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NEWS: SMH - 9/01/07 'Man caught with cannabis plant in court'

'Pot plant in court' case adjourned
August 23, 2007 - 2:34PM

A man charged with taking a marijuana plant into a Brisbane court won an adjournment on Thursday when he complained of a headache which required treatment - with cannabis.

Peter Till, 39, of Nimbin in northern NSW, told the Brisbane Magistrates Court he uses the drug for pain relief.

Till has pleaded not guilty to one count of possession of a dangerous drug after allegedly taking a 90cm-tall plant into the Brisbane Magistrates Court on January 8, 2007.

Till claims his decision to take the plant into the court complex was not unlawful as he was planning to tender it as evidence in an unrelated court matter.

However, the crown said current Queensland legislation forbade him from doing so.

The court heard Till used a yellow sack to carry the plant into the court complex, and that it was discovered and seized by security guards after he put it on the security x-ray machine's conveyor belt.

He was arrested later that afternoon.

A barefoot and dreadlocked Till, who represented himself, told the court he was on a disability pension and suffered back and hand pain, as well as headaches resulting from an accident where a piece of wire pierced his eye.

He told the court he had tried many types of prescription drugs to ease the pain, but cannabis was the only thing that worked.

"I absolutely and totally, utterly know I'm not doing anything wrong, because to turn around and make someone a criminal because of pain relief is wrong," he told the court.

Magistrate Zac Sarra acknowledged cannabis was valued in some cultures for its medicinal properties but said Till's behaviour was still wrong in the eyes of Queensland's legislation.

"The law in Queensland says that it is an offence to possess a dangerous drug and cannabis sativa is considered a dangerous drug," he said.

"So it doesn't really matter what our thoughts or opinions are."

After a short adjournment late Thursday afternoon Till declared he could no longer answer questions from the prosecution as his brain was "fried" and had turned to "mush" due to a headache.

Asked by Mr Sarra how he usually treated headaches, Till replied:"To be honest, I usually take cannabis."

The matter was adjourned until September 28.

SMH

I wonder if he relieved his headache outside the court. ;)
 
Perhaps the point this Nimbin resident was trying to make would have been better understood and accepted through an educational and entertaining power point slide presentation?

But that sure as hell wouldn't gotten anywhere near the amount of news coverage. Nice work.
 
He's done it again.

Man takes ' bag of cannabis' into drug trial
By Christine Flatley
September 28, 2007 03:54pm

A MAN who says he uses drugs for pain relief pulled out a bag of suspected cannabis in a Brisbane court room today while appearing on drug possession charges.

Police seized the bag after searching Peter Till, 39, of Nimbin in northern NSW, during an adjournment of the trial at the Brisbane Magistrates Court.

The contents have yet to be analysed and no charges were laid immediately.

Till was on trial for drug possession after he took a 90cm tall cannabis plant into the same court complex on January 8, 2007.

Till, a supporter of cannabis legalisation, claimed the plant was to be used as evidence to prove the drug was not dangerous.

During closing argument today - the second day of the summary hearing - he pulled from his pocket and placed on the bar table a clipseal bag containing green leafy material and a large pre-rolled cigarette.

Representing himself in the trial, Till told the court he was on a disability pension for back, hand and eye pain, and that he used cannabis on a daily basis for pain relief.

Till had requested an adjournment of the proceedings in August so he could self-medicate for a headache.

Magistrate Zac Sarra today found Till guilty of possession of a dangerous drug, saying he was satisfied Till did not have a lawful reason to possess the drug.

He sentenced Till to a two-month wholly suspended sentence.

As he left the court, Till was arrested and taken to the police watchhouse over allegations he had failed to perform community service as ordered for an earlier drugs offence.

News.com.au
 
He should give certificates for his health problems to the Corrections, Probation and Parole centre then. So he can go back to court and be re-sentenced. I'm pretty sure if he's on a pension for all those health problems, his Centrelink fund will just be dis-credited $40 or so a fortnight until he pays off the unpaid community service hours which are $15/hour.
 
