POLICE ARREST 'PRINCE OF POT'

Marijuana activist Marc Emery, known as the "Prince of Pot," was
arrested for trafficking the drug Monday in Saskatoon.

Emery, who had given a speech at the University of Saskatchewan
earlier in the evening touting the New Democratic Party's plan to
decriminalize pot, was taken into custody by Saskatoon police at the
Vimy Memorial bandshell at 11:30 p.m.

He made a brief appearance in provincial court Tuesday morning, where
the Crown dropped a charge of possession of marijuana and set a bail
hearing for 10:30 a.m. Wednesday. Emery was remanded until then, and
will likely miss a scheduled speech at the University of Alberta.

Emery, a Vancouver-based marijuana seed dealer and president of the
B.C. Marijuana Party, was on a month-long university speaking tour.
The majority of the speeches, including the one at the U of S, were
sponsored by campus NDP groups.

Emery's tour co-ordinator, Jody Pressman, called the arrest
"politically motivated."

"I mean, here's a guy who's going cross-country to raise the issue of
not only marijuana law reform but the NDP policy of law reform,"
Pressman said in an interview.

"The police are doing Marc Emery a favour by illustrating just how
failed and harmful these laws are."

Pressman wondered if Emery was in jail because he had been targeted by
Saskatoon police.

"There's some serious questions about the timing and the nature of
Marc's arrest, and the zealousness with which it's been pursued," he
said.

"They must have known he was on a political tour of this nature to
raise public awareness about the federal election and the NDP's
policies on marijuana."

Saskatoon police did not give many details about Emery's arrest, but
Staff Sgt. Murray Zoorkan said police went to the bandshell after
receiving a call about people smoking pot there.

Justin McGowan, one of about 15 people who were with Emery at the
bandshell, was the only other person arrested. He was charged with
possession.

In an interview Tuesday, McGowan said Emery suggested after his speech
that everyone "meet up and smoke pot."

"Around 11 (p.m.), Marc Emery . . . comes to the memorial and starts
lighting joints and handing them out and passing them around," McGowan
said.

Police arrived about half an hour later and asked if anyone was
smoking marijuana. According to McGowan, Emery immediately spoke up,
and was arrested.

"He was really amicable about it, and just sort of resigned to it,"
the U of S philosophy student said.

Nathan Holowaty, president of the Young NDP at the U of S, was
surprised to hear that Emery had been arrested.

"I didn't think he would actually get arrested. I thought . . . if he
was coming into town, he would probably keep it low key," he said.

Emery was also arrested last July in Regina after lighting a pot pipe
on the steps of the city's police station with officers looking on.
Charges were later dropped.