COURT TO HEAR U.S. MAN'S REFUGEE CASE

VANCOUVER - An American user of medical marijuana who had his claim
for refugee status in Canada rejected more than a year ago says the
Federal Court has agreed to hear an appeal of his case.

Steve Kubby, 58, said he received word last week that the court had
granted him leave to appeal the December 2003 Immigration and Refugee
Board decision that he and his family were not entitled to refugee
status.

He said the hearing for his appeal is set for March 24 in
Vancouver.

Kubby came to Canada in 2001 after being convicted in California of
possessing peyote and one magic-mushroom stem. He received a 120-day
sentence.

He said he is licensed by Health Canada to consume up to 28 grams of
marijuana a day to treat the symptoms of his adrenal cancer and fears
that if he is deported to the U.S., he will be jailed for using the
drug.

However, in 2003, IRB adjudicator Paulah Dauns concluded Kubby's fears
of imprisonment were not a sufficient basis for refugee status.

"What Mr. Kubby alleges does not amount to persecution," Dauns wrote.
"He was prosecuted for a breach of a law of general
application.

"He is arguing he will be denied medication, not that he would be
tortured while incarcerated."

Dauns also found that because California permits some medical use of
marijuana, Kubby would have legal options open to him if he was
prosecuted for marijuana possession.

Dauns wrote that some American states, like Washington and California,
"have very liberal and clear" medical marijuana laws. "Mr. Kubby is
free to choose to live in whichever state he feels best meets his
medical needs."

Kubby said he is hopeful the Federal Court will overturn the IRB
decision -- a move that could have an impact on similar refugee claims
currently before the board.

"We know a number of people who are in very desperate situations
simply because of their medical use of cannabis," Kubby said. "[The
U.S.] is not the free and democratic society that it once was and we
need the guidance and protection of Canada to help people in my situation."

Doug Cannon, a Vancouver lawyer who has handled many refugee cases,
said only about five per cent of unsuccessful refugee cases are
granted leave to appeal by the Federal Court.

Of those granted leave to appeal, fewer than one in five are
successful, he said.

Some, including Conservative MP Randy White, have criticized Canada's
refugee system for entertaining claims from medical marijuana users.

"We're finding that people who want to avoid the law in the U.S. come
here," White told The Vancouver Sun in 2004. "There is no merit to
their claims and the refugee board knows they have no merit. The
refugee board is wasting our time and money."

However, Cannon said cases like Kubby's -- and those of U.S. deserters
avoiding combat in Iraq -- should be heard by the IRB, even if the
board eventually rejects them.

"They're very, very low percentage cases," said Cannon. "[But] I think
it's a credit to the refugee protection system that we have an
opportunity to listen to these kinds of issues, whether they're
successful or not."