MARIJUANA LAW RULED 'UNCONSTITUTIONAL'

Judge Acquits Man, Federal Health Minister Plans New Anti-Drug
Plans

Rolling a joint might require the removal of stems and seeds, but the
legal limbo in which pot smokers in Canada find themselves is far from
clear-cut.

On July 13, an Ontario Court judge in Toronto acquitted Clifford Long,
who was charged with possession of 3.5 grams of marijuana.

The court held that Canada's marijuana possession laws are
unconstitutional. Justice Howard Borenstein cited a seven-year-old
Ontario Court of Appeal case, which also described the possession law
as unconstitutional, due to its ambiguity on medical marijuana.

Long argued in court that since the government of Canada allowed for
medicinal use, but did not change the law on marijuana to accommodate
this policy change, then all possession laws should cease to exist.

That is good news for many Canadians. A recent study by the United
Nations stated that Canada has the highest rate of regular marijuana
consumption in the world, at 16.8 percent between the ages of 15 and
64.

The figure is reportedly almost equal to the number of tobacco smokers
in Canada.

Federal health minister Tony Clement is planning a new anti-drug
campaign in response.

In a speech to the Canadian Medical Association on Aug. 21, he
suggested that the legal ambiguity is a bad message to "young people."
"The messages young people have received during the past several years
have been confusing and conflicting to say the least," he stated.

"The debate over whether to legalize marijuana, for example, has left
an entire generation confused over whether or not pot is legal in
Canada," he continued.

"Ladies and gentlemen, it is not."

Health Canada began administering the Marijuana Medical Access
Regulations (MMAR) in 2001.

Two years later, in 2003, Warren Hitzig and others challenged the
federal government over the MMAR's ambiguity in obtaining marijuana
seeds and plants for medicinal users who opt into the grow-your-own
plan.

The government was given six months to create a legal solution, which
resulted in a federal marijuana distribution contract signed with
Prairie Plant Systems in Flin Flon, Manitoba.

York University allows at least one individual to smoke pot on
campus.

On Nov. 6, Brian MacLean, a York assistant professor in sociology,
received accommodation to smoke pot on campus grounds for medicinal
purposes.

MacLean suffers from degenerative arthritis that requires him to use
marijuana once every four hours.

As well, two ordained ministers from the Church of the Universe, a new
religious movement, have filed a $25 million class action lawsuit in
the Federal Court of Canada, challenging possession law.

They say the law violates freedom of religion, since marijuana is a
"sacrament" to the Church.

- -With files from CBC, the National Post, and The Globe and Mail