ACTIVIST SAYS POT SALES WERE LEGAL

Store Owner Remitted Tax to Government From Marijuana

Nick Minardi -- owner of the Harvest Moon downtown hemp shop recently
raided by police who found marijuana, magic mushrooms and $240,000 in
cash -- is back in business, though he says not selling drugs.

Minardi sees himself as a reluctant activist taking a stand against
marijuana prohibition. Given the trend toward relaxed marijuana laws
in Canada in recent years, the 41-year-old entrepreneur says he
believed his pot sales were de facto legal and thus tolerated by the
authorities.

In fact, Minardi said for almost three years he has been remitting 15
per cent in tax from the sale of marijuana, which he rings through his
store till, to the federal and provincial governments. That represents
a significant amount since Minardi says Harvest Moon, which also
offers other fare such as throw rugs, posters and hemp products,
generates monthly sales between $16,000 and $18,000.

"I felt I was lawful in my actions," Minardi said during an interview
at a local coffee shop, alleging officers pointed a firearm in his
face when they arrested him. "It is basically legal in medical
conditions and I wanted to concentrate on that. I just wanted to
provide a safe access for people who were in need."

And while Minardi says selling psilocybin, commonly called magic
mushroom, is illegal, he considers it a spirituality aid. Besides, he
said, the mushrooms police confiscated were not yet fully cured.

Windsor police disagree that selling pot and psilocybin is OK.
Officers raided his store July 8, finding not only pot and mushrooms
with an estimated street value of about $149,000, but the largest
seizure of money in a drug bust in Windsor history. Police Staff Sgt.
Ed McNorton said at the time: "They found cash and drugs all over the
entire building, on counters, under counters, under cash registers, in
back rooms, in closets. Almost every area in the business had either
cash or drugs."

Minardi said he simply does not trust banks and that his "life
savings" were earmarked for a store expansion.

Richard Pollock, the lead federal prosecutor in Windsor, said Minardi
knows full well selling marijuana is illegal since in 1995 he was
sentenced to two years less a day for cultivating marijuana and
possession for the purpose of trafficking -- in the process forfeiting
a motorcycle, 5,775 grams of marijuana and $32,000 in cash.

Will Prosecute

"Mr. Minardi's track record speaks for itself and we expect to
prosecute Mr. Minardi to the full extent of the law, without
hesitation or reservations," Pollock said Tuesday. "The fact is, drug
use and drug trafficking contribute to serious crime in the community."

Pollock says 70 to 80 per cent of prison terms involve narcotics,
which can be physically and mentally harmful.

Many people, however, consider marijuana a soft drug and, though a
health risk, not a serious societal threat.

Prime Minister Paul Martin said a few weeks ago he intends to soon
reintroduce a bill -- first proposed without success by his
predecessor Jean Chretien -- to decriminalize possession of small
amounts of cannabis in Canada.

Last summer, much of the Ontario justice system briefly suspended
prosecuting marijuana possession while the province redefined its drug
law. A Canadian Senate report has called for cannabis legalization.
And several pot cafes have opened in Vancouver.

Pollock said the justice system does consider Canada's more lenient
attitude toward pot.

"The average person, including the media, might not be aware that the
courts, police and the Crown have acknowledged the change in attitude
toward marijuana use over the last 20 years, particularly in the past
10," Pollock said. "And that is reflected in the sentencing."

Citizens without criminal records caught with five grams or less of
marijuana may be sentenced to "criminal diversion," meaning they
typically pay between $100 and $300 to a charity or complete community
service and do not receive a criminal record. Large amounts of pot are
a different story.

Minardi said while he respects the police, he considers law
enforcement out of step with the community on marijuana. One of the
reasons Minardi claims he was encouraged to continue operating Harvest
Moon was a visit in 2002 from two Ottawa officials. Minardi claims
they were senators Pierre Claude Nolin, who led the Senate Special
Committee on Illegal Drugs which called for legalization of marijuana,
and Colin Kenny, deputy-chairman of the same committee. The two were
in Windsor in 2002 as part of a cross-country tour seeking input from
Canadians on narcotics.

"I presented them my business plan," Minardi recalled. "I told them
basically exactly what I was doing and they pretty much gave me the
thumbs up, because these guys are talking about legalization of marijuana."

An aide in Nolin's office said the senator does not remember visiting
Harvest Moon and would never suggest anybody break the laws of the
land.

Kenny says the same thing about visiting the hemp store. "I certainly
didn't," he said. "At least, I have no recollection of it."

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PUSHING THE ENVELOPE

While marijuana is still illegal almost everywhere in the world, a few
jurisdictions are becoming increasingly lenient toward the
much-debated narcotic, including Vancouver where at least half a dozen
cannabis cafes have opened.

"We have the same status as compassion clubs but we run our shop as a
cannabis cafe, so we're open to the public," said Carol Gwilt,
co-owner of Da Kine Beverage & Smoke Shop in downtown Vancouver. "You
need to have medical certification. So we strongly encourage people to
get a card."

Gwilt fully admits, however, that Da Kine often sells to people
without medical certification, though customers must be 19 or over to
enter the cafe.

"We're pushing the envelope," she said. "We're demanding
legalization."