Huish’s Attorney Says Seized Marijuana Was Meant for HIV Patient

An attorney for Olympic archer Justin Huish argued in court Wednesday that the gold medalist should not be held on drug-sale charges because he was providing marijuana for the treatment of an HIV patient.

But that defense, raised during Huish’s preliminary hearing, met a quick objection from a Ventura County prosecutor who said state law allows only qualified caregivers to treat medical marijuana patients.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Chris Harmon said the defense claim is irrelevant because Huish was allegedly selling to a caregiver--not acting as one. Superior Court Judge Glen Reiser agreed.

“I don’t think a mercy sale is a defense,” the judge said.

Huish, 25, was held to answer two felony counts after Reiser found there was sufficient evidence to try the archer on charges he sold marijuana and possessed the drug with an intent to sell.

If convicted on those charges and a related weapons allegation, Huish faces more than five years in state prison.

Wednesday’s holding order was based entirely on the testimony of a Simi Valley police detective who led an investigation into alleged drug sales at Huish’s large new Simi Valley tract home.

Det. Blair Summey testified that on Feb. 15, he and six other officers searched Huish’s house after seeing a man leave there after an apparent drug deal.

Summey said officers stopped the man and found a plastic baggie of marijuana in his pocket. He said the man “told me he had just purchased that baggie of marijuana from Justin Huish.”

Officers immediately executed a warrant and searched Huish’s house.

In the master bedroom, Summey said, they found a briefcase containing several 1/2-ounce baggies of marijuana, pot seeds and “pay-and-owe” business records indicating prior drug sales.

Law enforcement officials also recovered an unloaded shotgun from the bedroom closet, two scales commonly used for measuring drugs and a safe containing $23,000 in cash, the detective said.

Based on 16 years of experience as a narcotics officer, Summey testified that the evidence suggests “a large and rather robust business” in drug sales.

On cross-examination, defense attorney Robert Sanger asked Summey what the man said after being apprehended outside Huish’s house.

“He told me he was a primary caregiver for a roommate who has HIV,” Summey said.

The line of questioning drew an objection from Harmon, but Sanger argued that if Huish was providing marijuana to an authorized patient under voter-approved Proposition 215, it would not constitute an illegal sale.

Harmon disputed Sanger’s reading of the law and Reiser upheld the objection.

Huish and his roommate, Brian Mastrangelo, 24, turned themselves in to authorities in February after the police raid. Mastrangelo, who was in court Wednesday with his lawyer, is scheduled for a preliminary hearing on similar charges Sept. 11.

Huish, dressed in a crisp white shirt and dark pants, sat silently in court throughout his hearing. He remains out of custody on his own recognizance.

Before Summey took the stand Wednesday, Sanger objected to a new felony complaint filed by prosecutors earlier this summer that alleges the drug-sale and weapons charges.

Sanger accused prosecutors of “retaliation” against his client for fighting the “high-profile” criminal case. He suggested the new charges were an act of vindictive prosecution.

A double Olympic archery gold medalist in 1996, Huish quit the U.S. Olympic team earlier this year after pleading not guilty to one drug charge.

In a letter of resignation to the National Archery Assn., he said he wanted the U.S. team to prepare for the Sydney Games without distraction.

A Superior Court arraignment in the drug case is set for Sept. 14.