POTHEAD GRANNY SPARED JAIL

 

Source: Reuters

Date: April 8, 2005

Subj: Pothead granny spared jail

Author: Lydia Bell

Cited:  Pat Tabram  http://www.ccguide.org/pattabram.php

 

LONDON (Reuters) - A 66-year-old grandmother who has a taste for marijuana casserole and has admitted to sharing cannabis-laced cookies with fellow pensioners has been spared jail.

 

Patricia Tabram from East Lea, who said she ate cannabis in food to alleviate pains in her neck and back, pleaded guilty to possession of the drug with intent to supply.

 

But Judge David Hodson said on Friday he would not make a "martyr" of her when she returned to Newcastle Crown Court for sentencing. Instead, she received a six-month suspended prison sentence.

 

Outside the court, she said she intended to keep taking the drug "because it is far better than any tablets you can get from the doctor".

 

The grey-haired granny has become a symbol for those who want to legalise pot. She is even writing a book.

 

Last year, the government downgraded cannabis from the same class as cocaine and ecstasy to a lower class of illegal drug, which means police are not expected to arrest people for possessing small amounts, but can jail them for supplying it to others.

 

Police said they raided Tabram's home after a tip-off in May last year and found 31 cannabis plants along with hydroponic cultivation equipment. In a later raid they found 47 bags of "skunk", a particularly strong form of the drug.

 

The set-up at Tabram's home "bore all the hallmarks of any sophisticated drug dealer", police said in a statement.

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