(Photo courtesy of Umberto Iorfida)
Terry
P arker
; Pot Smoker
Extrordinaire'
an article by Umberto
Iorfida, NORML Canada president.
Name
and address of lawyer for Terry Parker's case.
Dana Larsen considered
no fewer than 3 writers to produce the following article which will appear
in the next issue of Cannabis Canada Magazine. As it turns out, Dana picked
Umberto Iorfida, president of NORML Canada to pen this exceedingly relevant
history.
There could be no better
choice, considering that Terry and Umberto had worked together for years
back when the re-chartering of NORML Canada was taking place.
Prior to that, Umberto
and Terry, after successfully organizing one of Canada's most successful
marijuana legalization rallies in the Summer of 1979, were appointed to
the positions of National Director and Assistant National Director respectively.
Before that, both were rank and file members.
When the Toronto Canada Police
Department, decided to raid the two bedroom apartment of Terry Parker,
they may have come face to face with a 'Pot Superman' . They were armed
with their lead box and their kryptonite, though. The badges were the 'lead
box' and the search warrant was the 'kryptonite', containing the charges
of "cultivation for the purpose of trafficking".
Parker's door came down with
a battering ram, splintered and smashed. An action which caused his landlord
to serve notice of eviction the same day. Like vultures tearing apart a
carcass that was not even dead yet, they swooped in for the kill. His visiting
girlfriend Sharon had attempted to open the door for the officers, upon
hearing strange noises of "Police, open the door"!! With not enough time
to unlatch and unlock it, she was practically injured in the entry as she
was forced to watch with horror, the destruction that ensued.
She was also charged. Situated
on the 22nd floor, high above Toronto, overlooking Lake Ontario, it is
hard to imagine just where the police figured that the well known inhabitant
could escape to. Acting on a tip that Parker was growing marijuana on the
balcony of his apartment, they proceeded to seize a crop of 71 plants of
Cannabis Sativa in various stages of growth, some near maturity, others
still in the seedling stage.
The police were fully aware
that in 1987 Terry had won the right in court, to not be found guilty of
possession of cannabis for medicinal purposes. Judge Kenneth Langdon of
the Brampton Provincial Court of Ontario had ruled in Terry's favour. The
decision had come after numerous appearances by Terry on similar charges
of possession,
So why were they so surprised
that he was growing Pot? Parker believed in his mind that having been found
not guilty in the 1987 case, that he had the right to possess cannabis
whether in ready-to-smoke form, or growing on the stalk, and that his victory
included the right to access in any form.
Both before and after winning
the right to possess for medical purposes, Terry Parker, assisted by this
writer, communicated with numerous government officials to request and
obtain access to a supply of legal medical marijuana. He was met with closed
doors at every turn. His lobbying led to discussions, letters and petitions
with the Departments of Health and Justice, the Bureau of Dangerous Drugs,
the Office of the Prime Minister, Federal MP's, Senate Committees, the
House of Commons, Canadian Medical Association, and the Chiefs of Police
Association.
Within the Province of Ontario
he contacted the Ontario Bar Association, the Epilepsy Foundation, the
Ontario Medical Association, the College of Physicians and Surgeons, the
Ombudmans Office, the Bureau of Advocacy for the Rights of Disabled Persons,
the Ex-psychiatric Patients Association, Local MP's, and the Addiction
Research Foundation. Tirelessly he asked all possible authorities for help
and direction in gaining access to marijuana to fulfill his court victory
and administer to his medicinal need.
Throughout the last 15 years
you could find Parker on many occasions walking through the streets of
downtown Toronto. From Roncesvale to Yonge, from the water front to Bloor
St. Terry carried a 60 lb. hemp back-sack, attached to which was a six
foot sign towering above his head : "Legalize Marijuana", "Medical Marijuana",
"No More Prisoners Of Weed", & "Join N.O.R.M.L. CANADA", were only
a few of the slogans that could be seen for a block or more across the
busy traffic. You could hear his loud voice, like a town crier bellowing
out the need to consider medical marijuana. In time he became a fixture
along the sidewalks of this major downtown core. He never grew tired of
stopping to speak to, and answer the questions of novices and veterans
alike about the cannabis issue. Yet, what was his reward ?
