Medical marijuana legal in all forms, Supreme Court rules

Medical marijuana patients willnow be able to consume marijuana and not just smoke it as well asuse other extracts and derivatives, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled today.

The unanimousruling against the federal governmentexpands the definition of medical marijuana beyond the"dried" form.

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The country's highest court found the current restriction to dried marijuana violates theright to liberty and security "in a manner that is arbitrary and hence is not in accord with the principles of fundamental justice."

Restricting medical access to marijuana to a dried form has now been declared "null and void" Sections 4 and 5 of the Controlled Drug and Substances Act, which prohibits possession and trafficking of non-dried forms of cannabis,will no longer be in effect.

The respondent in this case, Owen Smith, called it "a very emotional day."

"I'm proud and really happy today for all those people who are going to benefit from this ruling," he said at a press conference in Victoria, B.C.

The decision upholds earlier rulings by lower courts in British Columbia thatsaid theywent against a person's right to consume medical marijuana in the form they choose.

Many users felt smoking it was even potentially harmful. However, methods such asbrewing marijuana leaves in teaor bakingcannabis into browniesleftpatients vulnerable to being charged with possession and trafficking under the law.

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According to evidence submitted to the trial judge, it came down to forcing a person to choose between a legal but inadequate treatment,and an illegal but more effective choice.

Federal health minister 'outraged'

"It's a positive it's a great thing for patients ... and people who need extracts who can't smoke their cannabis or don't even want to in the first place," said David-George Oldham, founder ofThe ARC, aconsortium of cannabis patients, doctors, activists andchemists.

"Imagine smoking seven grams of cannabis when you're having a migraine so bad that just moving your fingers is excruciating pain," he said during a scrumoutside the Supreme Court.

"Taking a [cannabis]pill is a lot more sensible and having pills stocked in my cupboard makes a lot more sense than having just raw cannabis out and about in my house."

The federal government, however, isn't pleased.

"Frankly, I'm outraged by the Supreme Court," said Health MinisterRonaAmbrose.

"Let's remember, there's only one authority in Canada that has the authority and theexpertise to make a drug into a medicine and that'sHealth Canada," she said during a press conference.

"Marijuana has nevergonethroughthe regulatory approval process at Health Canada, which of course, requires a rigorous safety review and clinical trials with scientific evidence."

Arrest of pot baker sparked court challenge

The case stems from Smith's2009 arrest in Victoria.

Smith, a baker for the Victoria Cannabis BuyersClub, was found with more than 200 cookies and 26 jars of liquids, including cannabis-infused massage oils and lipbalms.The baker was charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking and unlawful possession of marijuana.

The club delivers medical marijuana products to its members, but doesn'thave a licence to produce it.

At his trial, Smith argued that the law under which he was charged was unconstitutional and violated Section 7 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which guarantees the right to life, liberty and security of the person.

The British Columbia trial judge agreed and acquitted him. AB.C. Appeal Court also ruled in Smith's favour, under the principle that no one can be convicted of an offence under an unconstitutional law.

The federal government then appealed that decision totake hiscase to Canada's top court.Thursday'sdecision affirmsSmith's acquittal.

The Appeal Court hadalsosuspended its declarationfor a year to give Parliament time to rewrite the law. The Supreme Court has now deleted that suspension, saying otherwise it would "leave patients without lawful medical treatment and the law and law enforcement in limbo."

Ambrose said the federal government will fight against the court's "normalization" of marijuana.

"We will continue to combat it. We will continue our anti-drug strategy, we will target youth with the message that marijuana pot is bad for them," theminister said."We'll continue to work with medical authorities across the countryto make sure they're involved in the message."