POT ACTIVISTS DODGE JAIL

Associates Of Marc Emery Sentenced In U.S.

Two associates of pot activist Marc Emery will avoid prison time after
being sentenced in Seattle last week.

Michelle Rainey and Gregory Williams were given two years probation in
the city's U.S. District Court for conspiracy to manufacture marijuana.

"I'm delighted they got two years probation," Emery told The Province
from Barrie, Ont. "They [the U.S. courts] are reserving their
vindictiveness for me, I would suspect."

Rainey and Williams were indicted alongside Emery in 2005 on drug and
money-laundering charges for their roles in running a seed business.

Rainey, 38, worked for Emery from 1998 to 2005, helping him mail-order
marijuana seeds to customers in the U.S., while 54-year-old Williams
took phone orders. The prosecution said Rainey and Williams were minor
players in Emery's business, and further noted that Rainey is
seriously ill with Crohn's disease and skin cancer.

U.S. District Judge Ricardo Martinez was asked on Friday to accept the
plea deal so that efforts could be focused on Emery, the so-called
"Prince of Pot."

"It's quite obvious it's all about politics," Emery said, noting his
political involvement against anti-marijuana laws has irked U.S. officials.

"The same seeds I sold are being sold right in America. The people in
California are doing it the same way I did so there's a terrible
hypocrisy at work here.

"It's all about my political message but the DEA [Drug Enforcement
Administration] denies this."

Emery said he's struck a deal with prosecutors to surrender in
September in return for a five-year federal prison sentence -- the
minimum he can receive if convicted.

Meantime, he has embarked on a 30-city "farewell tour" of speaking
engagements across the country.