POT CHALLENGE STIFLED

An Abbotsford lawyer challenging the constitutionality of Canada's pot laws
is frustrated the case has been delayed.

The Supreme Court of Canada decided Friday to adjourn the challenge
following federal justice minister Martin Cauchon's announcement that he
plans to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana next year.

"It's a big disappointment," said lawyer John Conroy from Ottawa. "We've
been working a long time . . . and all the sudden we're bumped."

He says the case was delayed primarily because the judges were not
comfortable with the discrepancy between the government's stand in court
and Cauchon's position.

The Supreme Court has sent a letter to the federal government asking for
its position on Cauchon's announcement.

However, Conroy is skeptical Cauchon's announcement will have any effect on
marijuana laws. He says he has heard the idea of decriminalizing marijuana
tossed around "15 different times" since 1970.

"They've said this all before," he said. "It didn't make any difference."

Conroy is representing Victor Eugene Caine, one of three appellants
claiming the cannabis laws violate rights protected under the Canada's
Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Caine was busted for marijuana possession on June 13, 1993, when RCMP
officers in White Rock observed the strong smell of marijuana coming from a
van Caine and another man were parked in. The partly smoked joint Caine
produced for officers weighed 0.5 grams.

David Malmo-Levine of Vancouver and Ontario's Christopher James Clay are
the other men challenging the constitutional validity of the law.

If the case had proceeded Friday, it would have been the first time a
constitution challenge of Canada's marijuana laws had been heard in the
country's highest court. The case has been put over to the spring session,
and a new date has not been set.