{"id":1597,"date":"2020-06-05T18:50:47","date_gmt":"2020-06-05T17:50:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.manchester.ac.uk\/religion-law-and-the-constitution\/?p=1597"},"modified":"2025-11-07T15:39:23","modified_gmt":"2025-11-07T15:39:23","slug":"toads-marijuana-and-ritual-drugs-criminal-law-and-religious-freedom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.manchester.ac.uk\/religion-law-and-the-constitution\/2020\/06\/05\/toads-marijuana-and-ritual-drugs-criminal-law-and-religious-freedom\/","title":{"rendered":"Toads, marijuana and ritual drugs: Criminal Law and Religious Freedom"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\"Toad\"<\/p>\n

A heartbreaking and bizarre story hit recently the headlines, when Nacho Vidal, a Spanish actor, found himself facing criminal charges following the death of a man at his Valencia home.\u00a0\u00a0 The deceased had inhaled a substance derived from poison secreted by the Colorado River toad, in the course of what was described as a \u201cmystical ritual\u201d. \u00a0\u00a0Although Mr Vidal denied having acted as a shaman, in the course of the last few years he has very publicly promoted use of the toxin secreted by the bufo alvarius. <\/em>Societies have known about the psychedelic properties of these amphibians from ancient times, but recently they have been increasingly exploited by neo-shamanic subcultures.\u00a0 In short, people have been either licking the animals, or now much more commonly, inhaling material processed from their ooze, in order to get high.\u00a0 For certain groups, the drug is presented not only as a source of pleasure, but a means of spiritual growth.<\/p>\n

How is this regarded from the viewpoint of English and Welsh law?\u00a0 How are religious freedoms balanced against public policy considerations and criminal prohibitions of drug misuse?\u00a0 The chemical produced from toads, bufotenine, is a Class A substance for the purposes of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, which means that it is in the category of prohibited drugs, attracting the most severe penalties for possession or sale.\u00a0 However, it is not unlawful to have in your keeping a natural, raw material from which a proscribed drug can be derived, meaning that toad-smoking is more likely to land you in legal hot-water than toad-licking.\u00a0 Having said which, it is very difficult to legally import Colorado River toads, since they are an endangered species, and anyone hoping to circumvent this by molesting British toads, in the hope of achieving a similar effect, will potentially be committing a criminal offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.<\/p>\n

As far as limitations on religious freedom go, forbidding the maltreatment of wild animals and damage eco-systems is easy to justify.\u00a0 Whatever position someone takes on drugs in terms of paternalism versus liberty, there is no convincing excuse for animal cruelty.\u00a0 As is well-known, the right to freedom of belief is not absolute, and the State may restrict it to the extent that is necessary to achieve a legitimate aim, such as preventing living creatures from suffering, as well as environmental harm.\u00a0 Consequently, toad-licking is, and should be, an unlawful pastime.<\/p>\n

What about inhaling toad-poison?\u00a0 Again, as we have seen, this is caught by the general law on drugs misuse.\u00a0\u00a0 The question of an exception for religious purposes has been raised in England in relation to Rastafarians and marijuana, and has been repeatedly, and resolutely, rejected by the courts.\u00a0\u00a0 Unless Parliament chooses to modify the legislation in place, it is clear that there is no differential treatment for faith groups, and given that the law concerning drug misuse is statutory, it is hard to argue with the correctness of this decision.\u00a0\u00a0 Nevertheless, it does reveal an interesting contrast between statute and Common Law.<\/p>\n

When the Common Law has to draw lines around criminal behaviour, it does sometimes carve out exceptions for faith-relating practices.\u00a0\u00a0 For example, a person may only <\/em>consent to actual bodily harm (i.e. any injury more than transient or trifling) if it is for the purpose of an exempt activity, such as medical treatment or contact sports.\u00a0 Significantly, both ritual male circumcision and religious mortification are also recognized as exempt activities, providing religious believers with a shield from Criminal Law.\u00a0 Therefore, if a man beats his lover for sexual pleasure and leaves bruising, he will be committing a criminal offence, but remarkably, if an abbot beats a monk for spiritual purposes, he will not be guilty of a crime (assuming at least the monk has agreed!)\u00a0 In this context, exactly the same action will give rise to a criminal offence without a religious motivation, but will be legitimate if done in the name of faith.<\/p>\n

We are not suggesting that the courts will simply give faith groups carte-blanche<\/em> in the absence of statute, because they clearly will, and do, draw firm lines in the sand (e.g. as happened when private faith schools argued that beating children was part of their religious doctrine, and were firmly rejected).\u00a0 Nonetheless, it is beyond question that the default position is to be sympathetic to religious practices, and to accommodate them where possible, whilst in the situation which we are analysing, Parliament has set the boundaries, and spiritual motives will not provide a defence for drugs offences, toad-related or otherwise.<\/p>\n

Related Articles<\/strong><\/p>\n

Porn star Nacho Vidal held in Spain after man dies in toad-venom ritual<\/a> BBC News <\/em>(4\/6\/20)<\/p>\n

Investigado el actor porno Nacho Vidal por la muerte en su casa de un fot\u00f3grafo en un rito con veneno<\/a> El Pais <\/em>(3\/6\/20)<\/p>\n

KC Man Accused of Toad Licking<\/a> KMBC <\/em>(23\/11\/07)<\/p>\n

Weird Cases: The man who licked a toad<\/a> The Times <\/em>(23\/11\/07)<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

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