cannabisnews.com: Marijuana-Smoker Going To Court for Safe Supply





Marijuana-Smoker Going To Court for Safe Supply
Posted by FoM on January 20, 2000 at 16:48:32 PT
By James McCarten, The Canadian Press
Source: Canoe
An AIDS patient is going to court to force the government to supply him with pot it has already said he is allowed to smoke. Jim Wakeford is one of 20 Canadians with the legal right to grow and possess marijuana for medical purposes thanks to a court ruling last spring. But without access to a safe, clean supply of a substance that has long been illegal, he says the right to smoke it is of little use -- especially for someone with an impaired immune system. 
"It's been a privilege to have won the right to use and cultivate marijuana illegally," Wakeford told a news conference Thursday as he brandished a bag of the green weed. "My right to use and cultivate marijuana was recognized and established, but the right now requires remedy." Wakeford and his lawyers have asked the Ontario Superior Court of Justice to compel the federal government to supply him with marijuana and to protect the "caregivers" who give it to him now. Smoking street marijuana is potentially deadly for Wakeford, and growing a clean supply is difficult given his condition and lack of expertise, said lawyer Alan Young. "You don't know what you're buying; it's filled with adulterants, fungi, moulds and contaminants," said Young. "It would be suicide for (people like Wakeford) to obtain medicine that's tainted." Wakeford said Ottawa has access to clinically grown marijuana in Britain and the U.S. but has so far refused to provide any to the 20 individuals permitted to use it. "We can't wait for the Canadian supply," he said. "We need immediate and compassionate access to safe, clean, affordable, high-quality marijuana." The government had no immediate comment on Wakeford's court action. But, Health Canada spokesman Eric Morin said Thursday the government is examining ways to ensure those who secure cannabis for patients with permission to use it aren't subject to punishment. "We are looking at that issue," Morin said. "We're definitely looking at options to provide a safe Canadian supply; we understand the importance of that." Public Works and Government Services Canada is developing a plan to enlist producers to grow marijuana domestically for medical use, he added. People with illnesses such as cancer and AIDS have claimed for years that marijuana helps to relieve pain and stimulate appetite, but solid scientific data has been elusive. The Health Department is also negotiating with a British firm to test a form of marijuana that is ingested using an inhaler. Currently, marijuana is not approved for medical use in any country. Only a few clinical trials have been done, and they've been inconclusive. TorontoPublished: January 20, 2000Copyright © 2000, Canoe Limited Partnership. Related Articles & Web Site:Jim Wakeford Medical Marijuana Websitehttp://www.interlog.com/~wakeford/Marijuana's Truth and Consequences - 10/31/99http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread3493.shtmlRock Approves Pot Use for 14 More - 10/05/99http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread3153.shtml
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