03/08/2007 00:00:00
US: Cannabis minister faces 4 years
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Reverend of Temple 420 is convicted of sale and possession.
LOS ANGELES - A minister accused of distributing marijuana through his
church was convicted of a drug charge Thursday.
The Rev. Craig X Rubin, 41, faces up to four years, eight months in
prison for possessing marijuana for sale, said Jane Robison, a district
attorney's spokeswoman.
Rubin and some 400 members of Temple 420 say that marijuana is a
religious sacrament. They burn and smoke pot during services.
The reverend, who has appeared in episodes of the Showtime comedy
"Weeds," said he won't appeal his conviction.
"If my society believes I'm a danger and a threat, it's better off
without me," he said in a telephone interview. "Hopefully people will be
nice to me inside. I barely ever had a ticket before."
Rubin, who represented himself, is scheduled to be sentenced Aug. 17.
He said he feels less worried about himself than his seven children.
"I go hiking with them every weekend. I read the Bible to them every
night," he said.
Rubin was ordained in 1990 by the Universal Life Church, which will
ordain anyone for a fee. The Beverly Hills-born minister was arrested
last fall and freed after posting $20,000 bail.
http://www.presstelegram.com/news/ci_6531754
Source:
http://www.ukcia.org/news/shownewsarticle.php?articleid=12764
Author:
Press Telegram via UKCIA
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