SUPREME COURT WILL HEAR MARIJUANA-LAW CHALLENGE DESPITE TALK OF CHANGES

Lawyers in a major challenge to the marijuana laws have been told that the
Supreme Court of Canada will hear the case next week, notwithstanding
statements by Prime Minister Jean Chretien that have further muddied the issue.

The development rules out a repeat of an 11th-hour adjournment of the test
case last December.

The appellants want the court to declare the current federal marijuana laws
unconstitutional because the drug is harmless.

Lawyers for the appellants welcomed the news from the court yesterday, but
expressed amazement that federal lawyers are going to court to defend the
law while their political masters are preparing to change it.

"It is pretty clear that this file is a complete mess," lawyer Paul
Burstein said. "The government doesn't seem to have a plan any more."

But government prosecutor David Frankel said the possibility of
decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana -- a move
endorsed by Mr. Chretien on Monday night -- does not change his legal position.

A valid law would still be required to prosecute anyone possessing a large
amount of the drug, Mr. Frankel said. The convictions of the three
appellants will stand if decriminalization takes place, he added, meaning
the appeal would not be moot.

"Even if the government repealed the marijuana laws today, it wouldn't
affect these people, unless there were an amnesty," Mr. Frankel said in an
interview.

The appellants' attack is based on two main grounds: that the government
must show serious harm to the health of marijuana users before it can
create a law depriving offenders of their liberty; and that the federal
government has no jurisdiction to create sanctions involving health issues,
because health is a provincial responsibility.

On Tuesday, Mr. Chretien echoed previous statements by federal Justice
Minister Martin Cauchon about changing the law to allow police to issue
tickets only for those caught with small amounts of marijuana. He said a
new law was coming before the House of Commons recesses for the summer. Mr.
Cauchon said yesterday that 100,000 Canadians use cannabis daily. Current
laws are not effective, given that so many use marijuana, he said.