Pubdate: Mon, 24 Jun 2002 Source: Report Magazine (CN AB) Copyright: 2002 Report Magazine, United Western Comm Ltd Contact: http://www.report.ca/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1327 Author: Marnie Ko DRUG REFUGEES Canada's Softball Narcotics Laws Are Drawing A New Type Of Immigrant For more than 20 years, Steve Kubby has suffered with a rare and usually fatal form of adrenal gland cancer. Early on, doctors gave him six months to live, but 1998 found him still alive, the Libertarian Party's candidate for Governor of California. Meanwhile, he built a reputation as an outspoken advocate for medical marijuana and told countless newspapers and television programs that the weed has prolonged his life. According to his wife, Michelle, marijuana "shrinks the tumor in his body. This is not for pain. It is literally to hold the cancer at bay." To hold the law at bay, Mr. Kubby, 56, has had to move north. He now lives in Sechelt, on B.C.'s Sunshine Coast, where he has joined a growing population of U.S. drug law refugees. Steve Tuck, another ex- Californian, estimates the number at more than 100, drawn by Canada's softer drug laws. "Refugees" is not a metaphor: both men have claimed legal refugee status to help them stay here. Mr. Kubby took refuge in Canada to escape American jail time. Auburn, California authorities had little sympathy for his medical condition, and charged him with marijuana possession and possession for sale, both felonies in the U.S. At Trial, a doctor from the University of Southern California swore that regular marijuana use was the only reason Mr. Kubby was still alive. He was acquitted of the felony charges, but convicted on one misdemeanor count of possessing a hallucinogenic mushroom. He was sentenced to 120 days in jail, and authorities would not allow him to bring his pot. Deciding the 120 days amounted to a "death sentence" without his marijuana, he decided to flee the U.S. with his wife and two small daughters. Denied permanent entry into Canada last month because of his California drug conviction, Mr. Kubby filed a refugee claim. He will remain in Canada until his immigration hearing, which may not be until next year. He also faces Canadian charges of cultivating marijuana, and possession for the purpose of trafficking, allegedly in connection with 160 marijuana plants found in his possession. That trial has also been adjourned, possibly until next year. Mr. Tuck, a disabled army veteran, recently allowed reporters to take a photo of the 115squarefoot room in his house that he uses to grow marijuana, which he smokes for pain and muscle spasms caused by a spinal injury. Soon after, he was arrested by Canadian authorities. Last month he was ordered to leave Canada voluntarily. He filed a refugee claim instead, and can remain in Canada until his hearing. Another American, Ken Hayes, faces several charges in the U.S. for growing pot and selling it through marijuana clubs. He was reportedly acquitted in 1999 on other charges relating to possession of 899 pot plants he planned to sell through a club. He too lives in B.C. and has filed a refugee claim. Whether the claims will succeed is anybody's guess, but Renee Boje, another Sunshine Coast resident who said she uses marijuana for strictly medicinal purposes, is optimistic. "Canada," she told reporters, "has a history of protecting people from their own governments." - --- MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens