BY KEITH LACEY
A veteran judge wasn?t buying the argument smoking marijuana is far less harmful than abusing alcohol while he sentenced a woman caught growing pot.
On Tuesday, Justice Peter Coulson sentenced Sandra Sasseville, 42, to a conditional sentence of four months. She is not allowed to leave her home for the first three months, except to obtain the necessities of life for five hours each Friday or to attend to medical emergencies.
Sasseville pleaded guilty to production of marijuana after police raided her Whitefish area home on Aug. 7, 2004. They found three large marijuana plants inside the home along with 84 grams of pot in various baggies. Outside the home, police found another 17 pot plants in various stages of
growth from only a few inches to four feet high.
There?s no allegation Sasseville was conducting a grow operation or producing the marijuana for anyone but herself, said federal Crown prosecutor Natalie Boivin.
Sasseville?s husband George Sauriol, 50, was given a $1,000 fine and ordered to forfeit one hunting rifle after police found three rifles and a small amount of ammunition in the home during the drug raid. He was prohibited from owning any weapon for two years, meaning his passion for hunting won?t be allowed during this time.
When defence counsel Berk Keaney suggested there?s been a more liberal attitude towards marijuana use across Canada over the past two decades and most people would now prefer a dependency on cannabis rather than an addiction to alcohol, Coulson said he wasn?t buying it.
During his many years on the bench, he?s seen ?too many 17-year-olds....with their brains scrambled beyond recognition,? because of their continual abuse of cannabis products, said Coulson.
He?s also seen many older adults who have abused alcohol for decades manage to function and be contributing members of society despite their problems with drinking, he said.
Coulson also firmly believes cannabis is a gateway drug whereby young people decide to try harder drugs, which becomes a serious problem in their lives, he said.
He?s also convinced many smart young people become reliant or addicted to cannabis and ?become slovenly? and lazy. They don?t reach their true potential because of constantly smoking pot, he said.
Making comparisons that favour using marijuana over alcohol will never be accepted in any court over which he presides, said Coulson.
Keaney said Sasseville immediately admitted to growing the marijuana plants when confronted by police and was very co-operative during the investigation.
Despite not having any criminal record, producing a significant amount of marijuana is a serious crime and a three-month jail sentence should be imposed, said Boivin.
Coulson disagreed and said under all the circumstances a four-month conditional sentence, most of which will be served under house arrest, is the appropriate penalty.
During her period of house arrest, Sasseville isn?t allowed to consume any marijuana and be available at her front door to prove she?s abiding by the conditional sentence order if police do check up on her, said Coulson.
