To Canada Border Services Agency Re STEVEN WILLIAM TUCK File Number 5139 – 5141 – 8329 August 4, 2005 APPLICATION FOR A PRE-REMOVAL RISK ASSESSMENT In accordance with the rules for a PPRA, I am submitting three new developments which I believe demonstrate the danger that I would face if forced to return to the United States. (Finally, I have also been instrumental in a development of major economic importance to Canada, described below.) First, on June 5th of this year the United States Supreme Court Ruled in the Raich case (ALBERTO R. GONZALES, ATTORNEY GENERAL, ET AL., PETITIONERS v. ANGEL MCCLARY RAICH ET AL.) that the United States Federal government could arrest and prosecute individual medical marijuana patients, despite of the existence of state laws to the contrary. The opinions are online at http://wid.ap.org/scotus/pdf/03-1454P.ZO.pdf (Stevens for the majority) http://wid.ap.org/scotus/pdf/03-1454P.ZC.pdf (Scalia concurring) http://wid.ap.org/scotus/pdf/03-1454P.ZD.pdf (O’Connor and Rehnquist dissenting) http://wid.ap.org/scotus/pdf/03-1454P.ZD1.pdf (Thomas dissenting) Consequently, I would not be safe anywhere in the US, and thus would “be exposed to the risk wherever” I am in my country, and would die a very painful death before being given due process.

