Czech Republic Cannabis Magazine Editor in chief Found Guilty for Publishing Weed Content

Robert Veverka is the editor in chief and publisher at Legalizace Czech Republic, a publication that has been published since 2010. Volteface stated that it contained content about how to get cannabis illegally, how the plant can be grown, and how to use it. It may also contain seed packets as legal possession and sale of cannabis seeds are legal. This all started five years ago when a Czech grower was arrested for growing 38 cannabis plants from Legalizace. The grower was only planning to use cannabis to make a cream for his own skin, but law enforcement began to scrutinize Veverka’s magazine and Veverka. Veverka was taken to court in summer 2020. Veverka was fined 50,000 Czech Koruna (or Czech Kc) by the District Court of Bruntal in November 2021. This amounts to approximately $2,200 USD. Marek Stach, the District Court of Bruntal’s presiding judge, said that Veverka had published more than 200 articles between 2010 and 2020 which could have tempted readers to commit illegal acts related to cannabis. Stach stated that Veverka was guilty of publishing more than 200 articles between 2010 and 2020 that could incite and promote cannabis addiction. Veverka said that he would appeal to the Supreme and Constitutional Courts to ensure his safety as well as the safety of any media outlets writing about cannabis. Veverka stated that she felt “branded, damaged, as well as personally disgusted.” “Unfortunately, the verdict lends credence the prosecution’s case. This reflects an ignorance about cannabis legislation and is based upon a general repressive viewpoint that positive information about marijuana is unacceptable to establishment. My three-year-long prosecution and the court verdict show that publishing is also illegal.” Veverka has the option of either paying CZK 250,000 (approximately $11,000 US) or going to prison. Veverka stated that he did not agree with the verdict. He said that he considered the punishment for disseminating objective, comprehensive information–even on controversial topics like the regulation and use cannabis–to have been a systemic error in judgement and punitive bullying. He stated that he still has commitments to his readers and is not abandoning the idea of relaunching Legalization magazine. “I hope that I will be able to read the reasoning of the judgment and see the facts regarding the crime of ‘dissemination,’ so that I don’t commit any other unlawful acts in the future. It will be very difficult to continue publishing, as one cannot conduct business in a state of legal uncertainty. According to Forbes, recreational cannabis use and possession are not legal. However, the Czech government is currently drafting a bill to regulate this industry. Forbes originally predicted that it would be presented in March 2023. Jindrich Voboril, the Czech Republic’s drug commissioner, explained that the Czech Republic is working with German officials to develop a similar approach to legalizing adult-use cannabis.