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Pot Cafe’s Activities Harming Relationship With Police: Activist.
By admin | October 6, 2004
The Kitchener Cambrige Waterloo Record
(Canadian Press)
Sept 16, 2004.
Impatient pot-heads, high enough to think they can force the legalization of marijuana, are ruining a relaxed relationship with police by brazenly buying and selling weed in a downtown cafe, says one legalization activists.
“The heat is percieved to be on us even more because of their activities,” said Ted Smith, founder of a 1,300 member compassion club that sells marijuana to sick people.
The Da Kine Smokeshop in the bohemian Commercial Drive neighbourhood is just in it for the money while pretending to be a righteous provider of relief to the ill who say marijuana alleviates pain and suffering, he said.
Police officers who raided the cafe said later the majority of the customers in Da Kine were young and unable to show they had a federal exemption allowing them to smoke pot.
Investigators estimated the shop had grossed sales of $500,000 a month.
“They’re doing sales every 15-20 seconds, over the counter as quick as possible,” Smith said in an interview from his Victoria Cannabis Buyers Club office. “They’re not furthering the cause, they’re hiding behind people in wheelchairs.
“It’s going to be really hard for anyone to open up a storefront for a medical club for BC if not Canada without police wanting to go through a court case. “They’ve done a fair amount of harm the way thay have attacked the law here.”
Vancouver police Const. Sara Bloor says officers are now investigating other stores along Commercial Drive that are allegedly selling pot.
Smith has been able to stay out of jail by requiring customers to produce a note from a doctor verifying they are ill. A Provincial court judge ruled he was following responsible procedures and running a compassion club. The judge stayed charges against Smith this month.
Even the lawyer for Da Kine’s owner Carol Gwilt and her friends says Gwilt’s approach isn’t the way to convince politicians to relax pot laws.
John Conroy is instead taking the fight to a higher road he said gives the movement more credibility.
He is on a campaign to revive a national lobby group called Norml Canada that was powerful in the 1970′s and 1980′s.
“With a minority government in power, now is the time,” he said. “We need to work on the politians and it’s hard to do that from behind bars.”
Solicitor General Rich Coleman was sufficently provoked by sales at teh cafe to lash out, demand police action and hand down a swift public lecture about breaking the law.
Topics: Articles, CD-4th, Fall 2004 | Comments Off
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