U.S. jails Canadian ‘Prince of Pot’ for five years

[akston]

U.S. jails Canadian ‘Prince of Pot’ for five years
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/prince-of-pot-sentenced-to-five-years/article1703132/



The long arm of American justice has reached out for Canada’s so-called Prince of Pot and sent him to U.S. federal prison for five years.

A chastened Marc Emery, who was sentenced in U.S. District Court here Friday for selling millions of marijuana seeds to customers south of the border, admitted to arrogance in flouting American law and promised never to advocate civil disobedience again in the United States or Canada.

His statement represented a change of attitude for Mr. Emery, 52, who had openly pedalled his illegal products to the U.S. and smoked pot in public on a regular basis in Canada, daring authorities to charge him.

Yet, even as he was led away in dowdy prison fatigues, waving to his wife and supporters, winds of a changing, more tolerant attitude towards marijuana prosecutions are beginning to gust in the United States.

Some now wonder whether Mr. Emery’s relatively harsh punishment for a business that was never closed by Canadian authorities could soon be a rare event in a country that has waged a relentless war against marijuana for decades.

(More at link above)

Other media outlets covering the story...

http://www.cannabisculture.com/v2/content/2010/09/10/Prince-Pot-Marc-Emery-Sentenced-Five-Years-US-Prison
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2010/09/10/bc-marc-emery-seattle-sentence.html
http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/859683--prince-of-pot-jailed-5-years-in-u-s-for-selling-seeds
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/westcoastnews/story.html?id=609bea96-a36c-4ebe-b384-fa76fdb8860c&k=94485
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2010/09/famed-canadian-pot-activist-marc-emery-sentenced-years-prison/

[phosphene]

he'll do 6 months, max. the conviction is just for show. They could only convict him on one stupid charge. they had to drop like 23 other charges.

[akston]

he'll do 6 months, max. the conviction is just for show. They could only convict him on one stupid charge. they had to drop like 23 other charges.

It's a conspiracy charge, too.

I read elsewhere that conspiracy to commit a misdemeanor is in fact a felony. That's pretty messed up. Clearly, conspiracy charges are little more than political weapons.

[defendfreedomvet85]

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=1782081944604&set=a.1782050783825.101771.1016112778&theater

Signs at Seattle Protest:

"Free Mark!"

"Defund the drug czar!"