Mark Fitzsimons with a quantity of cannabis
A local campaigner who has had both his eyes removed due to glaucoma has handed himself into gardaí with a quantity of herbal cannabis in a protest designed to challenge the law regarding the use of the drug for medicinal purposes.
Mark Fitzsimons has been completely blind for the last five years and believes that by being prosecuted for possession he may be able to avail of free legal aid in order to test the legislation.
On Thursday, Mark presented himself to gardaí in Dundalk Garda Station with enough cannabis for one joint and requested he be charged with possession in order to secure a court appearance. Mark was followed by The Irish Times, who filmed his story.
Gardaí confiscated the substance and issued him with a formal caution. Once a test confirms it is marijuana, Mr Fitzsimons will receive a summons to attend court.
Mr Fitzsimons said he had discovered as a teenager the medicinal effects of the drug and believes it should be made available to others.
“More and more studies show that cannabis can be used and is used and it’s the best form of treatment for it,” he claimed. “I also found out it’s an anti-inflammatory.
“The older I got the more certain I became of it. I remember saying this to people and all they would say is, ‘that’s illegal’.”
He said that while people he spoke to dismissed marijuana as a recreational drug, he had been given prescription pain killers that took him six months to come off when he had his second eye removed five years ago.
Mr Fitzsimons believes that aside from alleviating pain, cannabis properties can be used to treat the condition, not necessarily through smoking, by reducing pressure. He says he may have kept his eyes had it been a medical option.
Read the full story and watch Mark’s video here.
Source: The Irish Times
