POT REFUGEE STILL FIGHTING IN COURTS

SECHELT, B.C. - All charges have been dropped against him since
November of 2002, but Steve Kubby still doesn't have his marijuana or
grow equipment back.

Kubby and his wife Michele were back in Sechelt provinicial court on
Tuesday asking Judge Dan Moon for a court order to have his grow
equipment and marijuana back from the police as well as a temporary
order asking for police protection.

Although sympathetic to Kubby's pleas in court, Moon said he could not
grant any of Kubby's orders until he filed everything properly with
the courts. "In order for me to even consider this, your application
has to be in order," Moon said. "This is too complex and is going to
take far longer than a few hours to deal with."

Moon ordered Kubby to get all of his legal documentation and arguments
in order and set a Jan. 27 date in court for the matter to be heard.

Last month Moon ordered police to return Kubby's growing equipment
after federal prosecutor Don Fairweather confirmed he was dropping
criminal charges against Kubby. The drug charges were laid against
Kubby last April after Sedchelt RCMP busted them for growing 160
plants in their home.

Kubby smokes up to 12 grams of marijuana a day to control symptoms of
a rare form of adrenal gland cancer.

In August, Kubby -- who fled to Canada last year from California -
became one of the first Americans to be granted a Health Canada
exemption to Canada's drug laws.

The exemption allows Steve Kubby to smoke and grow significant
quantities of pot for medicinal purposes.

Kubby's permit allows him to travel with up to 360 grams (12 ounces)
of pot and grow 59 plants at a time for medical use. It also allows
him to store up to 2,655 grams (six lbs.) of marijuana.

Kubby said one of his biggest problems has been that police just don't
believe he needs to smoke as much pot as he does for medical purposes.
He said the documents from Health Canada now bear out his claims.

"I'm disappointed the RCMP won't return the equipment to my home,
especially since the Crown has asked that all charges be dropped and I
now hold a federal exemption from Health Canada," said Mr. Kubby.

Michele said she is concerned for her husband's safety and that there
may still be underlying hostility by some RCMP officers towards anyone
involved with marijuana, even if it is for legal medical use.

The Kubbys moved to Sechelt last year with their children, aged six
and two.

Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmjcn.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal - Canada)

Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/kubby.htm (Kubby, Steve)