cannabisnews.com: Pot-Shop Operator Pleads Guilty To Trafficking





Pot-Shop Operator Pleads Guilty To Trafficking
Posted by FoM on October 06, 1999 at 11:02:41 PT
By Don Murray, Free Press Court Reporter
Source: London Free Press
The husband of medical marijuana crusader Lynn Harichy pleaded guilty yesterday to trafficking pot through a now-closed Cannabis Compassion Centre they ran in London.
Mike Harichy, 47, was fined $300 and placed on 18 months' probation on terms that would allow him to use pot medicinally -- if he obtains an exemption from the federal government available under Section 56 of the Criminal Code.That permission would be the only exception to a condition of probation that forbids Harichy from having or using any drug not prescribed by a doctor.Ontario Court Justice John Menzies was told Harichy suffers chronic pain because of an incurable carpal tunnel condition and has also sought a federal disability pension.Lynn Harichy, 37, became a national figure in the campaign for medicinal use of pot two years ago when she was arrested trying to light up a joint on the steps of police headquarters as an act of civil disobedience.Harichy suffers from degenerative multiple sclerosis and says smoking marijuana eases symptoms such as shaking and nausea.Her symbolic act led to a possession charge that was stayed last week on compassionate grounds.Mike Harichy pleaded to one of three trafficking charges laid last March after an undercover investigation of the couple's compassion centre at 199 Wellington St.The centre opened in July 1998 to provide pot to members with specific medical conditions such as AIDS, cancer and MS or people with a doctor's letter endorsing marijuana use for other ailments.Federal prosecutor Bill Buchner said an undercover officer entered the store Feb. 16 and bought a glass pipe for $9.99.Harichy also gave the officer directions to a doctor who would examine his bad knee and perhaps write a letter.As he was leaving, the officer was asked if he wanted "a little right now."Buchner said he bought two grams in a plastic baggie for $30.Three days later the undercover officer bought another $30 worth of pot from Harichy at the store.They discussed having future purchases delivered to a London motel, Buchner said.He told Menzies that on the first visit there was only a cursory discussion of the medical uses of pot and no attempt to get a medical letter before selling it. There was no medical discussion on the second visit.Buchner said police returned March 5 with a warrant and seized 32 grams of dried marijuana worth $486.The prosecutor presented the joint Crown-defence sentence recommendation accepted by Menzies, saying the amounts of pot were small and the plea saved the cost of a trial.Illness and the medical marijuana campaign had left the Harichys in financial straits, Buchner said. Wednesday, October 6, 1999 Copyright © 1999 The London Free Press Related Information, Comment from MAPNEWS Sr. Editor, and Articles:Crown Drops Bid To Prosecute Pot Crusader - 9/28/99http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread3048.shtmlCrusade Ending but Landmark Fight Looms - 9/23/99http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread2987.shtmlA Comment By The MAPNews Sr.EditorThe Free Press wrote, above, "Medical marijuana crusader Lynn Harichy, who became a national figure two years ago when she smoked pot on the steps of London police headquarters, had her possession charge stayed yesterday." While Lynn never smoked pot on the steps - she was arrested before she could light it, the part about 'became a national figure' is true. A search on "Harichy" in our news archives produces many dozens of articles and published letters by or about her. She also wrote a feature article for our DrugSense Weekly.For Lynn, this has never been just an act of civil disobedience, but an act with the goal of mounting a Constitutional Challenge under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Lynn and I sat together in the London court room in 1997 when judge J. F. McCart denied the Constitutional Challenge in the Chris Clay trial (which is to be heard on appeal, as mentioned in the article). Judge McCart stated that the results may well have been different had the case been about medical use. This Lynn saw as an invitation, which she took at the local police station some weeks later. A lot has happened since the Fall of 1997, and some small progress made. However, today the fact that Lynn is still considered a criminal in the eyes of the law for using the only medicine which has really worked well for her is tragic.Readers who would like to chat with Lynn may find her in the MAP CHAT room most Saturday and Sunday evenings from about 9:00 p.m. Eastern time at:http://www.drugsense.org/chat/Some photos I took of Lynn with the media at her first court appearance are at:http://www.drugsense.org/lynn/ And the website for the now closed London Cannabis Compassion Centre still exists. If you stop by, be sure to sign Lynn's guestbook! http://www.drugsense.org/lccc/Richard LakeCrown Drops Bid To Prosecute Pot Crusaderhttp://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n1063.a06.html/all
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