This risk is not theoretical. Federal authorities have not only raided a number of medical marijuana compassion societies in California recently, they have actually moved to accelerate the removal of a federal court injunction against raiding a patient co-operative/hospice in Santa Cruz, California. In 2002, they handcuffed a partially paralyzed woman, Suzanne Pheil, in her bed there while they cut down her plants. DEA spokesman Richard Meyer said, “(W)e see them as victims of their traffickers.” Ms Pheil responded, "We are not the victims of drug traffickers - we are victims of the DEA…. With a gun to my head the DEA stole the medicine that over 250 sick and dying people worked to grow." Is this “protection” of my government that I am supposed to seek? The fact that the DEA is giving such priority to being able to attack sick and dying people after the Raich ruling demonstrates the danger that I would face in the United States. This risk is not theoretical. Last month, Steve McWilliams, a San Diego medical marijuana patient/activist committed suicide rather than face federal prison. His case involved just 25 plants, but he was denied access to medical marijuana while waiting to see if the Raich case would prevent him from being sent to prison, for “only” six months, where he knew he would suffer even more. It should also be noted that Justice John Paul Stevens, writing for the majority, said, “The case is made difficult by respondents strong arguments that they will suffer irreparable harm because, despite a congressional finding to the contrary, marijuana does have valid therapeutic purposes.” Second, as for the US being a democratic country, Justice Stevens also said, “(P)erhaps even more important than these legal avenues is the democratic process, in which the voices of voters allied with these respondents may one day be heard in the halls of Congress.” However, despite polls showing that roughly 70% of the American people oppose arresting medical marijuana patients, on June 15th, less than two weeks after the Raich decision, the House of Representatives voted to continue funding federal arrests of patients in states with medical marijuana laws, by defeating the Hinchey-Rohrabacher amendment to Justice Department funding bill by a margin of 264 to 161. (The international pharmaceutical industry spends MORE THAN ONE THOUSAND TIMES as much as the entire medical cannabis movement lobbying the US Congress.) Third, on July 29th, Canadian police arrested Marc Emery and two associates at the request of the United States on “conspiracy” charges related to the sale of marijuana seeds in the United States. There are many others in Canada and elsewhere who sell seeds to Americans, but Emery is the only one to be charged because he has been politically outspoken in opposition to marijuana prohibition, as I was while I was in California. I was the only person arrested in connection with the Humboldt raids, even though many others were in a significant medical marijuana group (Conspiracy?). If my arrest was not political, why was no one else charged? Please note that the record shows that when I first entered Canada I had a box of cannabis seeds that I brought across the border in an alleged violation of US law and Canadian law and probably international treaties in a “conspiracy” with a branch of the Canadian government. (The US government will certainly consider this an alleged conspiracy between the Canadian government and me. Under US law a person is responsible for all of the plants grown with his or her seeds.) I did not seek refuge at that time because I still could not bring myself to think that it would be necessary. Instead, I returned to the US. It was only after I had made my gift to Canada and returned to California that I was told that my life would be in danger if I stayed in America. Now that Canada has legally accepted my seeds, the US considers this to be a violation of US laws to give them to Canada. Consequently, the Immigration Ministry wants to send me back to the US to face even greater danger than I was in before. In light of the arrest of Emery and his associates, one of whom was arrested solely because he sold seeds to an American undercover agent in Canada, how can it be argued that I “lacked a subjective fear of persecution and risk of harm” if I am forced to return to the US? In the opinion dated January 27th, J. Henegan cites a portion of my comments about my fear being primarily focused on federal versus state laws. Here is my dilemma. I did not flee the US to avoid prosecution, but because I feared extrajudicial action by Humboldt County law enforcement, possibly in collusion with Federal authorities, after my gift of cannabis seeds to Canada. There has subsequently been a change of administration in Humboldt County and I now believe that it would be safe for me to return there and stand trial. I am convinced that I would never be convicted by a jury in Humboldt, if I am tried under state laws. However, if I am convicted under California law by a jury of my peers after having been allowed to tell the truth, then I will accept the verdict of the jury. (Please remember, under US federal law I would not be allowed to mention anything about medical marijuana, nor would I even be allowed to mention my own injuries suffered while serving in a clandestine capacity while in the US military.) However, as a result of my fear of extrajudicial violence, I could now face federal prosecution not only for supplying seeds to Canada, and a very large amount of medical cannabis to patients in California; I could also face federal charges for “flight to avoid prosecution.” I believe that I might even be acquitted of those federal charges if I was allowed to testify about the circumstances, but under federal law I would not be allowed to use medical marijuana while awaiting trial, even if I was not held in a federal prison, which I almost certainly would be. As bizarre as it might seem, I could actually face the death penalty under US federal law as a “drug kingpin” if they prosecute me for all of the plants allegedly grown from my seeds and/or clones. Presumably, Canada would not send me to the US to face possible execution, but unfortunately, I would never live long enough to die a relatively painless death by execution. I will be dead within days of being deprived of cannabis while in federal custody. Consequently, if Canada delivers me to the US authorities, and I am arrested, it will be sending me to the certainty of a very painful death. You may not call that “a risk” to my life, or “torture” or “cruel and usual treatment”, but call it whatever you like, I will be just as dead after suffering just as much pain. Shouldn’t any “pre-removal risk assessment” necessarily involve determining whether I would risk federal prosecution if I am forced to return to the US? Inasmuch as the government of Canada increased my risk of federal prosecution in the US, and that risk has increased in light of the recent developments cited above, I beg the government of Canada to determine whether I would face federal prosecution if I am forced to return to the US. I repeat: If I do not face federal prosecution, I will happily return to Humboldt County to defend myself against any state charges. One would like to think that the government of Canada would at least want to know whether face federal charges and whether it would be complicit in my death. Canada is certainly in a much better position to determine whether I face federal prosecution than I am. (As demonstrated by the arrest of Marc Emery, Canadian authorities have a very close working relationship with their American counterparts.) It is also important to note that I cannot go to any other country. My US passport was not taken by court order, but was illegally destroyed by Humboldt County police. Finally, as noted, I would like to stay in Canada, because I have ceased any activity involving cannabis (other than using it medically), and I have been active in mineral exploration and have personally discovered major mineral deposits covering approximately 50,000 acres, which have been claimed in the name of Ashlu Mines, Inc., a BC corporation, of which I am a shareholder, officer and director. (See attached) I believe that my being forced to leave Canada will significantly delay the development of these properties. (To verify the information, contact Michael Raftery, Chartered Accountant, CFO Ashlu Mines, Inc. at 604-xxx-xxxx) If Canada still insists on expelling me and determines that I am in danger of US prosecution, would it not be fair to ask that Canada provide me with travel documents, either US or Canadian? Or will it at least help me follow Steve McWilliams, and let me be freed of pain? Canada conspired with me to take my seeds. Will it now ‘conspire” with the US to take my life? Signed _______________________________ STEVEN WILLIAM TUCK August 4, 2005

" . . . Rastafarians continue to be arrested, jailed and sometimes deported for using small amounts of marijuana, which the faith considers a holy sacrament."

