UK Cannabis Grower Comes to Court Ready for Jail—But Gets a Pleasant Surprise from the Judge

In the UK, a 25-year old Forest of Dean cannabis grower and supplier was on the verge of going to prison for possession of an overly large amount of cannabis, but was spared thanks to the changing perception of the cannabis plant, and the judge that heard his plea.

The young man, Declan Findlay had nearly £4,000 worth of cannabis when he was stopped by police in November of last year.

Prosecutor Janine Wood said Findlay was with another man when they were stopped in a car in High Road, Bream, at 9.10pm. “Findlay was quite open and told them there was cannabis in the glove box,” Prosecutor Wood said. “There were also two large amounts of the drug in carrier bags—approximately 50 grams. The other man in the car had 14 grams of cannabis hidden in his underwear.”

“Two mobile phones were seized and the police also searched the defendant’s home address. They found in his bedroom a quantity of cash, £2,695, and approximately 355 grams of cannabis in a container.”

“It did not look as if it had been recently used because it had cobwebs on it. His mobile phone was interrogated and it appeared he had been supplying friends and had sold about £300 worth. Texts showed that people were asking him for cannabis.”

Findlay arrived to the court for his final hearing with suitcases packed and ready to go to prison. Although the Judge told the defense attorney that Findlay was wise to bring his luggage with him in preparation for jail, after hearing that he had been tested clean for cannabis and any other substance for the last three months, Judge Michael Cullum released him with a suspended jail sentence.

The Judge said he felt able to suspend the sentence in all the circumstances of the case. He told Findlay: “You are 25 and effectively without criminal convictions but you got yourself into a serious position where you were at grave risk of immediate imprisonment. It is clear that since your arrest you have taken that seriously.”

“Prison would entail the loss of your job and affect your future prospects. You have demonstrated by your actions since your arrest that there is no significant risk of you coming back before the court again.”

As well as a 10 month jail term suspended for a year, Findlay was ordered to do 160 hours of community service.