A man who was discovered in the possession of about 15 pounds of marijuana was placed under a conditional sentence order of 16 months.
Steven Michael Brausse appeared in provincial court in Drumheller on Friday, October 28 to be sentenced on the charge of possession of drugs for the purposes of trafficking.
The court heard how, on October 20, 2010 police made a traffic stop on Highway 9 east of Morrin corner after the officer noticed the licence plate on the vehicle stopped was not well illuminated.
When the officer exited his own vehicle, he noted the strong smell of fresh marijuana emanating out of the stopped SUV. The search of the vehicle revealed a large box with about 15 pounds of marijuana, of which, about sixpounds was bud while the rest was stems and leaves. There were also items in the SUV associated with a marijuana growing operation.
Defense for Brausse said his client was assisting a friend to harvest and dismantle a growing operation, and this behaviour was out of character. A favourable presentence report was also provided.
The Federal Prosecutor and defense agreed a conditional sentence order would be appropriate in the circumstances.
Brausse is subject to an order where he is to live under house arrest for the first six months of his sentence, and for the remainder of his 16 month sentence he is to abide by a curfew from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m. Items seized in the stop have been forfeited for disposal, and Brausse also received a mandatory firearm prohibition.
