LAW GOES TO POT

A second Ontario judge has "pounded another stake in the heart" of Canada's
pot law, finding there is nothing on the books forbidding the possession of
small amounts of dope.

Ontario Court of Justice Judge John Moore yesterday threw out a simple
possession charge against a 40-year-old man with no criminal record who was
alleged to have had the equivalent of a joint in his pocket.

Moore agreed with his Windsor colleague, Justice Douglas Phillips, who on
Jan. 2 found there are no laws in Canada prohibiting the possession of 30
grams of marijuana or less.

'NO LONGER EXISTS'

Moore found that the law as it currently stands in Ontario "no longer
exists." Thus, he said, the charge against Martin Barnes is "an offence not
known to law" and is null and void.

"Anyone charged with simple possession of marijuana in this city should be
on their phones to their lawyers this afternoon, telling them to get into
court and get these charges thrown out," said lawyer Aaron Harnett, who won
the argument.

Barnes is also charged with dangerously driving his motorcycle in gridlock
on Adelaide St. in July 2002. It was in the course of his arrest that the
pot allegation arose. The case was in court to set a trial date but Harnett
said Moore didn't have the jurisdiction to set a date on the drug charge,
due to the Windsor ruling. Although that decision is not binding upon other
judges to agree, he urged Moore to follow it and toss it.

Moore said it's a "simple and straightforward" matter and Harnett's
argument was "common sense."

The decision flowed from a July 2000 Court of Appeal ruling that gave
Parliament a year to amend the law or it would fall off the books.
Parliament didn't. Instead, regulations were installed that Justice Sidney
Lederman found unconstitutional this week.

APPEALS MAY DRAG

Harnett said pot laws are "under attack from all sides now."

Court heard the Windsor case will be appealed by the federal Crown on Feb.
21 in Superior Court. Prosecutor Nick Devlin urged Moore to adjourn the
case until the appeal is settled.

But Moore said it made "no sense" to adjourn pending the outcome of the
appeal, especially in the face of the current law and the government's
position on possible decriminalization legislation. He also noted appeals
may drag on for years.

"Justice Moore pounded another stake into the heart of the marijuana laws
today," Harnett said.

Harnett estimated the ruling could affect "hundreds of cases throughout
Ontario."