We have been reporting on statements by the top law enforcement officials in the country who say that the cannabis laws are still on the books and will continue to be enforced right now. A Georgetown man busted for small-scale cannabis selling requested a unique sentence for him personally in the form of serving partial jail time on the weekends, but he has failed to meet the requirements to sustain it.
Bradley Joseph Manning was hoping to only serve jail time partially on the weekends because he had no previous criminal record at all, he looks after his three-year-old daughter, and works seasonally at a fish plant. Chief Judge Nancy Orr dismissed the idea since Bradley was still testing positive for cannabis. She told Bradley that “You continue to use (pot), so how will you pass the 72-hour restriction (having no alcohol or drugs in your blood upon arriving at the jail)? I would have thought you would have got clear of using it if you really wanted the court to consider weekends. You’re asking me to set you up for a breach (failing the test).”
Manning was given three months in prison, the judge said that he would have considered the weekend deal if he would have given up using cannabis. “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again that until the law is changed it is still illegal. At some point I would think people who sell should expect they might lose their job, their EI and affect their family. You didn’t want this to happen, but you are risking all of this, and you’ve put me in a position where I can’t give you weekends.”
We noted recently that police all over the country are finding that people seem to be confused about cannabis legalization, and not realizing that the substance is still illegal. This theme can be expected to continue until legalization is fully realized.