JUDGE EXPRESSES SYMPATHY FOR MEDICAL MARIJUANA GROWER

man gets probation instead of jail time

WOODSTOCK - A judge was sympathetic to a Tillsonburg man convicted of
growing marijuana in his home for what he said were medicinal purposes,
before sentencing him to one year of probation.

"You wouldn't even be in front of the court if it wasn't for your medical
problem and lack of help for your type of pain," said Judge M. Roberts. "But
I cannot allow you to break the law as it now stands. I cannot turn a blind
eye to this."

Sjoerd Hogsteen, 52, kept his left hand pressed against his lower back while
he pleaded guilty to one count of producing a controlled substance yesterday
in a Woodstock courtroom.

In 1983, doctors found a tumour on his spine, which put an end to his career
as a Tillsonburg farmer and marked the beginning of a life filled with
chronic pain. Although the father of three had the tumour removed, he still
suffers some pain as well as nausea from his medication.

"He says it improves his quality of life and without it he has chronic
pain," said Hogsteen's defence lawyer D. Pendergrast.

Hogsteen was arrested Dec. 14 2001 when Oxford OPP seized approximately 30
plants as well as lights and other growing equipment from his home.

"Because of the nausea and discomfort from the pain, he started to
experiment and started using marijuana for medicinal purposes," said
Pendergrast. "It alleviated the pain so he started to grow it himself for
his own use."Pendergrast told the court Hogsteen had applied for a licence
that would permit him to smoke marijuana for medicinal purposes in June
2002, but was denied.

His lawyer asked for Hogsteen to serve one day in custody rather than a
probation sentence restricting him from using non-prescription drugs in case
Hogsteen wanted to use marijuana again.

"We are looking for some compassion from the court," said Pendergrast.

However, the judge abruptly turned him down.

"Without a medical prescription, he doesn't have the choice," said Roberts.

She agreed instead with Federal Crown Attorney Michael Smith's suggestion of
a one-year probation.

"I can appreciate the difficulty the defendant has with medical
complications," Smith told the court. "This is certainly not a case driven
by a profit motive." Roberts told Hogsteen the sentence would have been
tougher were it not for the medical issues involved.

"Usually someone would go to jail for production of a controlled substance
but in this circumstance it should be probation," said Roberts.

The judge said she is hoping the government and the courts will clear up the
ambiguity surrounding the country's mairjuana laws, a number of which are
under review.

"We all are in the hope that there will be a clearing up of this concern
soon."