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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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UK: Owner of first cannabis cafe arrested
ITN
Saturday 15 Sep 2001 A campaigner for the legalisation of cannabis is being questioned by police after he attempted to open Britain's first Amsterdam-style cafe which was to sell the illegal drug. Colin Davies, 44, was arrested after he was involved in scuffles with police officers in the doorway of the Dutch Experience cafe, in Stockport, Greater Manchester, at just after 10am. Mr Davies, who has smoked the drug to relieve pain since he broke his spine four years ago, said before his arrest that the aim of his new business venture was to offer the drug to sick people to help relieve their symptoms. "He's a healer, not a dealer," shouted one of his supporters as Mr Davies, of Stockport, was put into the back of a police van. A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police said: "A 44-year-old man from Stockport was arrested on suspicion of possession of cannabis with intent to supply. " A further man, along with four Dutch people, three men and a woman, were arrested on suspicion of being concerned with the supply of a Class B drug. All six are in custody and the shop is now closed." Just one uniformed officer was outside the cafe at 9.30am today, 30 minutes before it was due to open. But there were undercover detectives in the area and Mr Davies was involved in a scuffle with officers as he tried to push a wheelchair user into the cafe. He became trapped in the door, then slumped to the floor inside and was later taken away by police. Defiant wheelchair users In a show of defiance, some wheelchair users openly smoked cannabis stuffed into pipes as police officers watched just yards away. Kate Bradley, a former police officer with the West Midlands force, has smoked cannabis since 1991 when she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Mrs Bradley, who is in her 50s and from Telford, Shropshire, was pushed out of the cafe in her wheelchair by a friend after police entered the shop. She said it had been a frightening experience inside when the police entered. She said: "I never expected the police to do this. It was horrendous and undignified. "I thought, I honestly thought, they had just agreed to monitor the situation." Mr Davies's father, 77-year-old Colin Davies, said he supported his son's actions. He said: "I have seen the benefit cannabis has had on Colin. "It was disgusting what police did today. They said they would monitor the situation. But they have just gone in and pounded the cafe." Campaigners continued to protest outside the cafe, the ribbon which had meant to be cut for its opening lay in tatters on the floor after the police action. Inside the shop, decorated throughout in red, were empty tables and chairs, each with an ashtray on them with cigarette papers scattered about. Dr Steve Taylor, a GP based in Prestwich, Manchester, said: "As a doctor, I see the harm cannabis does to people. "They may experience short-term memory problems, those who try to stop become depressed and anxious, and some have undoubtedly found cannabis a stepping stone to harder drugs."
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