CITY HALL POT PROTEST BRINGS FINE

A Red Deer judge handed out a $75 fine on Wednesday for smoking marijuana
outside City Hall in a protest against pot laws.

Provincial court Judge Jim Mitchell assured the 23-year-old protester that
marijuana laws are changing.

There is no doubt that the law in this area is evolving - not as quickly as
some people would like, but it is changing and it has been changing for
awhile," said Mitchell.

The protester, who had been charged with possession of a controlled
substance, was given until Aug. 31 to pay the $75.

Some protesters charged during the April 20 demonstration are taking
alternative measures through the courts.

Alternative measures allows people without criminal records to complete
community work or taking other remedial actions. They avoid a criminal
record. The man who was fined chose not to take part in alternative
measures.

During the protest, more than 400 people converged on City Hall Park to
support decriminalization of marijuana. Dozens of marijuana joints were lit
up at 4:20 p.m. to mark International Pot Day. About 20 RCMP officers moved
in to make arrests. Police seated a row of handcuffed men along a Ross
Street curb and laid 15 charges.