cannabisnews.com: Pot Smoker Fears Abuse in U.S. Jail





Pot Smoker Fears Abuse in U.S. Jail
Posted by FoM on June 16, 2000 at 07:33:48 PT
By Mark Dunn, Parliamentary Bureau
Source: Ottawa Sun
An American wanted on marijuana charges says she'll become a sex slave to prison guards and pimped around to male cons if she's extradited to the U.S. Renee Boje was in Ottawa yesterday to plead with Justice Minister Anne McLellan to remain in Canada. 
She's seeking refugee status. The 30-year-old advocate of medicinal pot fears she'll be raped and sold for sex if convicted on federal charges of drug manufacturing, distribution and conspiracy. Sex Slave: The charges in the U.S. carry a sentence of a mandatory minimum of 10 years to a maximum of life in prison -- considerably longer than in Canada. She says when she was originally charged in 1997 she was strip-searched 15 times over a 72-hour period -- sometimes in the presence of male guards who "probed their tongues at me and made other degrading gestures." Boje came to Canada in 1998 after the U.S. charges were briefly withdrawn. While in B.C., where she now lives, the charges were reinstated. She notes Canadian laws are friendlier when it comes to marijuana and that Canada is embracing the idea of using marijuana to ease pain and suffering. She smokes pot to ease the pain of migraines. Citing Amnesty International reports that prisoners in the U.S. are raped and tortured by male prison guards and sold to prisoners for sex, Boje fears being a caged woman. "Some unbelievable and terrifying things go on there and that's what I would face if I was to go back to the United States," she said at a news conference. Her Canadian lawyers are arguing for her to remain in Canada on three fronts: Abuse of women in U.S. prisons, disproportionate length of sentence, and inability to secure a fair trial because her co-accused cut deals with prosecutors to testify against her. McLellan is expected to make a decision this summer. Published: Thursday, June 16, 2000Copyright © 2000, Canoe Limited PartnershipRelated Articles & Web Site:Renee Boje's Legal Defense Fund http://www.reneeboje.com/Amnesty Internationalhttp://www.amnesty.org/CRRH Video:http://www.crrh.org/hemptv/docs_mmjvd.html Med. Pot Advocate Offers To Drop Extradition Fighthttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread3615.shtmlCanada and US in Drug Debate http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread3333.shtmlPeter McWilliams Passes Away http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread6069.shtml
Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help




Comment #1 posted by legalizeit on June 17, 2000 at 08:23:33 PT
All this over a plant
A hundred years ago, it would have been unthinkable that someone would risk jail time for growing or using a plant. Yet, after years of prohibition and media massaging, the public at large buys this garbage and, through electing (and often re-electing) prohibitionist zealots like Barr, McCollum, Hatch, Giuliani and Feinstein, supports the practice.Jails should be for real criminals. People who have committed real, violent crimes probably deserve some of the mistreatment that goes on in prison. A peaceful woman who has decided because of medical necessity to grow and use a certain plant has no place there, now or ever.
[ Post Comment ]

Post Comment


Name: Optional Password: 
E-Mail: 
Subject: 
Comment: [Please refrain from using profanity in your message]
Link URL: 
Link Title: