!!"

Winnipeg police also posted a picture on Twitter of a $672 ticket handed out to someone accused of consuming cannabis in a motor vehicle.

Police say the ticket was issued Wednesday morning and they reminded people that while consuming cannabis is now legal -- just like alcohol -- consuming it in your car is not.

It wasn't yet clear if police in other jurisdictions had issued tickets for alleged violations of the Cannabis Act, but a spokesman for the Halifax municipality said Wednesday that bylaw enforcement officers were handing out information pamphlets to people they saw smoking marijuana or tobacco outside designated areas.