Pubdate: Mon, 08 Aug 2005 Source: Vancouver Courier (CN BC) Copyright: 2005 Vancouver Courier Contact: http://www.vancourier.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/474 Author: Naoibh O'Connor, Staff writer Cited: B.C. Marijuana Party http://bcmarijuanaparty.com/ Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/people/Kirk+Tousaw Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/people/Marc+Emery Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/people/Renee+Boje MARIJUANA PARTY PREPARED TO FIGHT Kirk Tousaw is ready for battle. The campaign manager for the B.C. Marijuana Party is determined to derail U.S. attempts to extradite Marc Emery, along with two other marijuana activists, for marijuana-related federal charges south of the border. Whether he and supporters will succeed is in question, but Tousaw, who learned of the arrests right after finishing a law society bar exam, is convinced ordinary Canadians are behind the cause and oppose U.S. attempts to influence drug policy in this country. "I think the Canadian taxpayer is going to be footing the bill for a legal battle that will stretch for many years. It's unfortunate because I don't think the Canadian people have any appetite to see Marc Emery shipped down to the United States to do life in prison." Two of the charges-conspiracy to produce marijuana and conspiracy to distribute marijuana seeds carry penalties ranging from 10 years to life, while a third-conspiracy to engage in money laundering, carries a penalty of up to 20 years. The length of time for extradition varies, depending on appeals. Some experts have suggested Emery's case could take six months to two years or even longer. Christian Girouard, an Ottawa-based spokesman for the Department of Justice, said the longest extradition case he's aware of is the current case against American Renee Boje, who faces 10 years to life for medical marijuana charges in the U.S. Her case started in 1999. This year, Boje's lawyers sought a judicial review of the minister's decision, which is her last course of appeal. The U.S. filed 130 extradition requests last year. Among them were 42 for narcotic charges, 22 for fraud, 10 for smuggling goods and aliens, seven for manslaughter, eight for assault and sexual assault, one for environmental terrorism and 15 for money laundering. A member of the Department of Justice's international assistance unit acts as a lawyer for the Americans. In previous years, Canada has asked for conditions to be met before extraditing certain individuals, but they've only related to special protection in jail, according to Girouard. Special protection was requested for a man extradited to Mexico for murdering his gay partner and for a man from the Czech Republic who was a member of the Roma community and faced persecution from others in jail. Canada also refuses to extradite individuals who face capital punishment. Tousaw calls the prospect of Emery winding up in an American prison a call to arms, arguing the brand of justice the U.S. meets out would shock the average Canadian. "I don't think the States is going to back down, but at some point you have to say, "No more,' because if they can come for a non-harmful, nonviolent person like Marc Emery, who has never set foot in the United States throughout the course of any of these alleged crimes, who can they come for next?," he said. "Can they come for the store owner who sells cuban cigars to American tourists who take them back across the border? Can they come for the internet gambling site that services U.S. citizens? Can they come for the ministers that perform [gay] marriages for U.S. couples? Where does it end and when does Canada say, 'We're a different country and we're going to do it our way.'" - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake