Pubdate: Thur, 14 Oct 1999 Source: Calgary Herald (Canada) Copyright: 1999 Calgary Herald Contact: P.O. Box 2400, Stn. M, Calgary, Alberta T2P 0W8 Fax: (403) 235-7379 Website: http://www.calgaryherald.com/ Forum: http://forums.canada.com/~calgary Author: Bob Beaty POT CRUSADER TO CITE CHARTER Calgary pot crusader Grant Krieger will launch a constitutional defence against trafficking charges that were set to be heard next April. Court of Queen's Bench Justice Patrick Sullivan ruled Wednesday that the constitutional argument - expected to last four days - will be heard first. If necessary, jury trial will follow on a yet-to-be-date. Defence lawyer Adriano Iovinelli said in a press interview following the criminal arraignments that Krieger's rights under the Charter of Rights to use an effective medicine - marijuana - to ease symptoms of his multiple sclerosis are being infringed. `We will use a combination of both section 7 and 15 (of the Charter) to argue he has an individual right to heal himself through the use of marijuana,' Iovinelli said. `And there is also a group in Canada that is being systematically discriminated against by the laws of the country not allowing them to use medicinal marijuana.' Krieger was charged with growing and trafficking marijuana from his northwest Bowness home last summer. - --- MAP posted-by: manemez j lovitto