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Pot Accused Seeks Jury Trial
Pubdate: Tue, 27 Sep 2005
Source: Chronicle Herald (CN NS)
Copyright: 2005 The Halifax Herald Limited
Contact: http://www.herald.ns.ca/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/180
Author: Tom McCoag
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmjcn.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal - Canada)
POT ACCUSED SEEKS JURY TRIAL
AMHERST - A Maccan man who says he was growing marijuana to help himself
and 300 others with medical conditions including cancer has asked to be
tried in Nova Scotia Supreme Court on three charges stemming from a police
raid on his property last month that netted more than 1,200 marijuana plants.
"I want to be tried by a judge and jury," Rick Simpson said Monday while
representing himself during a brief appearance in Amherst provincial court.
Mr. Simpson wanted to plead not guilty to one count each of possessing less
than 30 grams of marijuana, possessing less than three kilograms of
cannabis resin for the purpose of trafficking, and unlawfully producing
marijuana, but Judge Carole Beaton said he would have to wait until he made
an appearance in Supreme Court before entering a plea.
He is to appear in Supreme Court on Oct. 6, when the court will take
jurisdiction of the case and set a date for trial.
The Crown elected to proceed summarily on the first charge but indicated to
the court it considers the latter two charges to be indictable offences. As
a result, Mr. Simpson is looking at a maximum seven-year sentence on the
production charge and five years less a day on the trafficking charge. He
faces a $1,000 fine, six months in jail or both on the possession charge.
Mr. Simpson waived his right to a preliminary hearing in provincial court,
saying "I don't need one."
The charges resulted from an Aug. 3 raid on Mr. Simpson's property. He told
The Chronicle Herald shortly after the raid that he wanted police to return
the marijuana plants to him because he was growing them to create a
medication he uses himself and has provided free to 300 people he treats
for a variety of illnesses.
He claimed the raid was an attempt to prevent the public from finding out
that marijuana is a cure for cancer and psoriasis and other skin ailments
and reduces pain from concussions and back injuries.
"I learned the truth from my own experience," he said, detailing how a 1997
work injury left him suffering from post-concussion syndrome, how
prescribed medications didn't work and how he elected to try marijuana
after seeing a TV show outlining its medical benefits.
To his surprise, he said, the marijuana worked. He told his doctors but
none would give him a prescription for medical marijuana. Still, he stopped
using his prescription medication and began ingesting hemp oil, also known
as honey oil, that he made himself.
He said he also used the oil to cure basal cell carcinoma that infected him
in 2003. He also said he has given the oil to others who were also relieved
of their symptoms for cancer, psoriasis, back pain and leg inflammations.
Mr. Simpson further alleged the federal government knew he was growing
marijuana as he wrote to the Health Department in 2003 and 2004 to suggest
it establish a marijuana clinic in Springhill and conduct tests on his hemp
oil.
Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh replied in February, telling Mr. Simpson in a
letter that the government, despite many Canadians' belief in the medicinal
value of marijuana, could not approve the drug without scientific evidence
proving its benefits and defining its risks.
He outlined Canada's medical marijuana policy and stressed that it's
illegal to grow or possess the drug unless authorized by Health Canada.
Mr. Simpson said Ottawa isn't interested in testing his oil because large
pharmaceutical companies are pressuring the government to ignore the
medical benefits of marijuana. He admitted he has no proof to back up his
allegation.
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