"chris said you can watch any show by clicking on the green camera" --bloodbrotha

"The shows will play if you click the camera icon on the main page, just the show pages are not comming up." --chrisbennett

For example, Marijuana News Global Conspiracy Report August 3, 2005 With Richard Cowan "US Fails To Get Marc Emery Without Bail, Canadian Political Blowback Begins, Mexico The Real Problem, Kubby Zings Drug Czar And An Interview With Michelle Rainey" http://pot.tv/ram/pottvshowse3901.ram

Part of the reason comes from an unexpected quarter: Sativex. Think about it; Sativex IS marijuana, in liquid form, and no amount of caterwauling or protests on the part of GW Pharma can erase that fact. Sativex is now legally available in Canada. But Sativex originates from cannabis plants. Which come from seeds.

So...why are Sativex's seeds more legal than Emery's? Especially when the end result - production of medicine - is the same? I'm told Sativex can get you high; so can homegrown. Does Sativex's intoxicating ability not fall under the 'danger of misuse' category of the Controlled Substances Act?

The hypocrisy is becoming ever more difficult to explain away. But what''s even more important is that if during the trial Emery's lawyer Mr. Conroy demands PROOF of cannabis's deleterious effects, The Crown (a.k.a the prosecutors) will be laughed out of court. It will face the same withering criticism that many of the anti witnesses in Canuck Senator Claude Nolin's commission did when they tried to spew their dreck. I've said that if all the papers regarding cannabis's medical efficacies were to be entered into evidence, you'd need a cart with a hydraulic lift to move them around, there's so many of them and they'd weigh so much.

Mr. Conroy might want to consider purchasing such a cart, and a ton of ink for the printers, for here's an excellent opportunity.

For all the seeming reason for gloom, the antis wouldn't have done this unles they were suffering from dangerously overweening hubris and arrogance, or they are realizing that what I said about Sativex becoming the petard that hoists the antis is true, and the time they have to get their kicks in is very limited indeed. In either event, they have created an international incident which has finally brought to a head something that has been building for some time: the question of whether Canadian sovereignty exists or is a myth. I've said many times before that this issue above all others will bring this matter to the forefront of the average Canadian's consciousness. That such an earthshaking issue may have to be decided over cannabis is the wildest of ironies.

Having spent the last two weeks of July on Vancouver Island, amongst like-minded folks (smoking and non) I was going to end my stay on that last Friday of my vacation with a visit to the North American cannabist's version of Mecca, but illness, assisting friends in need of tech support and a lack of time caused me to miss my chance...and thus miss the spectacle of the RCMP puppets dancing to the DEA's tune...and incidentally wiping their bums with their nation's sovereignty.

I'll never be able to look at that pretty red-and-white flag again without mentally seeing a fresh, smelly brown smear on it's fabric. Not unless this latest affront to Canuck dignity is answered strongly by Canuck leaders.

This is NOT how you treat good neighbors and trusted allies. This is NOT how you treat long-time friends who've never done you wrong. But unless Canadians stand up and loudly denounce this, the trend of eroding Canuck sovereignty will accelerate and soon. THIS MUST BE ANSWERED.

This is the true face of that much ballyhooed 'harmonization' some (IMHO, traitorous) Canadians want with the US, Canucks; do you *really* want that? Do you?

In parting, I'd like to offer this: in the early days of the Reagan Administration, during the time of Solidarity in Poland defying the Communists, there was much sentiment on the part of the cabinet to "Let Poland be Poland". It was a propaganda ploy, of course, a Cold War chess move, but the core sentiment was understandable.

In that same vein, but without the Machiavellian games, the Kaptin sez: "Let Canada be Canada!".

To the Free Mediators of Canada and the World,

This is to inform you that the days of the bully DEA and the US war-party fascists are numbered and supporting them in their campaign against the freedom of the people to choose for themselves whether or not they want to use cannabis either medicinally or as a recreational alternative to the demon alcohol will be a mistake.

If you truly want to be respected as a democratic voice of the people and not the fascist tyrants that force the people to do everything their way, you should think twice before letting your journalism be biased in favor of the corporate bullies of the US government and their fascist violations of human rights.

If you support the extradition and demonization of Marc Emery, you support the wrong people and your days will be numbered too. This is not a threat, it is a word for the wise. The DEA is a fascist organ that is in gross violation of human rights. It is the USA's own private version of the gestapo.

