Growers given green light

[Spaldwickapeface]

A good move by the Durham police force not to prosecute personal growers

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/ ... drugs.html

[CloudMaster]

only another 85 counties to go!

[Spaldwickapeface]

Small steps

[Willjay]

Small steps

but a significant steep, the other 85 counties are watching, as the other states are watching Colorado and Washington here prohibition is failing

[OneHighMofo]

I have it on good authority from an acquaintance that works at my local council that the same is true in many areas of the UK.
The person in question has attended council meetings in which senior police officers have said that they're simply not capable of tackling the 'problem' - it's too widespread and (in most cases) on too small a scale to even warrant an investigation never mind an operation…

[CloudMaster]

Jail for growing a plant, laughed the Geordie

[CloudMaster]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... erges.html

By RICHARD MARSDEN FOR MAILONLINE
PUBLISHED: 23:33, 22 July 2015 | UPDATED: 07:22, 23 July 2015

Posing with 'Mustafa Spliff' - crime tsar in cannabis storm: Commissioner accused of 'abusing his position' after picture of him with pro-legalisation campaigner emerges

- Police commissioner Ron Hogg has been accused of 'abusing his position'
- He was pictured with pro-legalisation campaigners at a rally in November
- Mr Hogg believes small-scale users should be offered help to recover
- Last night he denied the campaigners had an influence on his stance



Meeting: Crime Commissioner Richard Hogg (centre) with pro-cannabis campaigners including 'Ziggy Mustafa Spliff' (second from left)

"A crime tsar who stopped prosecuting small-scale cannabis growers has been accused of ‘abusing his position’ after pictures emerged of him with pro-legalisation campaigners.

Ron Hogg, the police and crime commissioner for County Durham, sparked a furious backlash as he last night admitted letting off cannabis users with a warning or caution, ‘almost one a day’.

The 63-year-old announced on Tuesday that his force was ‘not prioritising people who have a small number of cannabis plants for their own use’ and they would ‘most likely’ receive a caution.


Only those who large-scale cannabis farms will be pursued through the courts by police in the north-east

Mr Hogg, the former deputy chief constable of Durham Police, says he believes small-scale users should be offered help to recover, and he supports legalisation of the drug for medical purposes.

Last night, it emerged he had invited pro-cannabis campaigners, including ‘Ziggy Mustafa Spliff’, for a ‘symposium’ in November which ‘increased the pressure on the Government to review UK drug policy’.

Mr Hogg posed for photos with activists including Michael ‘Fudge’ Boyack, of Tyne and Wear Cannabis Club, John Holliday, founder of Teesside Cannabis Club, and Greg De Hoedt, from Brighton, president of UK Cannabis Social Clubs.
Mr Holliday, 30, who calls himself ‘Ziggy Mustafa Spliff’ online, has posted the image as his profile picture on Facebook.

He believes the campaigners’ arguments persuaded the police chief to relax enforcement.

The father of three, who first used cannabis at 15 to alleviate pain from a ‘stomach condition’, added: ‘We 100 per cent persuaded him. It was an evidence-based policy decision … He is one of the most sensible, forward-thinking individuals.’

But Mr Hogg said last night: ‘Those guys came along to the debate. Have they had an influence on me? Not really. My policy has been formulated over an awfully long time.’


Last night Mr Hogg (pictured) denied the pro-legalisation campaigners had an influence on his stance

Mr Holliday said he was first contacted by Mr Hogg’s office early in 2014 seeking a summer meeting before the symposium.

‘At the first meeting, he seemed really pleased to be getting together,’ Mr Holliday said. ‘What we need is for local authorities to work with groups like ourselves.’

The campaigner – whose organisation encourages ‘a grow-your-own approach’ to cannabis – said Mr Hogg told him he had ‘never touched’ the drug but was convinced use should be a ‘personal issue’ rather than a crime.

But furious MPs hit out at the police chief, accusing him of over-stepping his powers. Philip Davies, a Tory member of the Justice Select Committee, said: ‘It’s an abuse of his position … If Mr Hogg wants to change the law, he needs to get elected to Parliament. I’m not sure how many of the people who voted for him also voted for him to decide which laws apply and which don’t.’

Fellow Tory MP Andrew Percy, a former teacher, added: ‘I know people … who have severe mental health issues from a history of using cannabis. It’s not Mr Hogg’s job to change the law. We’ve got to start debunking the liberal elite view that cannabis is some sort of benign drug. As a teacher, I saw very much how cannabis was a gateway to other, harder drugs.’

Also at Mr Hogg’s symposium was Durham’s Chief Constable Mike Barton, who has argued for decriminalisation, saying in 2013 ‘outright prohibition just hands revenue streams to villains’.

Other attendees were representatives of drugs support charities and a research nurse, Rob Van Der Waal of South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, who believes heroin addicts should receive ‘supervised’ doses of the drug.

Mr Hogg added: ‘When I say I don’t want to see small-time personal users prosecuted, it’s because I don’t think it’s the best way of tackling harm, nor the best use of the scant resources of the police or the courts.

‘Over the past 12 months Durham Constabulary has issued 343 cannabis warnings to users, one almost every day … I’m sure the public would expect the police to treat serious and organised crime gangs engaged in mass production more severely.’ "

[Spaldwickapeface]

Woop woop

Still awaiting my county to follow suit though