The Weird Post

Posted by admin on April 23rd, 2008 in weird

Church of the Universe uses pot as sacrament. Founders face jail and forfeiture of their building. Defence: “Your Honour, when alcohol was illegal, nobody asked the Pope about the sincerity of his religion.

The Hamilton Spectator: Church of the Universe founders Walter Tucker and Michael Baldasaro are battling the Department of Justice, which wants the pair jailed for two years and their assembly’s east Hamilton headquarters confiscated.Tucker, 75, and fellow minister Baldasaro, 58, were convicted by a jury on Nov. 28 on five counts of trafficking in marijuana, which church members have used as a sacrament for the past 30 years.

The charges were laid after a Hamilton police officer, posing as a woman from Winnipeg who was new to town and down on her luck, visited their Barton Street East church in May 2003.

Tucker was convicted of three counts of trafficking in marijuana, the total quantity amounting to a few grams worth about $40. Baldasaro was found guilty on two counts involving 2.5 grams, or about $30 worth of pot.

Federal prosecutor Lou Strezos is seeking to have the property, worth about $98,000, forfeited to the Crown under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act.

Full article