He is sad today after loosing
his medication, but does "drug enforcement" work with compassion ? Do the
Government of Canada and the Ministers of Health recognize Terry's situation
as Medical Applicant ? All the doors for legal access to marijuana for
medicinal purposes were slammed in his face. In fact according to Parker,
some of the bureaucrats he approached even advised him verbally to 'grow
his own'. I doubt, however that they would ever admit this publicly. (But
if any should step forward to confirm such advice given, NORML Canada will
publish it).
So he did (grow his own that
is) ...
Parker's home was taken apart
with extreme force and his medicine was carted away. He was charged with
"cultivation of cannabis sativa for the purpose of trafficking". He has
approached Lawyer Aaron Harnett, known for representing Grant Krieger of
Regina Saskatchewan, to defend him on the charges and prepare a constitutional
challenge, under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. This writer and N.O.R.M.L.
Canada have agreed to assist once again in the preparations for the case.
If convicted Parker could
face upwards of 14 years imprisonment. The opinion gathered prior to this
article, is that this would constitute harsh and unusual punishment, not
to mention violation of Parker's rights as a patient in need of medical
remedy.
The Frankfurt Resolutions
and the World Health Organization both provide for the rights of autonomy
of one's body, and the right to seek medical remedy for improved health,
and seek such remedy wherever it is available, exempt from prosecution
and persecution regardless of borders and laws prohibitive of such substances.
So just who is Terry Parker
? Victim ? Crusader ? Superman ? Criminal ? ? ?
Parker, injured in a swing
accident at the age of four years, was beset by the illness staticus
epilepticus (the severest of the Grand Mal seizures which characterize
epilepsy). Hard life, suffering, abuse and persecution, are no strangers
to this man.
In 1969 and 1972 Terry underwent
what he claims, was experimental psycho-surgical behaviour modification.
This surgery was twice performed with the intent of removing those portions
of the human brain thought responsible for causing Terry's uncontrollable,
life-threatening seizures.
Epilepsy is characterized
by bouts of convulsions, 20 to 30 minutes in duration, that make the unfamiliar
cringe with horror and helplessness. The lobotomies left permanent scars,
a constant reminder, stretching from the temporal lobe to the back of his
head ; a hideousness he would have to live with. Memories of the surgery
are still vivid in his mind. And yet the surgeries were unsuccessful in
producing an end to the severity and the dangers of epilepsy's grasp on
his existence. Pills became a large part of his daily schedule. At first
with numerous doctor prescribed mind altering drugs, later with massive
amounts of Tegretol and Mysoline, he was ordered to treat his illness with
these medications having side effects such as erratic, self-destructive
and potentially abusive or aggressive behaviour.
Education was soon out of
reach. Labeled anti-social by ignorant educators, with no effective treatment
forthcoming from the doctors, Terry was left alone in his own world.
From the years 1968 to 1979
Terry was shifted from one psychiatric ward to another. He found himself
an "unwilling prisoner" of places like the Clark Institute in Toronto,
or the halls of the Addiction Research Foundation, and various hospital
wards around the city.
His admissions to emergency
rooms throughout the city by ambulance, became commonplace. I recall one
instance in which, during a seizure in an underground subway station, he
was robbed of his money and guitar, and beaten as a drunk.
The police attending, rousted
him for appearing drunk in public and eventually jailed him for protesting
and belligerence. Talk about double jeopardy.
Parker does not, and never
has, consumed alcohol, having learned in his early years that alcohol would
trigger seizures, even in minute amounts.
In 1976 Terry discovered
cannabis. While registered as an in patient at one of the Toronto institutes,
another patient with epilepsy introduced him to a marijuana 'joint'. Soon
after smoking it, he became aware that the impending feeling of doom associated
with his type of grand mal seizures had subsided. Terry found himself
drawn to this strange feeling of freedom, and was elated at his new found
relief.