The majority of Americans do not support it and its fascist ways. Unfortunately, WE cannot use violent methods to defend ourselves, as they DO use violent methods to enforce their fascist laws. This point is the only real reason why they are winning and we are losing (or so it seems).

Give peace a chance and stop your support of the DEA and the corrupt, criminal US federal government. Its days are numbered.

But this might well be it.

An international incident. One which (very publicly) threatens to highlight the normally invisible (to American eyes) and pointlessly vicious US drug laws as compared with those of other nations. Because the comparisons have to be made in the process of Mr. Emery's trial.

Most of the American DrugWar has been conducted on the periphery of the American consciousness, while it's prosecution actually cuts deep to the bone of what it (supposedly) means to be an American. The DrugWarriors want it that way, because a public aroused by a particularly eggregious screwup by them might just demand a (gasp!) DEBATE as to the efficacy of the efforts of the DrugWarriors. Hence their (largely successful) coralling of the (mainly lazy) media who swallow every lie from the ONDCP uncritically.

While this has begun to change, it has been changing slowly until fairly recently: the fallout from the Supremes on Raich/Monson caused the media to finally quit swallowing and demand to see the contents of the bottle. But it will take more than the media. It will take a court case. One in which the lies about cannabis can be exposed publicly.

This might be that case. And Mr. Emery may be foxier than the antis think he is (care to shake hands with The Tar Baby, Johnny Pee?) by providing a credible rebuttal to all the lies. After all, the CANADIAN SENATE not too long ago pointed out the paucity of evidence backing the most common lies told about cannabis. Plenty of publicly available evidence to refute anti hysterics. All usable in court.

Like a fission bomb, the subcritical masses of prohibitionist lies are about to come slam-bang together and cause an explosion of truth. The fallout from this explosion can have only one result in a society which still claims 'rule of law' as it's precepts: the end of cannabis prohibition. So any support that can be given to Mr. Emery may actually speed that process.

It's not just about one guy; it never was. It's about forcing the organs of justice to live up to their claims of legitimacy.

The Vancouver Sun's headline screamed, "Uncle Sam Orchestrates Vancouver Pot Bust." Editorially the Sun unleashed, "outrageous infringement of Canadian sovereignty," in paragraph one. -

As long as the Canadian press is pushing the fact that Canada's sovereignty has been infringed, I think things may develop in a favorable manner. The worst thing would be if the press there didn't run with that angle at all, but that's not happening, which is good.

Just being in Canada two weeks and reading their newspapers a few times, I got the sense that their press is a lot more effective than ours in influencing the people.

The author's use of the gun metaphor is ironic, in that he uses it while comparing the "good government" of Canada to the police-state policies of our U.S. of by-Gawd A. Canadians, which cannot have handguns, don't need them, while in Bushekistan, we can have them, and may need them - soon. I'd rather not need them, myself...

POSTED ON AUGUST 3, 2005: Hey, bud Getting stoned and laid in Toronto

By Matt Mernagh

Excerpt:

[QUOTE] Former Canadian Broadcasting Corporation political commentator and longest-serving cannabis convict Rosie Rowbotham, who previously smuggled hashish into the country by the ton and was once referred to as the jolly hashish smuggler, loses his inner Buddha thinking about US-Canada relations and the prospects of plenty of Americans coming out to a café he visits weekly.

"They suffer from trickle-down idiocy," Rowbotham rants about Americans.

"Even the liberal ones. Republican, Democrat, I can't tell the difference," he says. "You can have your Coney Island fries, I'll take French Fries any time. Don't come up here to smoke our pot. Grow it at home and get 25 years."

More than any Canadian Rowbotham knows how Canada can be an occasional target in the US war on drugs. Canadians face extradition for their cross-border smuggling activities these days.

As this issue was going to press, the DEA did just that. On Friday, July 29, Canadian police picked up The Prince of Pot, Marc Emery, and two employees for extradition. The Vancouver Sun's headline screamed, "Uncle Sam Orchestrates Vancouver Pot Bust." Editorially the Sun unleashed, "outrageous infringement of Canadian sovereignty," in paragraph one.

"We're big ass kissers. We're going to get nailed and I'm mad," Rowbotham says. "What has America done right since the Marshall plan? If you can make a list of 10, argue it, then come up here and smoke our pot," he hangs up all wound-up. [ENDQUOTE]

http://rochester-citynews.com/gbase/Gyrosite/Content?oid=3699

Thursday, August 4, 2005 Page A10

Ottawa -- A Justice Department spokesman says the U.S. government is within its rights to request the extradition of B.C. pot activist Marc Emery, and the request will be allowed to run its course in the courts.

