cannabisnews.com: Medical Marijuana Club Raided





Medical Marijuana Club Raided
Posted by FoM on February 12, 2000 at 10:38:06 PT
By Ingrid Peritz, Quebec Bureau
Source: Globe & Mail
When it comes to smoking marijuana in Montreal, it seems that even a doctor's note is not good enough.Police proved on Thursday that they're not prepared to be compassionate toward the city's so-called Compassion Club, a storefront site offering medical marijuana. Officers arrested two employees and seized the names of 27 doctors who had recommended pot for their ailing patients.
Apologetic-sounding police said yesterday they had no choice. The federal government can give permission to cultivate and use marijuana for medical purposes, but marijuana "compassion clubs" remain illegal."We feel pain for the people who are suffering, but until legislators change the law we have to apply it," Commander André Lapointe said. "We're not gloating over this."Marc St. Maurice and Alexandre Néron appeared in court yesterday on charges of possessing 66 grams of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking -- enough to make 150 to 300 cigarettes, "depending on the size," Cdr. Lapointe said.The raid also raises the possibility of holding doctors criminally responsible for recommending pot to their patients. Police confiscated evidence from physicians who had suggested marijuana use to 33 patients and forwarded it to Crown prosecutors.The doctors could face charges of counselling someone to commit a criminal offence, Cdr. Lapointe said, adding that prosecutors will decide. He noted that some patients at the club suffered from serious ailments such as AIDS and breast cancer, while others complained of migraines and back pain.Only one of the members had received a federal exemption for taking marijuana for medicinal purposes.When the club opened, the director said patients would require a doctor's note or prescription, and were allotted only enough marijuana for personal use. Police say they have been building their case ever since the club opened, and put the club under surveillance -- not very difficult, since it is across the street from a police station.Published: February 12, 2000Copyright © 2000 Globe Information Services.Related Articles & Web Site:The Compassion Clubhttp://www.thecompassionclub.org/Two Arraigned on MMJ Trafficking Chargeshttp://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread4693.shtmlTwo Arrested at Club that Provides M. Marijuana http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread4676.shtmlCannabisNews Search Of Compassion Club News Articles:http://www.alltheweb.com/cgi-bin/asearch?type=all&query=cannabisnews+compassion+club 
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Comment #1 posted by kaptinemo on February 12, 2000 at 19:10:19 PT
Once is an accident, Twice a coincidence
Three times is a conspiracy.Isn't it amazing that within days of Health Canada approving the limited use of cannabis by those selected for its' distribution program, the names of those who applied are 'leaked' (by whom is still unknown) to an undisclosed new source? The resultant furore that this will create will probably - and unfortunately - distract people from the real danger that is now manifesting: Law Enforcement attempting an end-run around the Compassionate groups that already supply cannabis to the needy.Look at the timing involved in this raid; the Compassionate Club has been around for several months, but now, with the approval of the HC Cannabis Plan, the police move against the club - and the doctors who recommended cannabis for their patients. Why?Keep something in mind: although some people have already been approved to receive cannabis from HC, *many haven't gotten it yet*. They need it right now. They are in a very vulnerable position. But the Canadian government no-doubt wants the applicants to use *only its' cannabis*. The problem is compounded by the fact that bureaucracies move only at two speeds: dead slow and slower than dead. The patients can't wait. But like all governments, the bureaucrats in the HC don't want any outside competition calling into question their rationale for government monopoly on cannabis. The recent public demonstration in Ottawa exposed the HC dithering and embarrassed a few officials. It seems they didn't like that. I wouldn't put it past some of them to retaliate. So now its' payback time. Hence the moves in leaking the confidential information - and the police assault on the Compassionate Club.My friend from Toronto used to tell me that Canadians had a saying: that the tallest poppy gets its head cut off. Looks like she had a point, there; by taking the initiative, the Compassionate Clubs have earned the ire of those whose courage was as lacking as their compassion was meager. They're proving just how meager right now.
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