POT RALLY DENIED PARADE RIGHTS

Abbotsford police are planning on a high turnout for the pro-marijuana
rally Saturday at Mill Lake and they've already laid a bummer on the
organizers' parade plans.

The pro-marijuana activist behind Saturday's rally has been told he cannot
parade through town as he had planned.

Tim Felger said he recently received a letter from Abbotsford police,
stating that they believe he will exceed 200 attendees at his rally and
that he cannot march from Mill Lake to Abbotsford City Hall.

The letter, from Insp. Rod Gehl, says, "While I agree that the Abbotsford
Special Events bylaw only pertains to gatherings of 200 or more persons, I
disagree with Mr. Felger's assessment that attendance is not likely to
exceed 200 persons."

The letter continues, "Additionally, the 'Legalize Marijuana' movement has
gained substantial momentum since Mr. Felger's rally in 1999 . . .
Attendance well above 200 persons is a very likely outcome."

The letter also notes that Felger does not have a permit to parade through
the city.

Police spokesman Const. Shinder Kirk said, "If they do do that, we'll
ensure safety. . . It's a public safety issue."

Felger does have a permit to hold his special event at Mill Lake and at
Centennial auditorium.

The permit is for 12:30 to 4 p.m. in Centennial Park and 1:30 till 4:30
p.m. in Matsqui Centennial Auditorium.

"I think it was the city's responsibility to pay the financial cost of the
police because they were the ones that issued the permit for the two
locations," Felger said.