Chris Girouard said Justice Minister Irwin Cotler cannot take a position on the case now because he will have the final word on Mr. Emery's extradition, after the courts have ruled.

Marijuana activists have called on the federal government to reject the U.S. extradition request, saying the United States has much harsher policies on marijuana than Canada. Under U.S. law, Mr. Emery would face a minimum sentence of 10 years in jail if convicted of selling marijuana seeds in the United States.

CN BC: Editorial: Respect Canada's Standards Of Justice 03 Aug 2005 Victoria Times-Colonist (CN BC) http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v05/n1229/a10.html [snipped]

full story: http://www.mapinc.org/ccnews/v05/n1229/a10.html

CN AB: Editorial: Don't Push The U.S. On Pot 03 Aug 2005 Calgary Herald http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v05/n1233/a09.html [snipped]

full story: http://www.mapinc.org/newscc/v05/n1233/a09.html?397

( Ken Lay, Enron and the US Public Published on Friday, July 9, 2004 by The Nation. Ken Lay, Enron and the US Public. by William Greider. Ken Lay finally took the "perp walk" down in Houston ... http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0709-05.htm

AND

Getting the attention of white-collar criminals Kalamazoo Gazette, MI - 20 hours ago ... We suspect that former Enron CEO Ken Lay, who is awaiting trial on massive fraud charges, might not be sleeping well in the wake of what the court laid on [Bernard] Ebbers, [the 63-year-old former WorldCom chief executive officer] http://tinyurl.com/a5uz3 ):

Aug. 4, 2005. 07:29 AM Martha Stewart’s incarceration extended http://tinyurl.com/c5jxu [Toronto Star, free registration]

American Justice, it ain't what it used to be!

c/o CANNABIS CULTURE MAGAZINE

Box 15, 199 West Hastings

Vancouver BC

Canada V6B 1H4

I've requested permission from Cannabis Culture Magazine to use the Free Mark Emery logo as seen on:

http://www.cannabisculture.com/newstore/catpage.cgi?num=8&cart_id=6442987.27996

. . . for the back of a run of t-shirts I am making to raise more funds for this effort.

If you can, please at least go to the CCMag site store at

http://www.cannabisculture.com/newstore/catpage.cgi?num=0

Emery, global war, & sovereignty by Ray Boyd (03 Aug, 2005) Arrest of seed merchant is tip of a melting iceberg http://www.cannabisculture.com/articles/4473.html

Excerpt:

"The bust has focused negative attention on the US-Canada MLAT signed in 1985, and on modifications to Canada's Extradition Act five years ago that make it easier for the US to take Canadians out of Canada.

"It has brought new attention to the loss of Canadian sovereignty under NAFTA and other cross-border agreements. Analysts note that the US is pressuring the governments of Canada and Mexico to cede their sovereignty to Washington, DC in accord with a hemispheric pact to be finalized by 2010. ...

"As this article is being written, Emery's friends and family are begging the public for donations so they can get him and his employee (Marijuana Man) out of jail and also pay for the steep cost of fighting the DEA's extradition request.

"It seems certain, however, that just as America's illegal invasion of Iraq only strengthened Arab opposition to US policies, this brazen attack on the world's most philanthropic pot seed retailer has already backfired. Emery's arrest has energized cannabis users and civil libertarians, who've staged non-stop protests on his behalf.

"When all is said and done, Emery will again be free to spread the gospel of legalization, and the American government will have found out the hard way that kidnapping foreigners and putting them on trial doesn't always work."

#########

"Sheriff John Brown always hated me, For what, I don't know: Every time I plant a seed, he said kill it before it grow - He said kill them before they grow." Bob Marley http://www.alwaysontherun.net/bob.htm#b3

"Those of us who enjoy marijuana's entheogenic, religious and recreational values argue for the right of medical users to benefit from its medical values. Medical users should likewise demand that this miracle plant be legalized for all its uses – medical, recreational, spiritual and industrial."

