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Cannabis Campaigners' Guide News Database result:
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UK: Beeston cannabis gardener to be 'kept in terror' over court sentence Rebecca Sherdley Evening Post, Nottingham Friday 28 Aug 2009 Plants, potentially worth £11,440 in street deals to other users, were recovered by police from a house in Victory Road, Beeston, on October 7 last year. Elton Ball was a "minor gardener" to 45 of the illegal plants. Judge Jonathan Teare sentenced 35-year-old Ball, now of Hawkins Road, Newquay, at Nottingham Crown Court. He earlier entered a guilty plea to producing cannabis. Ball received a 48-week sentence, suspended for 12 months, and community work. Judge Teare said: "On October 7, 2008, you were in premises where there was not a very big grow of cannabis taking place. It's quite obvious that was being organised by someone else. You played a minor role as a gardener. "You have a previous conviction in 1997. It's to your credit you have kept out of trouble since then. "I'm going to keep you in terror for the next 12 months. It will be 48 weeks, suspended for 12 months. So next time you light up a spliff in the evening, you are risking 48 weeks' imprisonment." Emma Coverley, in mitigation, said Ball pleaded guilty on the basis he was a minor gardener involved in the operation. "He moved into Victory Road weeks before," she said. "He was invited to stay there. He had split up with his girlfriend. He'd become homeless and was offered the opportunity to stay at Victory Road. He knew at that point that there was cannabis in the property. As a cannabis user himself, he was particularly vulnerable. He was using cannabis himself for 15 years." Ball, who is now working as a chef in a pub and "earning good money", had not stayed at the house with the intention of getting involved and was not going to benefit financially. "He was at the bottom end of the scale," said Ms Coverley. "He has made a stupid and foolish mistake by going into this property in the first place. He's not been before the courts since 1997 and they were for matters of possession of cannabis. He has never been to prison before. This offence was committed when he was homeless and had no job." rebecca.sherdley@nottinghameveningpost.co.uk http://www.thisisnottingham.co.uk/homenews/Beeston-cannabis-gardener-kept-terror-court-sentence/article-1294171-detail/article.html
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