Hilo, Hawaii

BIG ISLAND REPORT

JUDGE SETS HEMP SEED RETRIAL DATE

A circuit court judge on Thursday set Sept. 14 as the date to retry hemp
advocate Aaron Anderson on a felony charge stemming from a box of hemp seeds
he ordered from the mainland in 1991.

A mistrial was declared last October in Anderson's first trial after a
Circuit Court jury could not reach a unanimous verdict, but jurors were
leaning toward acquittal, 9 to 3.

Anderson is charged with second-degree commercial promotion of marijuana, a
class B felony with a sentence of up to 10 years in prison and a $25,000.
fine.

The charge stems from a 25-pound shipment of hemp seeds Anderson ordered
from a mainland company in May 1991. A police dog sniffed out the package
after it arrived in Hilo via Federal Express.

Anderson contends that the seeds he ordered were sterile hemp seeds, but
police said marijuana plants sprouted when they grew the seeds.

At trial, the prosecution argued that it didn't matter whether the seeds
were sterile because the seeds fit the legal description of marijuana.

The defense, however, argued at trial that there wasn't enough evidence to
prove the seeds were indeed marijuana. Prosecutors on Thursday asked Circuit
Judge Greg Nakamura to set a date for the new trial.

The defense has indicated that it will seek to dismiss the charge.

Anderson and former co-defendant Roger Christie, who had the same charge
against him dismissed, have filed a $3 million lawsuit against the county in
federal court alleging that they were targeted for prosecution because of
their outspoken pro-marijuana views.

Trial in the federal lawsuit is scheduled for July 14th in U.S. District
Court in Honolulu.