Elderly Couple Fined For Cannabis Stash

[Tom]

Elderly couple fined for cannabis stash

14 May 2004

 

A biscuit is not always just a biscuit, as Marion Chitty found out when her home cooking landed her in court on drug charges this week, along with her partner who grew the special ingredient.

 

 

But it was the age of the offenders – not their crime – that surprised New Plymouth police.

 

Chitty is 67 years old, and her partner Ronald John Henry Stratford is 56.

 

They were caught with 6kg of cannabis, some of which was frozen and stored in a deep freeze.

 

Drug squad boss Detective Sergeant Greg Gray said two of the local police's biggest cannabis seizures recently had involved elderly people.

 

"It's not the first time people in the older age group have been caught with cannabis," he said.

 

Another retired couple – who have not yet been named – are also facing charges relating to a 1.5kg stash.

 

Chitty and Stratford were charged with possession and cultivation after police last month raided their Oakura home, south of New Plymouth.

 

Police found homemade biscuits containing an extract of the drug.

 

Prosecuting sergeant Lewis Sutton said the couple had discovered it assisted Chitty with her medical and sleeping problems.

 

They had experimented with growing last year and when that was successful grew about a dozen plants – some taller than 2m.

 

"The defendants believed that they had basically yielded a lifetime supply of cannabis for their needs," Mr Sutton told Judge Louis Bidois.

 

"Neither did they want to purchase from a drug dealer as such and stated that they do not know such people anyway," he said.

 

Judge Bidois warned the couple, who were first time offenders, that people could be jailed for having as much cannabis as they had.

 

He said they were very lucky the police accepted their explanation.

 

Chitty was fined $1100 plus court costs and Stratford, who was responsible for growing the plant, was fined $1400 plus court costs.

 

Source.

 

[LoveMeBucket]

:: reminds me of the old man ::

 

good on em!