EXEMPTEES ASK COURT TO RETURN MEDICAL MARIJUANA

Three Ontario men, whose medical marijuana was seized by OPP officers
in a Cramahe Township drug raid earlier this month, have served notice
to have their medicine returned to them.

Marc Paquette of Hawkesbury, Robert Neron of Hearst, and Donald
Appleby from Vanier, near Ottawa, were part of a group of 40 medical
marijuana exemptees who had contracted with Lady Dyz Helping Hands to
produce the drug for them. The marijuana was seized by police on October 19.

Paquette was in Cobourg on Monday to attend the bail hearing for
Bruce. He talked with a reporter from The Independent before Bruce
appeared.

"I have signed papers from me, Donald Appleby, and Robert Neron for
the court to give us back our medicine," Paquette said.

He said these were the first three of many applications being filed by
exemptees who relied on Bruce for medical marijuana.

"When we are finished with this, there won't be any marijuana left to
charge Dianne with," he said.

The documents are applications from the three exemptees to have a
provincial justice release about 12 kilograms of marijuana seized from
Bruce's house. The affidavits attest that Paquette can legally possess
2.5 kilos of marijuana, Neron can have 5.5 kilos, and Appleby may have
up to 3.75 kilos of the drug. Those figures are based on amounts
approved by Health Canada in conjunction with each man's physician.

In a telephone interview yesterday, Appleby said his claim is based on
a grow of 30 marijuana plants.

"(The legal amount) is never really enough," said Appleby, who has
lived with AIDS for more than five years. "You end up living for the
generosity of friends, and that's not coming easily given the black
market."

Appleby said tight restrictions on the legal use of marijuana, and
police seizures of legal crops, forces sick and dying exemptees to the
black market, where prices are currently about $820 per ounce.

"Marijuana is literally more valuable than gold," he
said.

It was unknown whether the court released any marijuana to the three
men prior to press time.