CANADA KEEPS MARIJUANA ILLEGAL

Canada's supreme court upheld the country's current laws against
marijuana possession on Tuesday, even as Prime Minister Paul Martin
presses to eliminate jail sentences for people caught with small amounts.

In a 6-3 decision, the justices ruled that possession of marijuana
would remain a criminal offense. In a separate, unanimous decision, it
maintained trafficking of the drug was illegal.

The ruling doesn't preclude Martin from going ahead with a proposed
bill that would soften penalties. President Bush has expressed
concerns over the bill, fearing it could encourage drug smuggling
along the border.

The court ruling prompted praise from law enforcement groups but
disappointment from proponents of marijuana legalization.

"My huge patriotism may slowly be dissipating. I have a lot of faith
in my country, in freedom and justice, but it doesn't seem like we
have a whole lot of that left," said Dominic Kramer, a marijuana
activist who runs a store that sells hemp products and paraphernalia
in Toronto.

Tony Cannavino, president of the Canadian Police Association, welcomed
the decision but expressed concern over Martin's intent to pursue the
controversial bill. He said marijuana growing seemed to be on the rise.

"We have more and more 'grow ops' across the country," he told
reporters in Ottawa. "You wouldn't see that 10 years ago."

A key question in the Supreme Court decision was whether Parliament
has the constitutional right to punish marijuana possession, given the
lack of proven serious harms from its use.

The high court examined three cases involving two pot activists and
one man who was caught smoking. All three failed to persuade lower
courts that the pot law is unconstitutional.

Defendant David Malmo-Levine took a hit of hash last May before
arguing his case in person at the high court while dressed head-to-toe
in clothes made of hemp cloth. He once ran the Harm Reduction Club, a
non-profit cooperative in Vancouver that offered advice on safe
marijuana use while supplying it to some 1,800 members.

Another case centered on Christopher Clay, who ran the Hemp Nation in
London, Ontario, a store he started with a government loan. He sold
marijuana seeds and seedlings in a deliberate challenge to the law.

Alan Young, lawyer for Clay, said his initial disappointment shifted
to anger after leafing through the lengthy decision.

"There's so much smoke and mirrors in this," he said. "This issue has
been a political hot potato that has bounced between Parliament and
the courts for the past decade."

Last week Martin said he planned to reintroduce a bill, first proposed
under former Prime Minister Jean Chretien, that would wipe out
potential jail time and criminal records for those convicted of
marijuana possession.

The bill did not legalize the drug, and maintained or increased
already stiff penalties for large-scale growers and traffickers. It
made possession of less than 15 grams of pot a minor offense
punishable by fines of $100 to $400, much like traffic tickets.

Critics said 15 grams, the equivalent of roughly 15 to 20 joints, was
too much to equate with casual use.

But the legislation died when Parliament adjourned last month to give
Martin a fresh start in January.