Updated Thu. Oct. 26 2006 10:21 AM ET

CTV.ca News Staff

The country's top court granted a new trial on Thursday to a medicinal marijuana crusader facing charges of pot possession.

In a 7-0 judgment, The Supreme Court of Canada overturned Grant Krieger's conviction on charges of possessing unlawfully produced cannabis for purposes of trafficking.

Krieger argues that he should be able to distribute marijuana to chronically ill patients who smoke pot to ease their pain and suffering.

Krieger, who himself suffers from multiple sclerosis and has legal permission to smoke pot for medical purposes, doesn't have permission from the government to supply it to others.

But he has freely admitted that he distributes the marijuana anyway.

The judge at Krieger's 2003 trial told the jurors that they had no choice under the law but to find him guilty.

Two jurors asked to be excused from the case, one on religious grounds and the other on grounds of conscience, but the judge turned down their request.

The jury returned with a guilty verdict and their verdict was upheld on appeal.

The Supreme Court found that the 2003 trial judge deprived Krieger of his constitutional right to a trial by jury when he instructed the jurors to find the accused guilty.

"The trial judge's direction was not a 'slip of the tongue' to be evaluated in the context of the charge as a whole; nor is this a matter of assessing the impact of subtle language susceptible to different interpretations," the judgment says,

"The judge's purpose was as clear as the words he used to achieve it. He evidently considered it his duty to order the jury to convict and to make it plain to the jurors that they were not free to reach any other conclusion."

In the absence of a guilty plea, the verdict must be that of the jury, the ruling says.

"Not the judge -- unless the judge finds the evidence insufficient and directs a verdict of acquittal on that ground."

http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20061026/scoc_pot_061026