- MONTREAL (Reuters) - Canadian
activists for the medicinal use of marijuana celebrated a court victory
on Thursday by launching an Internet site offering home delivery of cannabis
for seriously ill people.
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- Saying it would even offer >tax deductions for orders,
the Marijuana Party Foundation took the unprecedented step after Quebec
Superior Court Judge Gilles Cadieux stopped the drug-trafficking trial
of two volunteers from Compassion Club of Montreal, a group that provides
marijuana for medicinal purposes.
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- In his long-awaited decision, Judge Cadieux agreed that
the pair, Marc-Boris St-Maurice, 33, and Alexandre Neron, 22, had planned
to sell marijuana when they were arrested almost three years ago. But the
judge noted that it was unconstitutional to deny patients access to the
drug.
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- Judge Cadieux said he did not have the authority to rule
on the constitutionality of Canada's marijuana laws. Prosecutors did not
indicate whether they would appeal his decision.
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- Earlier this month, a parliamentary committee urged the
Canadian government to relax its laws on possession of marijuana. The committee
on the nonmedical use of drugs said marijuana should be decriminalized,
but not legalized, an idea U.S. drug control officials quickly condemned.
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- HOME DELIVERY OF MARIJUANA
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- Elated by Judge Cadieux's decision, St-Maurice hailed
it as both a moral and legal victory. The Marijuana Party Foundation, operated
by the federally chartered Marijuana Party, reacted to the ruling by immediately
launching a Web Site offering to dispense therapeutic cannabis.
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- The Web Site, www.marijuanahomedelivery.ca, offers two
formats of "highest quality therapeutic cannabis" with a THC
content of 8 percent or more. A two-gram package sells for C$30 ($19) while
Internet surfers can order a 10 gram shipment for C$120.
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- "You are not contributing to organized crime. All
revenues raised from our service go to advance efforts to end cannabis
prohibition," the organization promises on its Web Site.
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- Those wishing to order marijuana via the Web Site must
be Canadian citizens residing in Canada, 18 years of age, and provide a
doctor's diagnosis of an illness known to be treatable or alleviated through
the use of cannabis.
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- "It's an online Compassion Club to serve all Canadians
who would have a need for medical marijuana," St-Maurice told Reuters.
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- MEDICINAL CANNABIS LEGAL IN CANADA
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- Canadian law allows access to medical marijuana for a
certain patients. Canada's Office of Cannabis Medical Access oversees regulations
brought down in July 2001 that allow marijuana use by people suffering
from grave and debilitating illnesses.
-
- Applicants include those who have a terminal illness
or serious medical conditions such as multiple sclerosis, spinal cord disease,
cancer or AIDS/HIV infection.
-
- The Canadian government is working on the cultivation
of a safe and standardized supply of marijuana for use as a medical treatment.
- But that supply is not yet available and those seeking
medicinal marijuana must turn elsewhere for access to the drug. Often,
they must apply for a license to grow the marijuana themselves or seek
it on the street.
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- St-Maurice said the Marijuana Party Foundation does not
have permits from the Canadian government allowing the group to sell cannabis
online. Its Internet initiative also does not have the consent of the Canadian
Medical Association or other professional groups.
-
- But St-Maurice said those hurdles will not prevent the
Web Site from taking orders and shipping marijuana.
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- "In January, we'll be starting to offer tax deductions
for the marijuana we sell online," he said.
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- ($1=$1.55 Canadian)
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