If there was once an effort worth supporting, this is the one. These people have done more for the cannabis movement than everyone here probably realizes. They deserve our help with donations and everyones effort to get them the funds they need to fight this injustice. Marc never saved any money from the profits of the store because he knew if he where busted then they would be seized. Insead, the profits where put into the pro cannabise movement.

If we would all try to get NORML, MPP, DPA, and others to help raise money for the defense funds, and anyone who can think of anything come forward with their ideas we can change this outcome. If we could just get some corporations to donate, or some famous rock bands to hold fund raiser concerts, or anything.

We owe these people a concerted effort such as writing news comments, or anything to get the word out.

Donate to the legal defense fund: http://www.cannabisculture.com/newstore/catpage.cgi?num=8&cart_id=1014164.21081

Nobody has done more for the cannabis effort than the BC Marijuana Polictial party and Marc, Greg, and Michelle.

CANADIANS cannot be trusted in the war on drugs?

BWAAHAAAHAAAA!!!! That statement leads me to conclude that John Ibbitson is an absolute idiot.

Relative...

Prince of Pot still in jail as supporters scramble to post bail: http://www.mytelus.com/news/article.do?pageID=bc_home&articleID=1994729

Questions about Canada's role in arrest of marijuana activist: http://www.mytelus.com/news/article.do?pageID=cbc/canada_home&articleID=1995396

Unrelated...

Group wants Denver voters to consider marijuana initiative: http://tinyurl.com/b5zq6

Aussie beautician pleads for one chance to prove her innocence: http://tinyurl.com/7s4wr

THE WAY OUT IS THE WAY IN...

Video: Alex Jones Bullhorns British Parliament Building: http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/august2005/030805alexbullhorns.htm

9/11 and the Mainstream Press - by Dr. David Ray Griffin: http://www.septembereleventh.org/newsarchive/2005-07-29-pressclub.php

Cynthia McKinney's 9/11 Congressional Briefing (MP3): http://www.radio4all.net/index.php?op=program-info&program_id=13498&nav=&

Conspiracy Theories and the Fight for Truth: http://www.theepochtimes.com/news/5-8-2/30806.html

!!!!

Cannabis is connected.

AND THEY DO KNOW IT.

That son in the white house, a graduate of the anti-Christ club: skul n bones, knows it.

Cannabis exposes Bush; He has to stop cannabis.

Cannabis must be the thing Bush fears the most.

Cannabis is hunting down the son of destruction.

The war is not one sided; Cannabis fights back.

John 16:11, "...the ruler of this world has been judged."

And He can't stop it; He can't just kill it, like all the people He doesn't like....

We don't have to judge this Bush freak; cannabis does it for Us.

George Bush is guilty of crimes against Christ God Our Father.

Let Us pray that He saves His butt along with all the disobedient Christians that follow Him.

It is our civic duty to resist unjust laws in every way possible.

Marc Emery, head of the British Columbia Marijuana Party, was granted bail in a Vancouver hearing yesterday following his arrest last week as part of a DEA raid.

Emery, a marijuana legalization activist who has given financial support to marijuana policy reform efforts in both Canada and the U.S., was indicted by a U.S. grand jury for selling marijuana seeds over the Internet to U.S. consumers. The Drug Enforcement Administration used the indictment to obtain a search warrant, and asked the Vancouver Police Department to conduct a raid on its behalf.

The Vancouver police raided Emery’s office and store on Friday, arresting two other marijuana activists in the process. Emery himself was taken into custody in Nova Scotia, where he was slated to speak at a medical marijuana rally.

The U.S. DEA is asking Canada to extradite all three activists to the U.S., where they could face trial for three felony conspiracy charges. Each charge – one for manufacturing marijuana, one for distributing seeds, and one for money laundering – carries a possible ten year minimum sentence. Selling seeds is also illegal in Canada, but according to Emery’s lawyer, John Conroy, no one has been prosecuted for selling seeds there in years.

Many Canadians are outraged that the U.S. has enlisted Canadian law enforcement to do its dirty work, and see the extradition request as an infringement on Canadian sovereignty. The BC Marijuana Party attributes the DEA’s flexing of muscle to U.S. concern over widespread support in both countries for marijuana reform. The party says in a statement on its website, “This public support for reform has the US government worried. The raids are clearly politically motivated. Vancouver is home to dozens of seed sellers, some on the same block, but only one - Marc Emery - is an outspoken activist for reform.”

