POT LAWS UP IN SMOKE?

Simple possession of marijuana is not illegal, according to a provincial
court judge's Sept. 4 decision. An appeal is in the works, but similar
decisions have been upheld in three other Canadian provinces, meaning
taking a toke could soon be perfectly legal.

A decision made by a provincial court judge Sept. 4 has stirred up debate
on whether it is legal - or not - to take a toke or two of pot.

In B.C. provincial court, Judge Patrick Chen determined parts of the
(federal) Controlled Drugs and Substances Act are invalid, and therefore,
"there is no offence known to law at this time for simple possession of
marijuana" in the province.

"My opinion is that this is good news - a step in the right direction,"
said Parksville resident and herbalist David Faren.

Faren, who takes correspondence courses at Burnaby's Dominion Herbal
College, said the issue needs to go further.

"Having a legal source [of marijuana] would be a start - what about an age
limit?"

Kirk Tousaw, policy director for the B.C. Civil Liberties Association, sees
Chen's decision as a "victory for advocates of freedom and personal
responsibility."

"In Ontario, this decision was upheld - I'd hope the courts here look at
that," he said.

Representatives from the Federal Justice Department's B.C. region said
Thursday Chen's decision will be appealed.

And as far as the Oceanside RCMP are concerned, possession of pot continues
to be a crime.

"Our position is, it's still illegal - we're still charging for possession
and recommending charges to Crown," said Oceanside RCMP Sgt. Bruce Wright.

"Our main focus is trafficking and cultivation, but if someone is caught
with over 30 grams, they can be charged with possession."

Though no definition of simple possession was given in Chen's judgement,
Wright, Tousaw and Faren agree that 30 grams or less would likely be for
personal use (thirty grams of pot is just over one ounce).

Chen's decision was based on a series of court cases in Ontario that led a
judge there to strike down marijuana possession laws in January of this year.

That ruling goes back to a case known as R. v Parker and a July, 2000
judgement by the Ontario Court of Appeal - Parker refers to Terry Parker,
an epileptic who used marijuana to control life-threatening seizures.

The court declared the law prohibiting simple possession of marijuana to be
constitutionally invalid because it did not have an exemption for medical
marijuana use.

Chen wrote, in his view, "Section 4 of the Controlled Drugs and Substances
Act, as it applies to marijuana, ceased to be valid legislation after July
31, 2001." That date refers to a one-year grace period set by the Ontario
court in the R. v Parker case, a year where Parliament was supposed to
re-enact the prohibition or create a legislative exemption for marijuana use.

The day before the deadline, Parliament enacted the Medical Marijuana
Access regulations (MMAR), but those regulations were not law and could be
amended without debate.

As a result, provincial and superior courts in Ontario (and now, B.C.
Provincial Court) have ruled the law prohibiting possession was stricken
from the books by the Parker case.

Provincial courts in Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia have upheld the
Ontario decision as well.