DRUG TRIAL DELAYED FOR POT-SMOKING 'POPE'

A judge has postponed a marijuana activist's drug trial so the man
can apply for a medical exemption.

Ken Kirk, a self-proclaimed pope in the Church of Reformed Druids and
former Marijuana Party candidate in the federal Edmonton-Strathcona
riding, said smoking pot controls his epileptic seizures, back pain
and bipolar disorder.

His doctor sent a letter to Health Canada on Wednesday seeking an
exemption that would allow Kirk to possess and grow his own
marijuana. More than 100 such permits have been granted across the
country. The exemption under Section 56 of the Controlled Drugs and
Substances Act could have an impact on his criminal case.

Court of Queen's Bench Justice Terry Clackson said he didn't want to
hold up the trial, which was supposed to start Monday, even though
cases before the Supreme Court could result in the decriminalization
of the drug.

Clackson relented when the Crown agreed to the delay.

Kirk, 39, and his former girlfriend, Amy von Stackelberg, 21, will
now stand trial in September on charges of producing a controlled
substance in 1998.

Kirk was jailed for five months that year for drug trafficking and possession.

"I want to have this stuff finally concluded," said Kirk, adding he
still smokes pot every day to prevent seizures.

"If I don't smoke it every day, I might have a seizure and die. ... I
might grow old without smoking pot, but I don't want to find out."

On Thursday, the Supreme Court agreed to hear claims by three
convicted pot smokers that federal marijuana laws are
unconstitutional because the drug is harmless.

One of the appeals involves David Malmo-Levine of Vancouver, who
organized pro-marijuana rallies in Edmonton in the early 1990s.