It had been many years since
he had felt in control of his body. He told his doctors of his experience,
but found that he was soon being considered a perfect candidate for behaviour
modification surgery. With societal attitudes toward cannabis use, he was
prepared for the procedure, including electro-shock therapy. He still claims
to this day that the surgery was experimental and contrary to Nuremberg
Provisions (1946 trials), establishing a codes of ethics for human experimentation
and mutilation.
N.O.R.M.L. CANADA was aware
of Terry. Terry was a member of N.O.R.M.L. in 1978. His protesting of the
surgery, and his desire to use marijuana for seizure control, led to a
1979 study at the Addiction Research Foundation in Toronto. The essence
and the purpose of the study entitled "The effects of Marijuana and Epileptic
Seizures in Man" were to test his claim that marijuana helped him. Parker
enlisted as a volunteer subject. The nine week study was inconclusive.
Spending $100,000.00 of tax money and nine weeks had proved fruitless.
According to Parker, this was the next spear to pierce his rapidly disintegrating
life. He claims that fraud was exercised when the ARF used 'THC delta 9'
in inhalation form. Some form of smoking material was sprayed with liquid
synthetic 'tetra-hydra-cannibinol delta 9' and administered as a crude
simulated form of marijuana. Terry believes that he was used as a guinea
pig, but the substance used was not natural form cannabis sativa, his true
medical salvation.
It is clear that he felt
abused, by a system intent on avoiding the real issue of cannabis benefits,
by planting disinformation. Nothing would please Parker more than to bring
court action against the ARF, the doctors, and some Toronto lawyers who
refused to seek compensation for him, in spite of agreeing with Terry's
claims that a new study was warranted using crude form marijuana. Could
it be that the medical profession was afraid of the reality of cannabis
and its potential medicinal benefits ?
Terry believes this with
fervor, even insinuating that it is part of the decades old, continuous,
hypocritical war against otherwise law abiding Canadian citizens, especially
disabled persons. This writer joins Terry's plea for medical marijuana,
and freedom from prosecution for all marijuana users.
From 1978, the year Parker
was first arrested (there have been a number since) to the year 1987, much
of his time was spent in court pleading medicinal need and in jail serving
time as a criminal, backed by the 1979 Regina vs. Hausser and the 1984
Regina vs. Perka (the former regarding Health and Welfare vs. Criminal
Justice, the later regarding establishing medical criteria for compassionate
use).
Terry became active in N.O.R.M.L.
Canada's Toronto chapter office, and in 1980 was elected Assistant Executive
National Director with yours truly, Umberto Iorfida, present President
of N.O.R.M.L. Canada.
The National Organization
for the Reform of Marijuana Laws in Canada, had broken from the original
NORML (of which it had been an authorized chapter), in the USA, and had
taken root and established Canadian Corporate Status, run and operated
entirely by Canadians for Canadians. Members included various political,
legal, educational and medical advocates of cannabis. During these times
in the '70's, the Le Dain Commission Inquiry into the non-medical use of
drugs in Canada and the Liberal party of Canada had recommended and promised
decriminalization.
With the onset of the U.S.
based, Nancy Reagan "just say No campaign" came a new low in Canada : the
passing of section 462.2 of the Criminal Code (banning drug literature
which "promotes" illicit drug use).
The Era of Cold Silence began.
With fear in the atmosphere in an unprecedented degree, N.O.R.M.L. Canada
all but disappeared and so had open participation by individuals ready
to face the issues of cannabis education. Yet again suppressed ! Yet Parker
fought on.
During this period of "the
literature and education ban", police and prosecutors viewed any legalization
activity or discussion as a crime.
The constitutional victory
by NORML Canada/Umberto Iorfida from 1992-1995 came 8 years to the date
after Terry Parker walked out of a Brampton, Ontario Courthouse a 'free
man'.
