Pubdate: Fri, 12 Jun 2015 Source: Daily Courier, The (CN BC) Copyright: 2015 The Okanagan Valley Group of Newspapers Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/5NyOACet Website: http://www.kelownadailycourier.ca Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/531 Author: Susan McIver Page: A1 Referenced: R. v. Smith http://mapinc.org/url/d2dzMbjW RULING A VICTORY FOR FAMILY OF GIRL WITH SEIZURE DISORDER Family of Summerland toddler 'thrilled' with Supreme Court decision that makes treating her with cannabis oil legal Overjoyed only begins to describe the reaction of Kyla Williams's family to the Supreme Court of Canada's ruling that expands the definition of medical marijuana to include extracts and derivatives. The quality of life of the three-year-old Summerland girl diagnosed with intractable seizure disorder has dramatically improved since she began treatment with cannabis oil early last year. On Thursday, the high court ruled that medical marijuana patients can use cannabis-infused cookies, tea and oils without breaking the law. "I burst into tears when I heard the news," said Kyla's grandmother Elaine Nuessler. "I then called Courtney (Kyla's mother) and we both cried." "I can't say how thrilled we are," said Courtney. Parents Courtney and Jared Williams and the other family members have been on a roller-coaster ride since Kyla was diagnosed two years ago. A year later, doctors said they had exhausted all treatment options. In desperation, the family turned to the illegal oil. "It's nice not to feel like a criminal and be looking over your shoulder all the time," said grandfather Chris Nuessler, a retired RCMP officer. Before Thursday's ruling, only dried forms of marijuana were legal, which meant patients had to smoke the drug that is proving to be beneficial for a wide range of conditions, including epilepsy. "How could little Kyla, who was suffering hundreds of seizures a day, smoke pot?" Elaine asked. Elaine has become the go-to person for information and emotional support for many families across the country with children suffering from epilepsy. Chris and Elaine have been instrumental in raising money to help families pay for the oil. The court's decision opens the doors to much-needed research on medical cannabis in Canada. "The prohibition of non-dried forms of medical marijuana limits liberty and security of the person in a manner that is arbitrary and hence is not in accord with the principles of fundamental justice," said the written judgement. The initial trial judge in Smith's case gave the federal government a year to change the laws around cannabis extracts, but the top court said its ruling takes effect immediately. Cheryl Rose, whose daughter Hayley takes cannabis for a severe form of epilepsy, was overjoyed by the decision and said her 22- year-old's seizures have dropped dramatically. Under the old law, Hayley was ingesting 15 capsules of dried cannabis daily. Now, she will only have to swallow one concentrated capsule made with oil. Limiting medical marijuana use to dried pot "limits life, liberty and security of the person" in two ways, the court said. First, the prohibition on possession of cannabis in forms other than dried pot places a person at risk of imprisonment; they wouldn't face the same threat if they possessed dried marijuana buds. It also exposes people with a legitimate need for marijuana to other potential medical ailments, it stated. "It subjects the person to the risk of cancer and bronchial infections associated with smoking dry marijuana and precludes the possibility of choosing a more effective treatment." The decision was the latest in a series of rulings by the high court against the Harper government on a variety of issues, including unanimously rejecting the ban on providing doctor-assisted death to mentally competent patients. Health Minister Rona Ambrose said she was "outraged" by the marijuana decision. "The big issue here is the message about normalization," she said. "The message that judges, not medical experts, judges have decided something is a medicine." Ambrose noted that marijuana has never faced a regulatory approval process through Heath Canada. "This is not a drug," she said. "This is not a medicine. There's very harmful effects of marijuana, especially on our youth." - --- MAP posted-by: Matt