Activists watching the case are hoping that the BC Supreme Court will deny the request to turn Emery over to the U.S., possibly based on language in Canada’s Extradition Act that prohibits extradition if “the surrender would be unjust or oppressive having regard to all the relevant circumstances.”

{As for the money-laundering charges, Conroy called them a "bit peculiar."

"Certainly, the leader of the B.C. Marijuana Party faces serious charges. He and two others are accused by the U.S. of conspiracy to manufacture marijuana, to distribute marijuana seeds and to engage in money laundering."

"conspiracy to manufacture marijuana" What a joke!

Wednesday, August 03, 2005

Vancouver pot activist Marc Emery, arrested last Friday after being indicted by an American grand jury on charges he sold marijuana seeds to folks in the U.S., was later reported by his fiancee to feeling a little scared.

And we can understand why: U.S. federal authorities don't pussyfoot around when it comes to the illegal drug trade. Emery, who was granted bail in Vancouver yesterday, knows this. Indeed, he has railed repeatedly against the evils of the U.S.-led drug war.

Which is why the Prince of Pot should not be too shocked that he has finally riled up Uncle Sam sufficiently to do something about his mail-order enterprise.

Snipped:

"Marc Emery has only himself to blame."

I think the media is partly to blame for not calling governments on the deceitful cannabis issue.

Media has been a soldier to governments dirty war on the plant cannabis and the cannabis culture.

MARC EMERY CAN BLAME MEDIA!

"In a civilised society, it is the duty of all citizens to obey just laws. But at the same time it is the duty of all citizens to disobey unjust laws." - Martin Luther King Jr.

I love the DEA's little rant on Emery. "he ran his business efficiently" "he was motivated by greed". Are they kidding? The head of every single business in America is motivated by greed! Just go down to Palm Beach in Florida & look at all the $10 million-plus castles being built along the shore - most only to be used for a couple months per year. The corporate elite in this country work the system to acquire more money than 1 family could ever hope to spend.

Yet Emery deserves life in prison for mailing SEEDS to Americans! It's time for the Canadian media to get off their butts & decide if they want to live in their own country, or just be a colony of our corporation, er, country.

LOL, Hope, too funny. I sensed that this article was going to put a negative spin on Marc Emery's activities AND Canadian Sovereignty, so I read the comments first. I was expecting to get angry, but you made me laugh. Thanks, Hope.

Alan Young's article was more reasonable. I read the main article last. It hints at the latent prohibitionism that Canadian activists have to deal with daily. We don't need Uncle butting his big nose into Canada. Canada is a Sovereign country. As usual the US government is violating the intent behind laws, in this case the Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters Act, to forward their insane, unscientific, political, superstitious propaganda war against cannabis. Canada should renounce this law and its connection to any treaty, or renounce the treaty itself until the US government stops violating WTO trade sanction decisions, like Canadian softwood lumber, and discriminating against Canadian beef.

Is this an attempt at dry humor? If it wasn't so serious, I might think so.

He expects his country to regulate and enforce the law of their land.

He expects his country to honor their constitution as a free nation.

He expects his country to not become the 51 states

CHANGE OF HEART

It was on the streets of Paterson (New Jersey) that Jack Cole's epiphany struck.

The former state police trooper spent 14 years doing undercover narcotics work in New Jersey. He figures his efforts put 1,000 people behind bars. Some deserved it. But many others, he now says, did not.

"What makes it hard for me to sleep at night is thinking about how many people would have gone on to have a happy productive life," said Cole, co-founder of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, a nationwide group of hundreds of current and former law enforcement officers who favor legalized regulation of drugs.

The group calls the war on drugs a failed policy, arguing that illicit drugs are cheaper, more potent, and easier to obtain than ever. Locking up millions of non-violent drug offenders, Cole says, has done little but help the prison industry grow.

While working undercover one night in Paterson in the 1970s, Cole was jumped by a drug dealer and his accomplice. The two men fled after Cole drew his gun.

When a good Samaritan came by to help, Cole asked where he could score some drugs. The man said he didn't take drugs but directed the undercover officer to a dealer. Cole later arrested both men.

At the city jail, the man who had tried to help Cole said a few words he's never forgotten: "Man, I was just trying to be your friend."

Cole had a profound change of heart:

***

Washington wants to take over the prosecution of those who flout Canada's marijuana laws. Ottawa should tell it to butt out, says law professor Alan Young.

