Bailiff: "Our society is founded on the rule of law, not personal views"

Saturday 07 August 2021

A teenager has been sentenced to 240 hours community service for the supply and possession of cannabis.

The 18-year-old defendant appeared in the Royal Court after pleading guilty to two counts.

His case was originally heard by the Juvenile Court as he was 16 at the time the offences were committed. He made his first court appearance aged 17 and it was eventually decided that his case would be elevated to Guernsey's Royal Court. 

An address the defendant was residing at was searched in relation to another investigation in June 2020. Police Officers returned the following day after reviewing messages on his phone.

During a search of his room several ziplock bags were found, elsewhere in the house a large amount of cash was found, and he was arrested in the concern of supplying of a class B drug.

Pictured: The defendant appeared in the Royal Court for sentencing.

At the police station, during a search, a zip lock bag was found taped to his stomach. It contained 0.05g of herbal cannabis. 

He willingly gave up the passcode to his phone and a raft of messages sent and received between 5 March and 4 June 2020 indicated to police that he had been involved in the supply of cannabis. 

It was estimated by Defence Advocate Sarah Morgan to have been 34g over a three-month period, but the prosecution conceded that the exact amount couldn’t be determined. 34g sits at the lower end of the Richards guidelines and indicates a maximum sentence of three years in prison.

The defendant pleaded guilty on 1 July this year to both counts, one of possession and one of supply. 

The defence weighed heavily on his age as mitigation, arguing that a custodial sentence would be detrimental. “Young people’s abilities to make decisions haven’t completely developed at this age [16],” said Advocate Morgan.

The Bailiff Richard McMahon said the defendant's age, early guilty plea, and previous good character were strong mitigation, and helped him avoid youth detention.

Pictured: “'Guernsey Together' is not founded on decriminalising cannabis use,” said the Bailiff.

However, Mr McMahon made clear that it was the law - not a defendant's personal views - that is of utmost importance in any sentence imposed by the Court.

“References have been made on your liberal views on cannabis – it is important to remember that our society is founded on the rule of law,” said Mr McMahon.

“Holding views like these do not assist in mitigation,” he added. 

The defendant was sentenced to 240 hours of community service for supply, with no separate penalty for possession. It was a direct alternative to 18 months of youth detention.

*Express has chosen not to name the defendant because of his age when he committed the offences.