cannabisnews.com: Pot-Plugging Minister’s Trial Delayed





Pot-Plugging Minister’s Trial Delayed
Posted by CN Staff on March 17, 2003 at 08:39:41 PT
By Linda Richardson
Source: Sault Star
The trial of a minister of a pot-promoting church was delayed until rulings are made in two other marijuana cases before Canadian courts. Closing arguments in Generik Broderick’s trial on narcotic possession charges were slated to take place Friday in Sault Ste. Marie. But Ontario Court Justice Wayne Cohen adjourned the case until July 11. Broderick, 42, of Mount Horeb, Wisc., faces counts of possession of marijuana, ecstasy and LSD. He was arrested March 14, 2002 when he tried to enter Canada at the International Bridge. 
During his trial in December, Broderick, who refers to himself as reverend brother, described marijuana as a sacrament in the Church of the Universe. He told the court he was on a pilgrimage to the church’s headquarters in Hamilton, Ont., when he was stopped at the bridge. Broderick said he had ecstasy and LSD with him because he wanted to discuss these substances with the church elders. On Friday, he asked for an adjournment until after June 23 when the federal court of Canada is scheduled to hear a case in Hamilton involving his church elders and marijuana as a sacrament. Federal prosecutor Marty Pawelek also noted the law regarding possession of marijuana is “in limbo’’ in Ontario following a Windsor judge’s landmark ruling earlier this year. The judge threw out a possession charge against a 16-year-old youth on a legal technicality, saying the law is invalid, because the federal government didn’t fill a void created by an earlier judgment. Since that time, Sault judges haven’t been hearing trials or taking pleas on marijuana possession charges and the matters are being adjourned. Pawelek said the federal government’s appeal of the decision was heard March 11 in Windsor and the Superior Court justice reserved his decision. Only one of the charges — possession of marijuana — Broderick faces is affected by this, Pawelek added. He suggested the court could hear the submissions on the other two counts and then reserve decision until after the Windsor appeal ruling is made. A second alternative would be to adjourn the submissions, Pawelek said. Saying a “fair trial and a fit sentence’’ is the basis for Canadian law, Cohen decided it would be “only fair to adjourn’’ pending the outcome of the Windsor and Hamilton cases. Source: Sault Star, The (CN ON)Author: Linda RichardsonPublished: Saturday, March 15, 2003Copyright: 2003 The Sault StarContact: Ssmstar ssm.southam.caWebsite: http://www.saultstar.com/Related Articles & Web Sites:Church of the Universehttp://www.iamm.com/Cannabis News Canadian Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htmWindsor Ruling in Pot Case Delays Local Chargeshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15110.shtmlOttawa Appealing Pot Possession Verdicthttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15106.shtml
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