cannabisnews.com: Bail Rules Block Centre From Selling Pot Bail Rules Block Centre From Selling Pot Posted by CN Staff on August 15, 2002 at 07:51:32 PT By Jessica Leeder, National Post Source: National Post Three men and one woman arrested by a Toronto drug squad were released on bail yesterday on the condition they shut down a medical marijuana distribution network they have built up in order to sell drugs to 1,200 Ontarians.Warren Hitzig, 25, Zachary Naftolin, 24, Andrea Horning, 41, and Markos Koutoukis, 25, were taken into custody by members of the Toronto Drug Squad South late Tuesday at the culmination of an investigation by police into the Toronto Compassion Centre, a marijuana distribution network run by Hitzig that offers "medicinal" drugs to terminally ill club members. Yesterday, the four appeared before a Toronto judge, who agreed to release them on bail under strict conditions, including abandoning the practice of trafficking drugs to the organization's 1,200 members, whose numbers have been growing since the centre opened in 1998."Technically, we know there is no legal authority for us to distribute marijuana to sick people," said Alan Young, a Toronto lawyer and a spokesman for the centre.Young said the centre has been operating illegally for five years, ever since his requests for authorization were turned down by the Department of Justice and Health Canada.While it is legal for patients to possess and cultivate marijuana for certain medical conditions, it remains illegal for organizations to sell marijuana to those patients.However, he said he was shocked to learn police had raided the centre because police and government officials have known about the operation for years and have had full access to the premises, which he said operates on the principle of full disclosure."The police knew that if they felt they needed to take the club down, we would have given them the case on a silver platter," Young said."I have personally spoken to at least 12 police officers since the start who have arrested people buying from the club. Each and every time police were willing to turn a blind eye because they knew what the public service element of this was," he said. "If this club was going to traffic to non-medical users, it would not operate openly."Because he sought authorization from the beginning, Young said he believes the centre has a legal case, based on the concepts of medical necessity and "no other reasonable legal alternative," a principle used successfully by abortion activist Henry Morgentaler. Snipped: Complete Article: http://www.canada.com/search/site/story.asp?id=C541EC72-B6C6-4E92-A4B9-3C196C611615Source: National Post (Canada)Author: Jessica Leeder, National Post Published: Thursday, August 15, 2002Copyright: 2002 Southam Inc.Contact: letters nationalpost.comWebsite: http://www.nationalpost.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Toronto Compassion Centre http://www.torontocompassioncentre.org/With Supply Dry, Patients Turn To Street Sources http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13753.shtmlRaid Hurt The Sick: Pot Activist http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13752.shtml`Medicine' Seized in Bust of Pot Club http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13744.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #2 posted by WolfgangWylde on August 15, 2002 at 09:15:55 PT Ooops....make that "forcing" the SC's hand. ... [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by WolfgangWylde on August 15, 2002 at 09:15:03 PT Makes one wonder... ...if the Government isn't just foring the Supreme Court's hand. [ Post Comment ] Post Comment