POT ACTIVIST APPEALING SENTENCE

Busted pot activist Michael Ronald Patriquen has made it official: he's
appealing his six-year sentence for two drug convictions.

The former Marijuana Party candidate was back in the news last month after
trying, unsuccessfully, to smoke pot in jail. Patriquen, 49, holds federal
licences to grow and possess marijuana for medicinal use.

He was sentenced to six years in prison on Sept. 10 for conspiring to
traffic the drug in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland.

Two weeks later, Patriquen's wife said she hoped the Nova Scotia Court of
Appeal would overturn the sentence.

Rights neglected

Patriquen filed a handwritten appeal this week, alleging the trial judge
erred on several grounds. Among them is his argument that the judge
neglected some of his Charter rights.

Patriquen, who has a criminal record dating back to 1976, was part of a
marijuana ring that operated in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland in 1998 and 1999.

Police once found $26,000 cash in a secret compartment in his car, and
$100,000 in his luggage after a trip from Newfoundland.

They seized more than 300 plants from three Nova Scotia growing operations,
and $13,380 hidden in a stereo speaker at Patriquen's home.

As part of his sentencing, the federal Crown gets to keep that money.