Wednesday, August 3, 2005 Page A17

On July 27, in Halifax, RCMP officers arrested Marc Emery, Canada's self-styled "Prince of Pot," after a U.S. federal grand jury indicted him on charges of conspiracy to distribute marijuana seeds, conspiracy to distribute marijuana and conspiracy to engage in money laundering. Mr. Emery, who ran a lucrative marijuana seed business, may not be everyone's idea of a hero, but many Canadians are outraged by the Americans waging their war on drugs within our borders.

There is little doubt that Mr. Emery's seeds found their way into the hands of eager U.S. pot-smokers, and U.S. drug agents had a legitimate concern about the prince's business activities. However, this concern should have led to a request that Canadian police enforce our existing laws to sanction Mr. Emery. Instead, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency asked Canadian police to execute a wide-ranging search warrant in Mr. Emery's home town, Vancouver, and to deliver him and other Canadian marijuana activists to be prosecuted in the land of mandatory minimum punishments.

From the Canadian perspective, Mr. Emery's constant flouting of our marijuana laws were tolerated and his activities seen as part and parcel of our continuing debate over marijuana law reform. I recognize that the sale of viable cannabis seeds appears to be a crime both in Canada and the United States, and that there may be a legal basis for seeking extradition as these seeds found their way onto U.S. soil. But I'm deeply concerned about subjecting a Canadian citizen to the draconian laws of a foreign nation when we don't bother charging this person for violating our laws. A Canadian citizen is now exposed to U.S. drug sentences which border on cruel and unusual punishment -- for violating a law we rarely enforce in Canada.

Mr. Emery has publicly boasted about the size of his enterprise ("I sell four million seeds a year") and the DEA claims that he makes about $3-million a year from his seed sales. But the Americans fail to mention that much of this money has been funnelled into legal challenges, compassion clubs, drug treatment centres and political activism. Mr. Emery is not the kingpin of some British Columbian cartel, breaking the law for personal gain; rather, he is an activist who has flouted the law as a political statement and in order to acquire resources to change the law.

Had he had been prosecuted and convicted under Canadian law, he would probably receive a fine and a short prison term. It's unlikely that U.S. courts will respect or understand the political context of Mr. Emery's alleged criminality. In many aspects of criminal-justice policy, the differences between Canada and the United States have grown exponentially. When we extradite to the United States, we must recognize that we are sending someone to a very different legal and political culture. In Canada we have a medical-marijuana program in which patients can lawfully use marijuana; in Oklahoma, an army vet who grew pot to cope with his own crippling arthritis was sentenced to 90 years in prison.

In dealing with the Americans, we must take care that mutual legal assistance does not become legal domination, as has the U.S. war on drugs in Latin America. The DEA's pursuit of the Prince of Pot isn't the first instance of Canada's deferring to U.S. drug-law enforcement policy. One summer day in 2004, an off-duty Vancouver policeman was driving near Hope, B.C., when he was stopped by a Texas state trooper. Constable David Laing, annoyed by the involvement of Texans on a Canadian highway, refused to submit to a random drug search. A minute later, he was stopped by another trooper and an RCMP officer, who did a thorough search (they found no marijuana). Mr. Laing went to his lawyers; his civil suit was settled out of court. The Texans later explained that they were taking part in a training-exchange program with the RCMP. Although the Texas program is unconstitutional by Canadian standards, our law enforcement officials were somehow convinced that there was much to be learned by letting U.S. officials violate the rights of Canadians on Canadian soil.

Imposing American values, including attitudes towards drugs, on the global village can only harm the U.S. in the long-term, by fuelling a growing anti-American sentiment. In the case of the Prince of Pot, I hope that Canada's Minister of Justice will exercise his discretion to block this extradition if a court finds the request to be technically proper. At a minimum, Irwin Cotler should refuse to extradite unless an undertaking is provided that Mr. Emery won't be subjected to the cruel minimum sentences if convicted in a U.S. court.

Mutuality dictates that the Americans show some respect for our legal and political values, as we do for theirs. But we must show backbone to resist U.S. efforts to enforce their drug laws on our soil.

Alan Young, an associate professor of law at Osgoode Hall, has done legal work for Marc Emery in the past. He is the author of Justice Defiled: Perverts, Potheads, Serial Killers and Lawyers.