WHO IS MARC EMERY?

 

 

Marc openly ran "Marc Emery Direct Marijuana Seeds" from a store in downtown Vancouver and through mail-order from 1994 to 2005, with the goal to fund anti-prohibition and pro-marijuana activists and organizations across North America and the world.

 

Marc always paid all provincial and federal taxes on his income and made no secret to anyone of his seed-selling business. Marc was raided by police for selling seeds and bongs in 1996 and again in 1997 and 1998, but despite the seizure of his stock by police, the Canadian courts sentenced Emery only to fines and no jail time.

 

Canadian police then pressured the American Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to launch a cross-border attack against Marc. They arranged to have him charged under America's much more severe laws against seeds.

 

Marc was arrested in Canada by American agents in 2005, and originally faced a minimum 30-year sentence in the US, with the possibility of life behind bars. After years of legal efforts, Marc made a plea-bargain for a five-year sentence in the US. Marc had originally secured a deal with US officials to serve his five-year sentence in Canada, but the Conservative Government of Canada refused to allow this, and forced him to be extradited to the US.

 

The US Drug Enforcement Administration admitted on the day of Marc Emery's arrest that his investigation and extradition were politically motivated, designed to target the marijuana legalization efforts and organizations that Emery spearheaded and financed for over a decade.

Here is the original text of DEA Administrator Karen Tandy's statement released on July 29th, 2005 (also available in its original letterhead form by clicking here):

"Today's DEA arrest of Marc Scott Emery, publisher of Cannabis Culture Magazine, and the founder of a marijuana legalization group -- is a significant blow not only to the marijuana trafficking trade in the U.S. and Canada, but also to the marijuana legalization movement.

His marijuana trade and propagandist marijuana magazine have generated nearly $5 million a year in profits that bolstered his trafficking efforts, but those have gone up in smoke today.

Emery and his organization had been designated as one of the Attorney General's most wanted international drug trafficking organizational targets -- one of only 46 in the world and the only one from Canada.

Hundreds of thousands of dollars of Emery's illicit profits are known to have been channeled to marijuana legalization groups active in the United States and Canada. Drug legalization lobbyists now have one less pot of money to rely on."

 

On May 10th, 2010, Marc was ordered extradited by Justice Minister Rob Nicholson. He was taken to the USA on May 20th, and is currently in SeaTac Federal Detention Centre awaiting his sentencing in Seattle's US federal court on September 10th.

 

Marc was forced to endure three weeks of complete solitary confinement for recording a "prison podcast" over the phone for release on the internet. You can listen to his 2009 "Prison Pot-casts" by clicking here.

 

 

 

 

10 Facts About Marc Emery (10 Important Facts about Marc Emery)

 

Did You Know...? (More Information on Marc Emery)

 

 

2010:  "Principle of Pot" Documentary about Marc Emery

 

2010: "Prince of Pot" CNN iReport feature story

 

 

2009: CBC Documentary: "Prince Of Pot: The US vs. Marc Emery"

 

2008: CBC feature interview with Marc Emery

 

2006: 60 Minutes profile on Marc Emery.

 

2006: CBC News profile on Marc Emery.

 

2005: "Who I am, Why I Did It." article by Marc Emery.

 

2005: "Escape to Canada" documentary featuring Marc Emery

 

2002: Cannabis Culture interview with Marc, about his career and work selling marijuana seeds.

 

1999: Cannabis Culture interview with Marc, covering his early years and raids.

 

1997: CNN "Canada Cannabis" Marc Emery profile

  

1994: Article written by Marc Emery, outlining his philosophy and the founding of Hemp BC. 

 

1992: Documentary "Messing up the System" covering Marc's very early career.