In 1987 (and again in 1988
in the Federal appeal process) Parker was cleared of the charge "possession
of cannabis sativa" on the basis of medicinal necessity and compassionate
use. Parker was elated yet very surprised upon hearing Judge Kenneth Langdon's
decision (later upheld by Federal Judge B. Shapiro in 1988).
Over the next 6 or 7 years
Terry continued in his drive to obtain legal marijuana through legal channels,
but none were there and none came into being. He also found that most bureaucracies
were unwilling to initiate legal channels. His victory joy was soon dashed,
much like his dream of a productive life, free of pain and horror. Even
if it did destroy a few brain cells, using marijuana did not compare
to the brain cell destruction and impairment of the quality of his motor
functions by epileptic seizures. What could be more humiliating and more
cruel than allowing him to suffer publicly, while keeping a natural remedy
such as pot away from his reach ? Rather than face yet another excruciating
surgery, he decided to produce his own access by growing his own.
That's what brought the local
police and the Narcotics Forces to his door.
Between the seizures, one
man demonstrations, and playing the guitar, Parker launched a campaign
bent on exposing illicit human experiments, and cruel and inhuman abuse
of disabled persons.
Is there a connection, a
conspiracy by authorities to torture and make life miserable for disabled
persons ?
History records that hundreds
of thousands of disabled persons were among those selected by the Germans
to suffer in psychiatric wards, or detention camps, and ultimately to be
industrially exterminated both before and during World War II.
Terry believes that the actions
and policies directed against him over the last 20 years were no accident.
Terry also believes at times that he was unknowingly fitted with implants
(and he has the X-rays) that are electronically controlled.
"I'm a walking cyborg", he
says laughingly. Is he deluded, or is this the protective shield he has
built around himself ? There's no doubt that life has dealt Terry an incredibly
splintered existence.
The answer may lie in the
upcoming court battle which will start in early to middle 1997. Terry hopes
to mount a constitutional battle in an effort to establish non-criminal
provisions to provide himself with his "herb of Life". For him anything
less would be comparable to condemning his life to torture and issuing
an order of execution ; to wit ; death by "epileptic Russian roulette"
due to prohibition of marijuana.
This is cruel and unusual
punishment, callous disregard for human life, and is totally unjustifiable
in a free and democratic society. Terry believes in the right to choose,
the right to life, and the right to health, through safe and legal access.
The court case will be expensive
and will be the second chapter in the Terry Parker Chronicles - one man's
battle for legal marijuana. Terry and his lawyer hope to raise money to
cover the cost of the trial. Donations can be made directly to MR. TERRY
PARKER. Donations can also be sent directly to the legal office of MR.
AARON HARNETT ; 75 LOWTHER AVE. ; TORONTO, ONTARIO, CANADA M5R 1C9. For
information email : A. Harnett at aharnett@accent.net. Or contact N.O.R.M.L.
Canada by email : iorfida@interlog.com. Also, visit N.O.R.M.L. CANADA'S
web site.
N.O.R.M.L. Canada will assist
in helping raise awareness and funds for this case and invites participation
by others affected by medical marijuana issues.
This case could be indicative
of Canada's "No Harm Policy", under the new Controlled Substances Act.
This Act received Royal Assent on June 19th of 1996 and is awaiting Proclamation
into law by the Governor General of Canada. This will happen in late September
or October of 1996 and will be effective immediately as of that day. It
is expected that this reinforced version of the Narcotics Control Act is
already in effect and in the process of implementation.
Contrary to many esteemed
advocates of the cannabis culture, Bill C-8 may hold the mechanisms to
make Parker's dream a reality. You can help, we all can help. The drug
war is waged at the cost of all Canadian citizens.
Terry Parker, "Pot Superman",
believes he can win . A win for one is a win for all.
Go Parker Go !
JOIN NORML CANADA AND HELP CHANGE
FOR THE BETTER
** Terry Parker - Hero ; Medical Marijuana Pioneer
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