[ad_1]
A drugged drug dealer trapped behind the wheel of an Audi was told today to address his “warped” views on cannabis.
Christopher Power-Sutton was high when police stopped his car and asked him if he had something he shouldn’t have.
He looked nervous, smelled like cannabis, and replied, “Yes, I’ll be honest, there’s quite a bit in my car. I’ve been selling to my colleagues.”
Officers found 10 bags and a tub full of cannabis hidden inside a backpack, along with £ 395 in cash and two mobile phones.
The 30-year-old, who lives with his mother in Lindale Close, Moreton, was brought to his property to have the home searched.
He showed officers a gym bag in a greenhouse that contained more cannabis in eighth, quarter and half ounce packages.
Power-Sutton admitted to possessing cannabis with the intent to supply and his case was deferred for a pre-sentencing report.
But he told a probation officer that he thought cannabis should be legalized and only pleaded guilty because he “had no other choice.”
Liverpool Crown Court heard that officers detained Power-Sutton for a “routine document check” on Arrowe Park Road in Upton at around 8:30 pm on January 17 of this year.
Sarah Holt, the prosecutor, said officers recovered 235.7g of cannabis in total, with an estimated street value of up to £ 3,532, plus around 57g (£ 570) of cannabis resin from the car and home.
Ms. Holt said that normally Power-Sutton would have faced a separate charge for cannabis resin, but had not done so in this case.
Video not available
Judge Gary Woodhall said it was the second time he had encountered this problem in a week, adding: “I’m not sure why the prosecution is not charging this correctly.”
Power-Sutton admitted to driving under the influence to magistrates in September, when he was fined £ 300 and banned from driving for three years.
He has 11 prior convictions for 17 crimes, including being drunk and disturbing public order, assaulting police and shoplifting in 2009; larceny, theft and breach of a community order in 2010; driving offenses in 2011; and possessing cannabis in 2013.
Referring to the pre-sentencing report, Judge Woodhall said Power-Sutton “is doing himself no favors.”
Paul Wood, defending, said: “No, it doesn’t and it makes my presentations more difficult, and he knows it.”
The attorney confirmed that Power-Sutton no longer defended these claims and admitted the prosecution’s case in its entirety.
He said his client had a “serious cannabis addiction”, adding: “The defendant tells me that he agrees that he needs to cut down on his cannabis use and, from his previous consumption of 100 pounds per week, he reduced it to about 60 pounds per week “. . “
Wood said Power-Sutton had been a window installer “on and off” for 10 years, which had been negatively affected by the coronavirus pandemic, but “green shoots are starting to sprout” and is now working harder.
(Image: Liverpool Echo)
He said the defendant, who had a “very difficult childhood,” was assessed by the Probation Service as having a low risk of recidivism and a low risk of harm.
Mr. Wood urged the judge not to take him to jail, saying that while his compliance with previous court orders had been poor and he had previous convictions, they were “some time ago.”
He said: “The responses in the pre-sentencing report, with the utmost respect for the accused, are not the hallmark of someone who is particularly mature.”
Receive newsletters with the latest Liverpool ECHO news, sports and updates by registering here.
Judge Woodhall said he took into account the comments made by Power-Sutton in the report.
He said: “It is correct to note, and it does you no favors when you are in court looking at the barrel of a custodial sentence, that you held that cannabis should be legalized because it is a plant, that the money was legitimate income, and that He only pleaded guilty because he had no other choice, because the cannabis was for his personal use. “
Enter your zip code below to find the latest case number near you
Judge Woodhall said that all of these claims were now dropped, but said: “The fact is that they continue to express views on the legalization of cannabis, which gives the court reason to stop and think about what their motives will be regarding the use. of cannabis in the future “.
The judge said Power-Sutton, who lived with his mother, was in debt for a car and suffered “trauma” as a child.
He said he took into account the fact that he had been out of trouble for seven years and the delay in getting the case to court.
Can you help us keep Merseyside covered?
Judge Woodhall said he believed that the public would be better protected by working with Power-Sutton in the community to rehabilitate him, “get him away” from drugs and address his “warped” views on cannabis.
He was handed 14 months in prison, suspended for 20 months, plus a 20-day rehab activity requirement and a six-month drug rehab requirement.
For the latest news and breaking news, visit http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/.
Get all the great headlines, images, reviews, opinions, and videos on the stories that matter to you.
Follow us on twitter @LivECHONews – Liverpool ECHO official twitter account – real news in real time.
We’re also on Facebook / theliverpoolecho – your all-day must-see news, articles, videos and photos from Liverpool ECHO.
[ad_2]
