Current Affairs (2008) -
Chronological (386 items)
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| Feb 20, 2008 |
BC Marijuana Smoker Wins Human-rights Ruling The B.C. Human Rights Tribunal has ruled that a window contractor discriminated against an employee because his physical disability allowed him to smoke medical marijuana. The company has been told to pay $500 for injury to the man's dignity, feelings and self-respect. |
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| Feb 20, 2008 |
Vancouver Police Raid The Herb School and Arrest Activist David Malmo-Levine The Vancouver Police raided the Vancouver Herb School, arresting David Malmo-Levine and others. Malmo-Levine was taken into custody at 12:30pm Pacific time, and charges are pending for Trafficking, Possession for the Purpose of Trafficking, and (possibly) Possession of Paraphernalia. He will be kept in custody overnight. Lawyer Kirk Tousaw has been secured to represent Malmo-Levine tomorrow morning. |
| Feb 21, 2008 |
Charges Dropped In Pot Bust BC Conservative Leader, Wilf Hanni, expressed dismay over the ruling by B.C. Supreme Court Justice Catherine Bruce yesterday that marijuana seized in a recent police raid could not be used as evidence in the case against the defendant... |
| Feb 21, 2008 |
Government Policy Keeps Couple Apart When MUN student Kirsten Joy moved in with her boyfriend Mike Dawe, she thought it would be forever. But a year down the line, a government policy forced her to pack her bags and move across town, when she got a letter warning that she was not allowed to receive two forms of income support at once. Joy receives a full student loan and Dawe collects government aid because he has a rare and debilitating genetic disorder called Marfan Syndrome, which affects his body's joints, connective tissues, and heart. ..."I really don't consider a student loan a form of income because it is something that I have to pay back," said Joy. [Bureaucracy at it's finest] |
| Feb 21, 2008 |
RCMP Announces Arrival To Pot Growers With Siren Surrey RCMP not only knocked and announced their arrival at a million-dollar home of suspected pot growers Tuesday, they blasted a police siren as well. The innovative approach to executing a search warrant was in response to a B.C. Supreme Court ruling two weeks ago in which police were criticized for not giving enough warning to a pot grower before breaking down his door. |
| Feb 22, 2008 |
War On Drugs Is Blowing Up In Our Faces, Expert Warns Oscapella is absolutely convinced that the prohibition of drugs is "the most significant failing of the criminal justice system of the 20th, and now, 21st centuries." ... On this 100th anniversary of prohibition, maybe we have to ask ourselves, are we addicted to prohibition? |
| Feb 25, 2008 |
Constitutional Challenge Launched Over Search Warrant Windsor defence lawyer Frank Miller has brought a constitutional challenge over the way Windsor police put together search warrants in drug cases, citing s. 8 of the Charter, which protects against unreasonable search or seizure. |
| Feb 25, 2008 |
Pot Smoking Patient Learns Patience Two years ago, Olga Eredics finally gave in to her doctor's suggestion to try medical marijuana after a bout with multiple sclerosis left her in a wheelchair in 2002. Although she still deals with tremendous pain every day, Eredics is able to walk and exercise with the help of cannabis. |
| Feb 26, 2008 |
BC:
Powerful Drive To Uncover Pot Grow Ops High Hydro readings are helping pinpoint properties in Courtenay where illegal grow-op activity could be taking place. The electricity stats are powering a drive to track down indoor marijuana operations and arrest operators. The City of Courtenay has teamed up with the RCMP and B.C. Hydro for the new program, which has already delivered startling results in Coquitlam and Surrey on the Lower Mainland. |
| Feb 27, 2008 |
ON:
Government Seizes Pot Grower's Home A Malton man has pleaded guilty to operating a marijuana lab out of a home he owns in Georgetown....After Ngo's guilty plea, the Federal Court ordered forfeiture of his house to the Receiver General of Canada. |
| Feb 29, 2008 |
NS:
Marijuana Guilty Plea Delayed By Lawyer's Schedule AMHERST - Ricky Logan Simpson, the Maccan-area man who says he has found the cure for cancer in a marijuana oil he produces, is expected to plead guilty to his latest drug-trafficking charge - but not for another couple of weeks. Mr. Simpson, 58, was expected to enter a plea to the charge in provincial court Thursday, but he appeared without his lawyer, Duncan Beveridge, who couldn't make the trip to Amherst because he was preparing for a Supreme Court jury trial in Halifax. |
| Mar 5, 2008 |
Hell, A Handbasket And Tougher Drug Laws Eugene Oscapella is a criminologist who teaches at the University of Ottawa. He dresses like a modern academic hipster: short leather jacket, blue shirt, dark tie, grey strides. He is also a lawyer who is sharp on the subject of drug policy. He was in town recently, speaking to front-line health and harm-reduction workers about the perils of the government's proposed crime legislation. |
| Mar 5, 2008 |
Grow Op Program A Success A city program shut down more than 80 suspected Coquitlam marijuana grow ops in the first seven months it was in operation. |
| Mar 6, 2008 |
Prince Of Pot Still In Limbo The fate of Vancouver's Prince of Pot is still uncertain after his extradition hearing yesterday was again postponed while Canadian and American prosecutors negotiate how to legally sentence him in both countries. |
| Mar 6, 2008 |
Sweet Leaf Relief A small yet passionate group of Calgarians is working diligently to provide medicinal marijuana to ease the suffering of those struck with debilitating illnesses such as multiple sclerosis, cancer and chronic pain. Founded in the fall of 2002, the Calgary Medicinal Marijuana Centre ( CMMC ) is a not-for-profit co-operative that aims to provide its members with a reliable supply of marijuana through a network of authorized growers, to act as a support group and to educate people on the oft-vilified plant's effects on a variety of illnesses. |
| Mar 6, 2008 |
The Cost Of Getting High The UN Office of Drugs and Crime reports that Canada now has the highest proportion of marijuana users in the industrialized world at 16.8% for those between 15 and 64 years of age. Eight percent of youth report using marijuana daily. The most recent Canadian Addictions survey indicates that while youth alcohol-use rates have stayed relatively consistent since 1989, use of marijuana by youth has almost doubled in the same period. |
| Mar 7, 2008 |
A Jolt Of Reality Any parent who puts blind faith in the decisions of their children, especially ones not even in high school yet, is na( ve. Case in point is the recent incident at Tilbury Area Public School where three kids were charged with various drug offences for the alleged possession of marijuana, cocaine and prescription drugs. |
| Mar 7, 2008 |
Top Court Asked To Settle Worker Drug-Testing Battle A clear national standard for worker drug and alcohol testing will emerge from a battle over oilsands employment, if a new legal move by the Alberta Human Rights Commission succeeds. The agency has appealed to the Supreme Court of Canada to settle conflict between Alberta doctrine supporting dismissals of substance users for safety's sake and Ontario rules against such firings as discrimination. |
| Mar 12, 2008 |
End Pot Prohibition Marijuana should be legal. This statement always seems to garner a lot of attention, and rightfully so, as there are several relatively complex issues surrounding its legalization. However, there is absolutely no logical reason why marijuana prohibition continues to be a valid issue. All the facts point to one solution: legalization. |
| Mar 12, 2008 |
Pot Seed Sales Do Not Warrant Export Finally, a court ruling that puts in perspective the five to 10 years' imprisonment that B.C. cannabis crusader Marc Emery faces in U.S. prison for selling pot seeds. |