cannabisnews.com: Dope Smoker Off Hook





Dope Smoker Off Hook
Posted by CN Staff on July 06, 2002 at 11:44:58 PT
By David Sands
Source: Edmonton Sun 
Marijuana possession charges have been stayed against an Edmonton man because neither doctors nor the feds can supply him with legal pot. The ruling - in favour of a man who does not have a federal permit for medical marijuana use - thrills medical marijuana advocates. "That's an excellent step forward," said Munir Ahmad, who runs the Edmonton Compassion Network and provides marijuana to "more than 20" people, only some of whom have federal permission to use the narcotic. 
Provincial court Judge Phil Ketchum called the possession charges against Brian Edward Oates, 45, "a violation of the accused's right to security of his person" and told cops and the Crown to back off, at least until Oates can go through the process for a legal exemption. Oates, who court heard was hurt in a 1995 industrial accident, was busted after a raid on his home found 71 plants growing in the basement. "It is not in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice to criminalize this accused while he waits for a medically approved source of raw marijuana to be made legally available," said Ketchum's written judgment. A doctor for Oates had told the court he "was prepared to support the accused's application for a ministerial permit" to use marijuana, Ketchum noted, "however, both the Canadian Medical Association and the Alberta Medical Association were taking the position that until a better policy is arrived at, and better studies and sources of the supply of medical marijuana are available ... practitioners should not support applications for use of medical marijuana." It's not fair, the judge said, that people have to live in pain while the authorities sort out a drug deal. "I find forcing the accused to choose between his health and imprisonment violates his right to liberty and security of the person under Section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms." Source: Edmonton Sun (CN AB)Author: David SandsPublished: Friday, July 5, 2002Copyright: 2002 Canoe Limited PartnershipContact: letters edm.sunpub.comWebsite: http://www.fyiedmonton.com/htdocs/edmsun.shtmlRelated Articles & Web Site:Canada Medical Marijuana http://www.medicalmarihuana.ca/Court Grants Historic Judicial Stay for Medical Cannabishttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13311.shtmlMedical Marijuana Users Take Refuge in Canada http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12972.shtmlCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://www.cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml
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Comment #1 posted by Sam Adams on July 06, 2002 at 11:55:46 PT
O Canada: the land of the unspoilt judiciary
What the hell has happened to our judiciary? It's like the politicians scour the US, digging the fascist nerds out of basement libraries. Right-wing freaks of nature that have never interacted normally with the rest of us.Thank you Canada, for showing us the proper function of the judiciary - intelligent, unbiased JUDGES ruling on the fundamental principles of law, not their own perverse moral and political agendas.
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