cannabisnews.com: One of Canada's Medical Exemption Gets Hassled





One of Canada's Medical Exemption Gets Hassled
Posted by FoM on November 26, 2001 at 20:34:58 PT
By The Canadian Press
Source: Canadian Press 
One of the first Canadians granted a medical exemption to smoke pot for medicinal purposes has been busted by police. Jim Wakeford, 57, said RCMP in this Sunshine Coast community seized 28 marijuana plants, and a quantity of dried pot along with his home computer and office files. Police also seized 16 packages of marijuana he allegedly mailed earlier to friends with medical exemptions in Ontario, said Wakeford. 
Charges of trafficking are now pending against him. The bust left Wakeford angry and upset. "I'm horrified," he said. "I'm shocked. I'm mortified. This should never be allowed," he said. "Is this how we want to treat sick people in Canada? It's just nasty brutishness." Wakeford, a longtime social activist who diagnosed with AIDS ten years ago, was one of the first two people granted a medical exemption to Canada's drug laws in 1999. Under current regulations, medicinal users may only possess seven plants and 30 grams of pot. Wakeford admits he had more marijuana than that when police searched the house where he has been staying with friends for the past several months. "I always have that many plants," he said. "I don't recognize the government regulations." Earlier in the week, Wakeford had split up a pound of marijuana and mailed it in packages to 16 friends. Wakeford said he never tried to hide what he was doing. "It was accepted in the mail," he said. "All had my return address. I'm doing it openly." Despite his medical exemption, Wakeford has been arrested a number of times in Ontario, both for possessing and growing marijuana. This spring Ontario police seized about 200 plants he was growing for himself and other medicinal users on an Ontario farm. Those charges were later dropped. Wakeford is now continuing his medicinal pot crusade in courts, arguing it's unfair to grant exemptions to use marijuana for medicine but give sick people no legal way to obtain their pot. RCMP Staff Sgt. Ed Hill refused to discuss the case, except to say a "considerable quantity" of marijuana was seized from Wakeford. Complete Title: One of Canada's First Medical Pot Exemptions Gets Hassled by CopsNewshawk: mayanSource: Canadian Press (Canada Wire)Published: Monday, November 26, 2001Copyright: 2001 The Canadian Press (CP)Related Articles & Web Site:FTE's Canadian Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htmRebel With a Compelling Cause http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread10463.shtmlMarijuana-Growing AIDS Patient Raided Again http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread9451.shtmlMedicinal Pot User Awaits Ottawa's New Rules http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread9272.shtml
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