Gator Teds vindicated: no human right to smoke weed wherever you want
When this Stand Up For Freedom campaign kicked off, we reported on a number of different cases that were underway already that were just weird, like the case of Mr.
Gibson and the Gator Teds restaurant. (We explained the case here; it’s the second case under the heading Private Business). Here’s a quick summary: Mr. Gibson has a disability and has a permit to smoke medical marijuana to ease his pain. However, he repeatedly tried to smoke his joints directly in front of the Gator Teds restaurant door and on their patio and felt that not being allowed to do so (even though patrons were complaining) was discrimination on the basis of disability. He filed a complaint with the Ontario Human Rights Commission way back in 2005 asking for $20,000 for “mental anguish”. Eventually, the Commission took his case to the Tribunal for a hearing. Last week (July 4, 2013), the Tribunal ruled that there was, in fact, no discrimination. So, 8 years and tens of thousands of dollars later, Mr. Ted Kindos, the owner of Gator Teds, is vindicated. But at quite a cost. The complainant Mr. Gibson’s legal fees were all paid for by the taxpayer because the Commission represented him. Mr. Kindos, a hard-working businessman, had to pay out of pocket. In a real court, Gibson would have had to pay Kindos’ legal fees. Obviously it was the process that punished an innocent business man. It’s time to fix your Code, Ontario!
