by Evan Matthews | [email protected]
An expired green card may have just helped a man avoid trafficking charges.
Forty-three-year-old Vancouver native Curtis Mauro was charged with possession for the purpose of trafficking on June 9 after being pulled over near Jasper with nearly four pounds of pot.
In Jasper court on Nov. 9, he testified that at the time of his arrest his life was in chaos and that he made a mistake, but that he’s not a drug dealer.
At roughly 3 p.m. that day RCMP Roving Traffic Unit (RTU) Constable John Brault pulled over Mauro’s vehicle near Jasper because it didn’t have mudflaps.
Mauro testified he was heading to Edmonton for his cousin’s wedding. After a breakup with his then-girlfriend, Mauro was couch surfing between Langley and Vancouver. HE was making the commute to Edmonton alone.
In speaking with Mauro, Const. Brault testified he could smell the odour of fresh marijuana so he arrested him and searched the vehicle.
He found a large black bag with clothes and a number of Ziploc bags filled with marijuana. Most of the bags contained roughly half a pound. There was 1,616 grams in total, worth between $6,400 and $9,360 according to police. Brault also found a scale and three small containers of what appeared to be cannabis oil.
I have a license - sort of
Mauro presented Brault with a Marijuana Medical Access Regulations (MMAR) card that had expired on Mar. 31, 2014.
Mauro testified he first received his card in 2012, after a car accident left him with a shattered humerus, tendonitis and bad knees.
“I knew things were in limbo. But I thought it was just status quo. I had travelled with 1,800 grams previously. I make topical oils,” Mauro testified.
Within the parameters of his license, Health Canada allows Mauro to grow up to 120 plants at a time. He testified that he shares a space with three other growers in Langley.
When the Crown asked why the marijuana was pre-packaged perfectly into half pound bags, Mauro said it makes it easier to know how much you have.
“I also make phoenix tears, rubbing creams, etc. I do smoke and vape periodically, but I usually smoke shatter,” he said.
Phoenix tears are another form of cannabis oil extract.
Brault testified even though Mauro’ MMAR card had expired he knew the card would still be legally valid in the eyes of Health Canada. Judge Norheim interjected to agree, saying the federal government has made the process very unclear to date.
The card, before its expiry, allowed Mauro to carry up to 1,800 grams of marijuana for personal use, but the rules have changed since he acquired it.
New regulations allow cardholders to carry just 150 grams, a fraction of what Mauro was arrested with.
Mauro testified he was never notified of the change.
Crown’s expert witness
The Crown prosecution then called Corporal Brent Clarke, who spent some of his 16 years with the RCMP on a task force that targeted illegal grow ops and organized crime.
Clarke testified he believes Mauro was trafficking, pointing to the various packages with varying weights and digital scale found in his vehicle.
“Marijuana users don’t commonly use scales. But with traffickers, without a scale, it’s lost profit,” said Clarke. “Heavy users may smoke up to three grams a day, and even Health Canada says that’s a high amount. If smoking three grams a day, Mauro would have had a supply lasting roughly a year-and-a-half.”
However, Clarke added it wouldn’t make sense to have such a large stockpile for personal use, as marijuana’s potency decreases over time.
Mauro’s lawyer brought attention to the fact that a person could use separate bags to transport personal product.
He also pointed to the fact people consume marijuana in different ways, and that if someone did consume marijuana in a way besides smoking, they would need far more marijuana to facilitate the consumption.
Marijuana edibles, for instance, require a much larger amount of weed in order to be effective.
In closing, Mauro’s defence asked RCMP if they had evidence that he was smoking, and if RCMP factored in the possibility of edibles, oils and creams. Clarke answered no to both questions.
The defence also pointed to the fact that while Mauro wasn’t carrying isopropyl alcohol or coconut oil — ingredients needed to make edibles and/or topical oils — he could have easily purchased those goods upon his arrival in Edmonton.
At this point, Mauro could be seen winking at his girlfriend from the stand.
Judge Norheim said despite expert witnesses noting the amount of marijuana and its packaging, federal law at one point allowed Mauro to have it. The Crown provided no evidence of notices given to Mauro notifying him of the changes to federal legislation.
“Transportation in and of itself does not constitute trafficking.”
As the Crown pointed out ignorance of the law is not a defence but in the judge’s eyes, it had failed to prove Mauro’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
There were no score sheets or large amounts of cash were found to support the RCMP’s trafficking allegation so, Judge Norheim found Mauro guilty of simple possession.
That said, he didn’t have Judge Nordheim fooled.
“He hasn’t convinced me of the fact that things are the way they seem,” the judge said as he ruled. “In fact, I’m quite suspicious. But does his testimony raise a reasonable doubt? He was in possession of a certificate, and his evidence raises concerns, and there is a lack of Crown evidence.”
Mauro had no previous criminal record, so Norheim fined him $500 and gave him a short deadline of Jan. 1 to pay.
“If you have access to money, and I suspect that you do, you should be able to deal with this.”
