SOURCE: Ottawa Citizen
CONTACT: letters@thecitizen.southam.ca

Hemp crusader escapes jail time, fined $750
By Pearce Bannon, The Ottawa Citizen

LONDON, Ont. û Cannabis crusader Chris Clay, whose constitutional challenge
to Canadian marijuana laws was rejected last month, escaped jail time but
is $80,750 poorer.

Justice John McCart of the Ontario CourtÆs general division, sentenced the
26yearold former hemp entrepreneur Friday to three years probation for
various trafficking and possession charges and imposed fines totaling $750.

But by agreeing to forfeit inventory seized by London police during a 1996
raid on his store Hemp Nation, Mr. Clay has lost an estimated $80,000 worth
of pipes, bongs, marijuana seeds and rolling papers.

Judge McCart agreed with a joint submission from Crown and defence counsel
that Mr. Clay should not be sent to jail.

Last month, Judge McCart rejected Mr. ClayÆs constitutional challenge,
argued during an internationallypublicized threeweek trial this spring,
and convicted him on drug trafficking and possession offences dating from
1995.

In his ruling, Judge McCart said Mr. Clay was not selling seeds to profit
from the "illicit black market" of the drug trade and "did what he did
soley to test the marijuana law.

"Mr. Clay genuinely believes the harshness of marijuana laws needs to be
alleviated or eased," he said.

In August, Judge McCart ruled that although he agreed with defence
witnesses that marijuana is relatively harmless in comparison to alcohol
and tobacco, changes to CanadaÆs drug laws should be made by the
politicians, not the courts. In turn, Mr. Clay was found guilty of
possession, possession for the purpose of trafficking and trafficking in
marijuana.

Mr. Clay pleaded guilty Friday to a fourth charge of possession for the
purpose of trafficking stemming from the 1996 raid on his store. In
exchange, other charges against Mr. Clay from that same raid were dropped.

Judge McCart sentenced Mr. Clay to the maximum of three years probation,
which will be served in Vancouver where Mr. Clay says he is moving within
the month.

Under the conditions of his probation order, Mr. Clay is forbidden from
having any contact with illicit drugs, nor can he take part in the selling
production, advertising and distribution of drug paraphernalia.

In Vancouver, Mr. Clay plans to help medical marijuana activist Hillary
Black, who has set up a marijuana buyerÆs club for people suffering from
such serious ailments as cancer and multiple sclerosis.

Meanwhile, Mr. ClayÆs lawyers filed an appeal Friday of Judge McCartÆs
rejection of the constitutional challenge.

With all outstanding charges now behind him, Mr. Clay said he can now
concentrate on raising money to finance the appeal and his move to Vancouver.

Mr. Clay figures an appeal will cost $10,000, of which $1,500 has already
been raised.


Pearce Bannon is a freelance writer.

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Hemp Nation * http://www.hempnation.com/
Chris Clay * Email chris.clay@hempnation.com