AILING SASKATCHEWAN MAN HAS SENTENCE FOR USING MARIJUANA REDUCED

REGINA (CP) - An ailing man convicted of drug charges for using marijuana
for health reasons has won a victory in Saskatchewan's highest court.

The Court of Appeal has reduced Barry Neil Malanchuk's sentence to the five
months he has already served under a form of house arrest. "It was a fair
decision under the circumstances,' Malanchuk said Friday. Malanchuk, 41,
has diabetes, glaucoma, kidney disease, heart disease and other maladies,
but he says smoking marijuana helps ease his symptoms. In August 2000, the
RCMP charged him after finding eight full-grown marijuana plants inside his
house and a number of smaller plants outside in his garden.

In January, 2002, following a three-day trial, Malanchuk was found guilty
of possession of marijuana, possession of cannabis resin and production of
cannabis for personal use.

He received a 15-month conditional sentence, which banned him from using
marijuana and restricted movement from his home.

However, on May 9 Health Canada issued him a medical exemption allowing him
to produce and possess marijuana.

Malanchuk, of Lloydminster, said the legal battle has taken a lot out of
him - he suffered a heart attack a few weeks before his May appeal court
appearance.