AREA CANNABIS GROUP IN CANADA TO STIR POT

Members of the homegrown Rochester Cannabis Coalition plan to pack a
regional cannabis conference in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada, today
to spark interest in legalizing marijuana.

The coalition was formed in recent months after a similar group
disbanded years ago at the Rochester Institute of Technology. This
group, again made up largely of RIT students, is focused mainly on
efforts to legalize medicinal marijuana, said its president, Dustin
Fineout.

"We need to change public opinion about the whole thing," said
Fineout, 19, an RIT freshman.

In 1998, RIT denied recognition of the group as a school club. Fineout
said the new group, consisting of about a dozen active members, isn't
planning to seek school recognition again. It will instead reach out
to Monroe County residents.

One of its first efforts will be attending the Cannabis Conference and
Protest today. The event is aimed at bringing in activists from Canada
and the United States to share information and ideas about
legalization. It will be at the Niagara Falls Public Library, 4848
Victoria Ave., Niagara Falls, Ontario.

One of the topics will be about legalizing marijuana for medicinal use
in New York, something a handful of states have done. Legislation in
New York has stalled.

Matt Mernagh, an organizer of the second annual event, said between
500 and 700 people from western New York and southern Ontario are expected.