BUSTED POT CRUSADER STILL SAYS HE'S RIGHT

Marijuana crusader Marc Emery still maintains he did nothing wrong despite his
arrest and detention in Edmonton after he smoked a bong in front of city police
headquarters.

"There is a fairly convincing line of legal precedence that would spell out
that there is no cannabis law, and my contention is that since Aug. 1, 2001 all
the cannabis convictions in Canada are all unlawful," said Emery from Vancouver
yesterday.

Emery, 45, was arrested by city cops Aug. 10 after smoking a bong in front of
police headquarters as about 40 supporters watched.

After spending four hours in police custody, Emery was released on $1,000 bail
and the condition he not go to a police station in any situation but an
emergency, said Sgt. Chris Hayden of the Edmonton Police Service.

Emery appears in an Edmonton courtroom Dec. 19 to answer to charges of
possession of marijuana.

Emery argues marijuana is legal because it's no longer listed on the Controlled
Drugs and Substances Act.

In July 2000 the Ontario Court of Appeal ordered Parliament to change the
existing CDSA to take into account legal access to marijuana for medical use,
said a pamphlet Emery handed to supporters.

On Aug. 1, 2001, cannabis was struck from the CDSA by an order from the Ontario
Court of Appeal.

Emery said he smoked pot in 10 Canadian cities and wasn't arrested in Halifax,
Charlottetown, Toronto and Prince George, B.C.

Emery said he spent four hours in Edmonton police cells and was handcuffed for
90 minutes, including the time he spent making his presentation to a Justice of
the Peace.

City police also don't plan to go after Emery to recover costs associated with
his arrest and detention, said Hayden.