POT-SMOKING ACTIVIST ATTRACTS 100 TO RALLY AT POLICE HEADQUARTERS

Hamiltonians helped a pot activist stage one of his largest rallies on a
cross-country tour promoting legalizing marijuana.

About 100 people turned out to smoke and hear Marc Emery speak yesterday in
front of police headquarters about how smoking and growing marijuana in
Canada should not be a crime anymore. Emery, who runs the B.C. Marijuana
Party, said the turnout was comparable to a rally he staged in St. John's,
Newfoundland.

Emery's Summer of Legalization tour comes in the wake of several legal
developments on pot possession. The Liberal government has proposed new laws
making possession of 15 grams of pot a minor offence carrying no criminal
record. The government is responding to court rulings that left rules on pot
possession null and void.

Superintendent Ken Bond said Hamilton police didn't intercede in the pot
smoking because "there's no law. As long as they're not breaking any laws
our hands are tied."