Man grew cannabis in his loft (From St Helens Star)
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Man grew cannabis in his loft
8:00am Saturday 29th December 2012 in News
A 31-YEAR-old man has been given a suspended jail sentence after ten cannabis plants were discovered growing in his loft.
Lee William Hewitt was sentenced to 18 weeks, suspended for 18 months, following a police search of a property on Colne Drive, Sutton in November.
In a hearing at St Helens Magistrates’ Court, prosecutor Ali Sarwar explained: “There was no one in at the time officers searched the property.
“After a search of the loft, the constable found two long trays with soil in. In the trays were plants of a green colour, which were identified as cannabis. There was also cultivating equipment, a plastic bottle full of water, compost and black plastic plant pots.
“In the loft space there were two air extractor tubes. It was amateurish and the plants were not in good condition.
“As the officers were leaving the defendant arrived and identified himself as the occupier. He was arrested for the cultivation of cannabis. Under police interview, Hewitt said he smoked the drug daily, spending £30 to £40.
“He set up this system as he was sick and tired of having to buy cannabis. He also gave information on where he bought the plant seeds.”
When asked about the repercussion for himself and his family, Hewitt said that he “didn’t think”.
He was placed under a supervision order for 12 months and must take part in a Thinking Skills Programme.
Comments(23)
Pawel_Si
says...
12:50pm Sat 29 Dec 12
It is a disgrace and waste of tax-payers money.
handytrim
says...
2:09pm Sat 29 Dec 12
If however, like the many others who have woken up to its failure, you have realised that prohibition causes many more harms than it pertains to protect and actually allows criminals to earn billions from selling potentially lethal unregulated substances to children.
The prohibition policy relies on the law abiding citizens to just say no to all vices in favour of a puritanical existence. Well that hasn't worked and instead the numbers of people using, legal and illegal, drugs has sky rocketed to the point where practically everybody has tried/experimented with one substance or more. Some will have had positive experiences while some will have had negative ones.
What prohibition does is make sure that the negative experiences (especially with the illegal substances) are increased by branding responsible adult users as some kind of socially unacceptable underclass of scum who deserve nothing but re-education and treatment or at worst a prison sentence. Whilst allowing criminal organisations to manufacture and sell these substances through a network of crime with links to murder, prostitution, people trafficking, terrorism, etc.
It is ludicrous the more you think about it and I'm positive that future societies will look back at us as though we were completely bonkers crazy to allow it to continue for so long with such devastating effects on our communities.
kjd161
says...
2:26pm Sat 29 Dec 12
pitbullboxing
says...
3:29pm Sat 29 Dec 12
kjd161
says...
7:23pm Sat 29 Dec 12
pitbullboxing wrote:Legalise one - legalise all. Put the criminals out of the drugs business. The drugs problem, which is killing the world, can't be beaten by criminalisation of addicts and ignorance. It can only be beaten by de-criminalising users, and a massive education programme to help prevent the problem in the first place. It won't get rid of all addicts. There will always be those who will dabble and get hooked. Look at tobacco. To go with this we need meaningful sentences for suppliers. 10 or 15 years minimum for 1st offenders. Life with no parole for repeat offenders. These measures would work, but the do-gooders would scream blue murder at those sentences. And so we go on, wringing our hands and bemoaning the the demise of society.
I think it's time for a national vote on the legalisation of cannabis. But there wont be. Never mind.
pitbullboxing
says...
8:30pm Sat 29 Dec 12
pitbullboxing
says...
8:39pm Sat 29 Dec 12
pitbullboxing
says...
8:54pm Sat 29 Dec 12
the dr who
says...
10:55pm Sat 29 Dec 12
Babs Stanley wrote:Doctors would be able to prescribe one of the most effective medicines that has no serious side effects at all.
On 6th November 2012 Colorado and Washington state legalised cannabis for adults!
Are we so stupid in Britain that we cannot learn the lessons of history? If we prohibit something for which there is huge demand then the price rises and violent criminals become involved.
If we introduced a legally regulated system we would solve nearly all the problems around cannabis. Science proves how much safer it is than tobacco, alcohol, prescription medicines and all other recreational drugs. The evidence is that where legal regulation is introduced, consumption by children and all health and social harms are reduced.
Doctors would be able to prescribe one of the most effective medicines that has no serious side effects at all. At the moment the government has given GW Pharmaceuticals an illegal monopoly on cannabis so they make millions out of a medicine that you can grow in your greenhouse for virtually nothing.
Independent, expert research also indicates that a tax and regulate policy on cannabis would produce a net gain to the UK economy of up to £9.3 billion pa.
Our present policy on cannabis is irrational, irresponsible and dangerous. Surely, this inevitable and long overdue reform will now begin to roll out across the world?
sorry i am no expert but dont you smoke this stuff, how can there be no side effects what so ever from smoking do you know somthing our experts dont
Babs Stanley
says...
1:03pm Sun 30 Dec 12
the dr who
says...
