A Portlaw man blurred the lines between gardener and drug user upon being convicted of growing cannabis plants under Section 17 of The Misuse of Drugs Act before Carrick District Court on Thursday last.
Richard Keating of Mount Bolton, Portlaw, was found to be growing six cannabis plants in a shed to the rear of his property by Garda Daly on February 4th, 2014.
Speaking to the court, Solicitor Eamonn Hayes asked Judge Terence Finn to take his client’s “clean record since arrest” into account when considering the size of the fine.
However, it was the considerable length of time that had passed between the initial conviction and the concurrent court proceedings that proved to be a deciding factor for in the fine imposed by Judge Finn. A poor box contribution of €300 was imposed with six months to pay.