Pot smoker speaking 'gibberish': court
Christine Kellett | October 1, 2008 - 1:25PM

Three senior judges have refused to indulge cannabis crusader and serial justice pest Peter Till on his campaign to legally self-medicate with marijuana, describing his argument at a Supreme Court hearing in Brisbane today as "gibberish".

In yet another strange performance, the colourful Nimbin identity and self-confessed dope smoker would not answer to his name when it was called at the Court of Appeal - where he had sought an extension of time to appeal two separate convictions for drug possession - claiming that the dictionary definition of "Mister Peter Till" referred to a warrant officer, which he was not.

A barefoot and dreadlocked Till, who appeared today decked out in an orange sarong and matching contruction worker's reflective safety shirt, told three Supreme Court of Appeal judges he was being "tortured" by a legal system that would not allow him to take cannabis for pain relief.

Till, 40, has previously admitted regularly smoking the drug to help with injuries sustained when he was poked in the eye and involved in a motorbike accident several years ago.

He was found guilty in June last year of being in possession of cannabis after police found him with a small bag of the drug at Brisbane's Botanic Gardens.

He was charged again the very same day, when he attempted to pass through a court security checkpoint carrying two cannabis plants which he claimed to have brought with him as "evidence".

Till, who resides in his car in Nimbin, near Byron Bay, has unsuccessfully tried to appeal both convictions, which resulted in 40 hours' community service and a two-month, wholly-suspended jail term.

"I just want the pain to stop," Till shouted to the full bench of the Court of Appeal today.

"I am a living man, right, and I use cannabis for pain relief - I don't dispute it - (but) I am being tortured by the system.

"As far as I know, God is the highest law."

But after being told to be quiet, Till's application was swiftly dismissed by Justice Martin Daubney, who cited several questionable documents Till had lodged with the court, including a "Claim of love and peacefulness to all" addressed to the Prime Minister, Treasurer and Attorney-General.

A medical certificate purportedly penned by a doctor and offering to prescribe Till with a supply of medical cannabis was also deemed a dud.

"The documents are largely gibberish," Justice Daubney seethed.

"He is either a) significantly disconnected from reality; or b) treating the judicial system as a joke.

"The application is dismissed."

Till insists cannabis is a harmless "herb" and has previously invoked a bizarre soverign immunity defence in an attempt to have his drug convictions overturned.

Brisbane Times
 
this guy is awesome, "no synthetic opiates for me man" in best cheech and chong accent :)

i find it amazing that a guy who resides in a car is willing to go to the lengths he has for the right to use this plant. he makes me feel ashamed that so many people with much more dont stand up for what they believe in. even if he may be 23 beers short of a case :)
 
i find it amazing that a guy who resides in a car is willing to go to the lengths he has for the right to use this plant. he makes me feel ashamed that so many people with much more dont stand up for what they believe in. even if he may be 23 beers short of a case

totally agree
 
It is clear this discussion is being held by those that are both younger and older than 20 years of age.

Those less than 20 years of age are still worried what mummy and daddy are going to do to them if they find out they are doing pot.

Those older than 20 years are thinking about the future and their legacy.

It seems true that the younger generation is tending back toward the underground drug scene mentioned by PD, something we have fought against for many years.

Education my fellow BLers is the key.

Do not drive things underground because you do not understand them, this is like burning witches. Enlighten the world with the knowledge that this community holds, and expose all the hypocrisy our government holds over us.

Belive in what you are doing, and then you will be able to do what the man in this story has done with a clear conscience. He might be doing it in a socially unacceptable way, but have you ever heard about the Greens Party? Do you think they came to power by doing what was socially acceptable? It feels as though Australia has taken a big step backward in the last 10 years, and I would like to blame it on America, but unfortunately we cannot blame others for our problems.

While I do not personally smoke pot, there is something very desirable about a human being that is passionate enough about this plant to put his freedom on the line to defend it. Good on this man for making his views known to the wider community.

Nab
 
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