Pubdate: Wed, 10 Aug 2005
Source: Province, The (CN BC)
Copyright: 2005 The Province
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/vancouver/theprovince/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/476
Author: John Martin
Note: John Martin, is a criminology professor at the University 
College of the Fraser Valley
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/people/Marc+Emery (Emery, Marc)

EMERY MAY BE A BLOWHARD, BUT IT WOULD BE UNFAIR TO SHIP HIM SOUTH

Modesty has never been a problem for Marc Emery.

But considering himself a martyr, along the lines of Gandhi, Martin
Luther King and Nelson Mandela, is quite a stretch, even for the
so-called Prince of Pot.

Still, support for Emery in his legal battle to avoid extradition to
the U.S. keeps rolling in -- and not just from stoners, green-haired
skateboarders and COPE.

Emery certainly appears to have violated U.S. law. His website took
orders and shipped a prohibited substance across U.S. borders.

And Americans are fully within their right to seek his
extradition.

The rules of extradition are quite clear that, in order to send a
Canadian to the U.S., the alleged offence must also be a criminal act
in this country. And technically speaking, the selling of seeds is
clearly illegal.

So far, it looks like an open- and-shut case.

Cries that the DEA requested raid is a violation of Canadian
sovereignty are a crock.

There is no sovereignty issue at stake here. And anti-U.S. sentiments
are hardly grounds to refuse extradition.

So, should Emery be shipped south to face the music?

Absolutely not.

True, the selling of seeds in Canada is a criminal act in the legal
sense. But there is much more to defining what should be considered a
crime than the mere legal aspect.

And, if extraditing Emery rests on the basis that his actions also
broke Canadian law, the process should not be allowed to happen.

The conferring of illegality on an act is a legislative process and is
only one dimension of taking the extreme measure of prohibiting
certain behaviours.

To be classified as a crime, the act must also, to some degree, offend
society's morals and values.

The considerable debate on the marijuana issue suggests there is no
consensus in this area. There is even less support for using the
criminal law to sanction those selling seeds.

Marc's business was known to police and every level of government. For
any number of reasons, they left him alone and gave him room to
operate. This is tantamount to condoning his actions.

To come to him now and argue that he also broke Canadian law and
should be extradited is petty and dishonest. The law prohibiting the
selling of seeds may still be on the books, but it lacks moral authority.

Personally, I oppose the legislation seeking to decriminalize
marijuana. And I'm no fan or friend of Marc Emery.

In fact, 10 days prior to his arrest, Marc sent me a colourful e-mail,
full of nasty superlatives, taking issue with a previous column on an
unrelated matter.

But this isn't about being soft or getting tough on drugs. This is
about using an antiquated piece of legislation that is ignored by
every law-enforcement agency in the country to take down one
particular high-profile blowhard.

And that is unacceptable. 
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MAP posted-by: Richard Lake