EMERY MORE PRINCIPLED THAN THOSE WHO OPPOSE HIM

Prince of Pot Has Second Thoughts About Plea Bargain, Likely Won't
Abandon Co-Accused Friends

Marc Emery, Vancouver's Prince of Pot, triggered headlines around the
globe by revealing his tentative five-year plea bargain with the U.S.
over money laundering and drug charges.

Still, his wife Jodie urged everyone to remember that although he has
tentatively agreed to the deal proposed by the U.S., it is by no
means finalized.

The deal had not been signed by both countries, Emery and the courts.
And the U.S. has not yet agreed to drop the charges against Michelle
Rainey and Greg Williams, two of Emery's friends who are co-accused.
He has made their freedom a condition of his "guilty" plea.

Emery could also change his mind before today's extradition hearing
in B.C. Supreme Court -- throw caution to the wind and battle
tooth-and-nail against the U.S. request, which is a product of
Emery's mail-order seed-sale business in the U.S.

I doubt it.

Emery is a principled man -- far more so than those who disagree with him.

If he can save his friends, he will. If not, well....

I think what is happening is an outrage.

Emery is being handed over to the Americans for selling seeds at a
time when the marijuana law in Canada is problematic at best.

In Ontario, judges have found the failure of the government to
provide marijuana to the sick invalidates the present criminal law
against at least possession.

It's a conclusion that flows directly from previous Supreme Court of
Canada decisions.

If sick and suffering Canadians are prevented from getting the safe
and effective medicine they need -- marijuana -- by a criminal law,
that statute is unconstitutional.

In Victoria, a B.C. Supreme Court trial and in Sechelt, a Provincial
Court trial are under way involving precisely this question.

"The government can only make simple possession, and possibly
cultivation and trafficking, illegal if it has a constitutional
medical marijuana program [that works]," said Kirk Tousaw, a lawyer
involved in both cases as well as Emery's.

"It may well be that, as in 2003, marijuana possession is legal in
Canada. Of course that doesn't mean that police will stop enforcing
the possession law right away, or that the Crown will stop
prosecuting, so people would do well to be cautious in their
reaction. That said, it is an exciting time for marijuana law reform
in Canada."

Unless you're Marc Emery.

I can't imagine what he's feeling as the effects of his 14-year-long
crusade bears fruit and he faces a medieval jail sentence.

Some of the discourse around his predicament must rile, if for no
other reason than its surreal quality.

Consider, for instance, Marlene Jennings, Liberal justice critic,
fuming with outrage:

"You can't blame him [for trying to cut a deal] when he's up against
the Conservative government that's basically telling the states, 'Do
what you want, we're not going to fight it. We're not going to
prosecute, we're not going to bring criminal charges, but we'll let
you do it. We'll let you do the dirty work for us. And then we'll
stand by with our arms crossed.'"

Too bad it was the previous Liberal administration of ex-prime
minister Paul Martin back in 2005 that set this injustice in motion.

Former Liberal justice minister Irwin Cotler is the man who gave the
okay for these proceedings.

Damn him, Jennings.

The Conservatives have the power to step in and halt this travesty --
but let's not blame them for creating it.

If they had any sense, they'd step up to the plate.

Also, although Emery's deal is aimed at having him serve his time in
Canada, any agreement requires him to travel to America for judicial
processing. He will serve roughly between six and 10 months in a U.S.
jail before being returned to Canada.

He shouldn't do a day down there, in my opinion. He shouldn't do a day, period.