JUDGE ORDERS DISCHARGE IN POT CASE

Judge J.B. Paradis notes the accused man had the drug for patients who
use it through the Compassion Club.

Saying people who use marijuana for medicinal purposes have to get the
drug from somewhere, a judge has granted a conditional discharge to a
man caught transporting pot to a Vancouver club that caters to such
people.

Marcus Richardson was busted in November 1998, when police found six
kilograms of marijuana in his car and $6,000 cash, which the judge
found was provided by the B.C. Compassion Club to buy marijuana for
its members.

Richardson was convicted in June of possession of marijuana for the
purpose of trafficking, but Judge J.B. Paradis noted in passing
sentence this week that the Vancouver police department is aware of
and tolerates the Compassion Club.

While giving Richardson the conditional discharge and putting him on
probation for six months, the judge also ordered that the $6,000 be
returned to the club.

The Compassion Club distributes small amounts of medicinal marijuana
to 600 members who suffer from diseases ranging from AIDS and cancer
to multiple sclerosis.

The judge cited an article in the Journal of the Canadian Medical
Association that quoted Vancouver police Constable Anne Drennan as
saying that if the club abides by certain rules and regulations, "they
are not a priority for us. We are very much aware of the organization
and what is going on."

Noting there is no pharmacy that sells pot, Paradis said in a 14-page
judgment that if Health Canada has agreed to grant exemptions from
drug laws to people who get medical benefits from the drug, those
people have to get it elsewhere.

"The pharmacy in this case, known to and tolerated by police, is the
Canadian Compassion Club Society," he said. "Marijuana will not fall
into its hands as manna from heaven. It must be obtained directly from
growers, as is now the case, or through a middleman such as Mr.
Richardson, as was the case in November 1998."

The judge accepted evidence that Richardson kept the drugs at his home
and took only small amounts to the offices of the Compassion Club
because of a series of break-ins at its Commercial Drive area office,
where drugs and money had been stolen.

"I feel this decision is a really important milestone," Compassion
Club founder Hilary Black said Friday. "He [the judge] recognized we
are devoted to providing a service to people."

She said it was unfortunate that police destroyed the pot by burning
it or the Compassion Club would have made an application to have the
drug returned as well.

Black noted the court ruling "gives a lot of security to growers and
other people we deal with. Health Canada has given exemptions to 20
people now in Canada, but there's no supply."

Club members are given "prescriptions" by their doctors in the form of
letters of recommendation indicating they could get relief from
symptoms or pain by using marijuana.