Of course, that is no comfort to those who are targeted by the skunk.)

April 7, 1999
From The Vancouver Province
provletters@pacpress.southam.ca
http://www.vancouverprovince.com/

By Peter Clough

ARTIST IN POT LAW BATTLE TRIES FOR REFUGEE STATUS

Woody Harrelson, please call Renee Boje.

The 29-year-old California woman, who considers herself a pawn in the battle over the legalization of medicinal marijuana in her home state, is counting on the movie star’s support to help her win refugee status in Canada.

Boje, staying with friends on the Sunshine Coast, faces life in prison if she loses an extradition hearing set for April 19 in Vancouver.

The graphic artist says she believed medicinal marijuana to be legal in California when she became involved with a campaign to establish a Los Angeles counterpart to Vancouver’s Compassion Club, which distributes pot to the chronically ill.
See
Vancouver Leads The Way On Medical Marijuana;
Compassion Club Attorney Will Encourage Class Action Suits,
If Health Minister Does Not Move Faster.

She was hired by activist Todd McCormick to produce artwork for the Cannabis Buyers Club after Californians voted to legalize medicinal marijuana with Proposition 215 in 1996 -- a move that the U.S. federal government has vowed to overrule.

McCormick, considered one of the world’s leading experts in marijuana cultivation, is at the centre of the biggest dope bust in L.A.’s history. He was openly growing more than 4,000 plants, many of them genetically engineered to treat specific illnesses, at his rented Bel Air mansion.

Federal agents say they found plants growing in virtually every room of the five-storey home, designed as a medieval castle and surrounded by a moat with drawbridges.
(Marijuananews note: Actually, there were no moats or drawbridges.)
They say it was even growing in the turrets—in full view of neighbours such as Elizabeth Taylor and Ronald Reagan. They say he was supplying every medicinal-marijuana club in California.

Boje was at the house in July 1997 when police moved in.

"It was my understanding that everything had been made legal by the state of California," she says. "He had all the licences he needed to grow."

Federal authorities decided to prosecute McCormick and other advocates found in the house as a way of challenging Proposition 215. Boje was charged with conspiracy, cultivation, possession and intent to distribute.

(Marijuananews note: When there is a "conspiracy" everyone involved is charged with the total number of plants involved.)

She says she met Woody Harrelson, an outspoken advocate of medicinal marijuana, several times during her involvement with the L.A. club. Harrelson has put up $500,000 bail for McCormick.

Boje came to B.C. a year ago, believing, she says, that the charges against her had been dropped. She hooked up with friends in Roberts Creek, suppliers for the Compassion Club, and was at their house in February when an RCMP drug squad moved in. Once again, she was charged with possession and intent to traffic.

It was through the RCMP that she learned she’s a fugitive. The U.S. charges, she was told, were reinstated after she came to Canada.

Abbotsford lawyer John Conroy says he’ll argue for Boje’s refugee claim on the basis that her alleged crime would be dealt with leniently here—as opposed to a life sentence in the U.S.
(Marijuananews note: The United States Sentencing Commission reports that the average time served in federal prisons for drug trafficking is 82.3 months. That compares to 73.3 months for sexual abuse, 38.8 months for assault, 34.2 months for manslaughter and 22.9 months for bribery. Renee is looking at a minimum of ten years with a possibility of life, because of the number of plants.)

"They don’t get life for murder down there." he says. "Or rape. It’s just bizarre."

Boje, meanwhile, is desperately trying to raise funds for her defence. A benefit will be held Friday night at the Roberts Creek Hall. And she’s still waiting for that phone call from Harrelson.

"I’ve met him a few times and he’s a good guy, very supportive. I think he would help me but I’ve been having trouble getting word to him."