4:29pm Sun 30 Dec 12
Earlier work established that marijuana does contain cancer-causing chemicals as potentially harmful as those in tobacco, he said. However, marijuana also contains the chemical THC, which he said may"YES MAY" kill aging cells and keep them from becoming cancerous.
pitbullboxing
says...
4:52pm Sun 30 Dec 12
the dr who
says...
10:45pm Sun 30 Dec 12
pitbullboxing wrote:I cant disagree with that comment, if it provides help with pain and the likes.
The medical benefits are a different topic. For me if it can provide relief for symptoms of MS and the like I would welcome it to be available on prescription. Lots of other medicines have harmful side effects.
then let people have it.
there is no reason why people shouldnt be allowed to grow and use it,stop the dealers making a fortune, my point was it is still smoking and can damage your health,
I Think if you read the possible side effects details on some medicines you would not take them.
pitbullboxing
says...
1:31am Mon 31 Dec 12
Everard Edbutt
says...
6:37pm Tue 1 Jan 13
So Cannabis prevents the cancers caused from smoking cigarettes and should be legalised because it's quite popular and a bit of a hassle to police and punish... Tee hee hee... This arguement amuses me a lot. Like the time I saw a man with an untied shoelace.
Seriously - Make jails hell holes - no tele's a bucket in the corner. Give ludirously harsh sentences to dealers and users. When the get out of prison make **** sure it was so hellishly horrible that they'll never re-offend... Job done...
Legalise shmeegalise and what nots...
Nothing worse than extreme liberalism...
pitbullboxing
says...
9:24pm Tue 1 Jan 13
Saintinexile
says...
10:36am Wed 2 Jan 13
Babs Stanley
says...
11:35am Wed 2 Jan 13
Saintinexile wrote:Rubbish!
There is a massive trade in illegal vodka, a large percentage of tobacco and cigs smoked in this country are smuggled in illegally, people are walking around in fake designer clothes. Does anyone REALLY believe that legalising a drug would make the criminals go away? Any government legalising (and taxing) drugs would simply provide an opportunity for someone to sell it cheaper. It just isn't a solution
No one is claiming it would eliminate black markets but it would minimise them. There is not the same level of violence associated with illicit tobacco and booze as there is cannabis.
Instead of abandoning our children to street dealers, we need to TAKE RESPONSIBILITY. £6 billion pa is spent on cannabis in Britain. It is not going away and if you try stricter enforcement all that will happen is the price will go up and so will the violence and consequential harms.
pitbullboxing
says...
12:45pm Wed 2 Jan 13
Saintinexile
says...
8:04pm Wed 2 Jan 13
Babs Stanley wrote:Cannibis is cheaper now than it has ever been even though it is prohibited. Give the government control of it and the price will go through the roof, that is not my opinion, that is a fact of life. Black market booze and fags were virtually impossible to get hold of when I lit up my first No6 or drank my first pint of Greenalls, and yes cannabis was readily available, but expensive. Successive governments have increased duty on alcohol and tobacco and this trend will NEVER stop.Do you honestly think that the same would not happen with any type of currently illegal drug? The criminals would have a field day and the black markets would increase, as they have with the so called "legal drugs" of booze and fags....not because prohibiton, but because of cost
Saintinexile wrote: There is a massive trade in illegal vodka, a large percentage of tobacco and cigs smoked in this country are smuggled in illegally, people are walking around in fake designer clothes. Does anyone REALLY believe that legalising a drug would make the criminals go away? Any government legalising (and taxing) drugs would simply provide an opportunity for someone to sell it cheaper. It just isn't a solutionRubbish! No one is claiming it would eliminate black markets but it would minimise them. There is not the same level of violence associated with illicit tobacco and booze as there is cannabis. Instead of abandoning our children to street dealers, we need to TAKE RESPONSIBILITY. £6 billion pa is spent on cannabis in Britain. It is not going away and if you try stricter enforcement all that will happen is the price will go up and so will the violence and consequential harms.
lovesthelens
says...
3:44am Thu 3 Jan 13
To me, people that smoke cannabis are exactly the same as the smack heads, crack heads and alcoholics that pollute our country.
urpbloke
says...
1:15pm Fri 4 Jan 13
Babs Stanley says...
10:57am Sat 29 Dec 12
Are we so stupid in Britain that we cannot learn the lessons of history? If we prohibit something for which there is huge demand then the price rises and violent criminals become involved.
If we introduced a legally regulated system we would solve nearly all the problems around cannabis. Science proves how much safer it is than tobacco, alcohol, prescription medicines and all other recreational drugs. The evidence is that where legal regulation is introduced, consumption by children and all health and social harms are reduced.
Doctors would be able to prescribe one of the most effective medicines that has no serious side effects at all. At the moment the government has given GW Pharmaceuticals an illegal monopoly on cannabis so they make millions out of a medicine that you can grow in your greenhouse for virtually nothing.
Independent, expert research also indicates that a tax and regulate policy on cannabis would produce a net gain to the UK economy of up to £9.3 billion pa.
Our present policy on cannabis is irrational, irresponsible and dangerous. Surely, this inevitable and long overdue reform will now begin to roll out across the world?