SUPREME COURT THROWS POT DEBATE BACK TO PARLIAMENT

OTTAWA (CP) - There is no free-standing right to get stoned, Canada's top
court ruled Tuesday.

Tokers hoping for relaxed marijuana laws instead got a lump of coal as the
Supreme Court of Canada upheld 6-3 a federal law banning possession of small
amounts of pot.

''I'm bummed out, man,'' said David Malmo-Levine, a self-styled pot freedom
crusader in Vancouver. ''It's a bit of a kick in the nuts.''

Malmo-Levine, 32, and two other men failed to convince a majority of the top
judges that pot penalties are out of whack with constitutional guarantees of
fundamental justice.

The ban on possessing even tiny amounts does not violate the Charter of
Rights and Freedoms, said the court of last resort. It also unanimously
upheld the law prohibiting possession for trafficking.

It's up to Parliament to decriminalize the drug, says the 82-page ruling -
something Prime Minister Paul Martin has signalled could happen with a bill
to be reintroduced next year.

''I'm very glad to see the Supreme Court has sustained the government's
position,'' Martin said in an interview Tuesday. ''And we will be proceeding
with the marijuana bill as planned.''

The bill, first proposed under Jean Chretien, would wipe out criminal
penalties - including potential jail time and lasting records - for those
caught with small amounts of pot.

The legislation died when Parliament was shut down last month to give Martin
a fresh start in January. It made possession of less than 15 grams of pot -
roughly 15 to 20 joints - a minor offence punishable by fines of $100 to
$400, much like traffic tickets.

Critics said 15 grams is too much to equate with casual use. They also
questioned how police, with no equivalent of an alcohol breath test, would
assess those who drive while high.