cannabisnews.com: Ottawa Endangering Lives of The Seriously Ill Ottawa Endangering Lives of The Seriously Ill Posted by CN Staff on July 29, 2003 at 21:37:20 PT By Gay Abbate Source: Globe and Mail The federal government is endangering the lives of seriously ill Canadians by forcing them into the black market to obtain marijuana for medicinal use, Ontario's highest court was told yesterday. Lawyer Alan Young told the Ontario Court of Appeal that Ottawa is violating the constitutional right of Canadians to choose their own medical treatment by not making the illegal narcotic available. "If you can't access the drug of choice there is no choice," said Mr. Young, who represents seven seriously ill Canadians and the operator of a Toronto compassion club which supplied the weed to the sick. Yesterday's hearing before the appeal court marked the latest legal battle over whether the federal government should provide marijuana to those who are prescribed it to ease their pain when other treatment has failed. The three appellate judges were asked by lawyer Croft Michaelson, acting for the Department of Justice, to overturn a lower-court ruling. The January decision by Mr. Justice Sidney Lederman of the Ontario Superior Court concluded that the patients' rights to life, liberty and security of the person under section 7 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms were violated because they were forced to buy their medication on the streets. Judge Lederman gave the federal government six months in which to pass regulations to ensure a legal supply of pot to medical users or see its entire marijuan-possession law struck down. Mr. Michaelson asked the court to overturn Judge Lederman's ruling because the constitution does not oblige the federal government to distribute pot. "Section 7 does not require the government to establish a legal source of unproved drugs because individuals choose to use them," he said, adding that Judge Lederman erred in requiring the government to establish a safe, legal supply. "This case is not about deprivation," he said. The act that Judge Lederman found invalid, the Medical Marijuana Access Regulations, was passed in 2000 to replace the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act which the Ontario Court of Appeal had ruled unconstitutional because it failed to provide exceptions for the medical use of marijuana. Terry Parker, who won in that case, was one of the parties in yesterday's hearing. Outside court, Mr. Young said the outcome of this case, and likely an appeal by the losing party to the Supreme Court of Canada is important because "we may be on the cusp of discovering the 21st Century panacea." Marijuana, he added, is a product that "will have more universal applications than aspirin." With a report from Canadian Press. From Wednesday's Globe and Mail Complete Title: Ottawa Endangering Lives of The Seriously Ill: LawyerSource: Globe and Mail (Canada)Author: Gay AbbatePublished: Wednesday, July 30, 2003 Copyright: 2003 The Globe and Mail CompanyContact: letters globeandmail.caWebsite: http://www.globeandmail.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Cannabis News Canadian Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htmCourt Hears Appeal That Could Alter Pot Possessionhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16973.shtmlPot Laws May Go Up in Smoke http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16965.shtmlOttawa's Marijuana May Go To Pothttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread16948.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #1 posted by Virgil on July 29, 2003 at 22:02:21 PT Read John Turmel I take offence at putting the words "illegal narcotic" in Alan Young's mouth. I do not think he would call it a narcotic and I doubt he would call it illegal either.Anyway, John C. Turmel will speak to the three judges tomorrow as he knows them quite well by now. Please read this- http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MedPot/message/951 [ Post Comment ] Post Comment