An Australian man who is a known supplier of medical marijuana and says that he only wants to be able to help people who are experiencing chronic pain, aggressive cancer, or other debilitating illnesses has received a 12-month prison sentence for the distribution of the illicit drug.
Many patients and their families have stepped forward claiming that Tony Bower's medical marijuana preparations are nothing short of miraculous. However, the legal system does not see it that way and has labeled Bower as a criminal who deserves some time in jail.
Kerry Fredericks, mother to child with a chronic illness says that, "he is a modern-day hero and he's saving our children's lives." She also added that Bower's marijuana concoction have helped to transform these children's ways of life, making them capable of envisioning a future without pain, "basically [thye're] taking medicine away from the children that need it."
Another mother, Cheri O'Connell, says that her daughter Tara O'Connell was experiencing up to 200 seizures daily prior to the use of Bower's cannabis tincture, but that now "Tara's walking, she's running, she's toilet trained. They're all things would never imagined were possible." Meanwhile, her seeming savior has pled guilty to cultivating marijuana.
Bower has named each of the marijuana plants after the child that he has helped with it, but despite his desire to help he also knew that it was just a matter of time before he became answerable to the law. "I suppose the court can only rule on the law," he said. Inside the court, the judge described him as a criminal who took advantage of innocent young families by giving them false hopes.
Presently, medical marijuana is a banned substance in Australia, but there have been recent petitions to decriminalize its use. Based on polls that were conducted across the country, over 90% of the Australian population wants the law on medical marijuana reversed so that it can be used legally in the country.