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‘I smoked marijuana to cope with COVID losses’

By FARRAH JOHNSON

Tribune Staff Reporter

fjohnson@tribunemedia.net

A 25-YEAR-OLD man who claimed he smoked marijuana to cope with the number of relatives he lost to COVID- 19 was yesterday placed on six months’ probation.

Police arrested Shaquille Douglas after they found three grams of Indian hemp in his car on October 25.

The prosecution said officers, acting on information, stopped Douglas near a service station and informed him that he would be searched. While carrying out their investigation, officers found one foil wrap, a clear baggy and a homemade cigarette in the passenger door of the vehicle. The court was told that all of the items contained a quantity of marijuana. Douglas was subsequently cautioned and arrested. He admitted the offence in an interview with police.

When he appeared before Magistrate Samuel McKinney yesterday, Douglas pleaded guilty to one count of simple possession. He also told the magistrate he started smoking after he “had a lot of death losses due to the pandemic.”

He was subsequently given probation for six months. If he fails to stay out of trouble during that time, he could risk being fined $400 or spending three months in custody.

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