Chief Magistrate Candia Carette George has imposed an EC$6,000 dollars fine on Donald Balson of Pointe Michel after he pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply 1,589 grams of Marijuana.
According to the facts of the matter, Balson on January 5, 2016, was in Tan Tan when he was spotted by members of the drugs squad with a black bag on his back and was asked to stop.
When asked by the lawmen what was in the bag he said “two pounds of weed I have there.”
A search revealed the illegal substance. He was arrested and charged for the offence.
Balson’s lawyer Wayne Norde pleaded with the court not to impose a custodial sentence telling the court that his client had fully cooperated with the police and had not wasted the court’s time.
Norde asked for a fine to be imposed and time to be given to pay.
The magistrate imposed the $6,000 fine to be paid by December 31, 2016 or in default six months jail.
The drugs have an estimated street value of EC$3,500.00
It’s not that I condone what the man did but the magistrate doh say she is a pastor wife nuh. How can she win this man to Christ? What double standard! My God that’s the level Christianity has reached! Smh. I am so ashamed
This is laughable @ best! the guy should have never told the cops what he had in the bag, in the first place. What he should have said was, “what’s in my bag is my property and if you want to search me, get a warrant because I don’t consent to illegal searches” If D/A is a democracy as they like us to believe, then why is it that police can ask you what you posses, if you are not a suspect in any kind of criminal activity? This is 1970’s revisited! Shame on this administration!
The police has a right to stop anyone on suspicious grounds.
He has one year to pay the fine. This is twelve months. Go and work and pay as much as you can monthly. Or those who encouraged you in this illegal activity should pay the fine for you.
What else is new? He is fortunate that his lawyer’s pleading, “his client had fully cooperated with the police and had not wasted the court’s time” prevented him from being sentenced to prison.
The sentence could have been one year. Six months is not enough. Consider if it got into the hands of youths and the physical damage which it could cause them.
“According to the facts of the matter, Balson on January 5, 2016, was in Tan Tan when he was spotted by members of the drugs squad with a black bag on his back and was asked to stop.”
Was it a back pack, a huge plastic bag, a shopping bag…
There was no criminal activity mentioned, no suspicious behavior. This was clearly a case of profiling the citizen. I am not condoning the guy having the weed as being ok. They had no right to stop the guy if their was no intent of mischief, or illegal actions on the guy’s part. Ce sont des bêtises!
Waste of time
Can we stRt dining these guys 10x the amount. These are tiny charges!
None sense !!! Legalize it !
Go to prison instead ,don’t pay that fine,why pay $6,000 for a few grams of marijuana while a man can have words to defend himself in court after killing another human being like himself and walk the streets again free to go home.This a plant which is created by God ,why isn’t the gov’t making any reform to this stupid law that punishes people for the possession of marijuana.No reform is made because the gov’t has one goal ,is to get more money from the public in the name of marijuana.Even a thief in dominica gets less punished ,in other words thieves have more right to steal people’s hard earned property while they sit on their back sides.God to prison ,let them feed you from the money that they have taken from others ,one day they will learn …I know that people should obey the law but there is a double standard system in dominica that should be put aside because no one is more than the other…
$6000 fine for 3.5 lbs of MJ. This govt. is out to make money hand over fist.
What a waste of time on the part of law enforcement and the courts, and anti-freedom as well. Legalisation now!
It is known that marijuana creates significant problems.
PHYSICAL: Recent university based studies have shown that regular marijuana smoking damages parts of the brain responsible for memory and learning. It is especially harmful for students and sometimes results in a drop in their grades. Students who have smoked marijuana over an extended period of time have shown a greater tendency to drop out of school.
SOCIAL: Marijuana is a “gateway” drug. People who first experiment with marijuana with their friends in a party setting are most apt to further experiment with cocaine and then heroine. The weed leads many into a life of addiction and pain.
CRIMINAL: Serial criminals who go on a binge of destruction and murder are frequently found to be high on marijuana often combined with alcohol.
The police know marijuana is easy to grow in Dominica and is plentiful. They are aware of its popularity among young people. Magistrate George is equally aware of these things.
Continuation:
It seems those who argue for the legalization of marijuana are not willing to look at the larger picture and consider all the facts.
The drug squad and Magistrate George have acted in the best interest of Dominica and the youth of the nation.
This is not to say or imply that Donald Balson is an evil man. He is misguided. Many of us have made worse mistakes. But to all who have been caught up in the drug business I say this. As a preacher of the gospel I have known many drug pushers and users who have surrendered their lives to Christ by personally trusting Him, and receiving Him as their Savior and Lord. They have been completely changed and transformed. In fact some of them today are preaching the gospel and leading others to the Lord.
I invite you to get your Bible and examine Romans 5:6-8, John 3:16,17, Ephesians 2:8,9.
Sincerely, Rev. Donald Hill. Evangelist.
Stop talking crap ,if you are a pastor search yourself first then your brain second..where in the bible which states that marijuana is an evil plant which is used by evil doers.give me the scripture quote please…it is created by GOD ,you can find the hippimane mancinella or the( mancilinier)the fruit is as green as the leaves and has straight lines from the top to the bottom,the plant is close to the beaches which is very poisonous ,it is is capable of killing someone,the leaves alone can burn your skin like fire ,no one talks about it,zootie plant itches a lot yet it is a good antiseptic ,how many times the public especially the kids have been made aware of this ,never ..are your bible quotes showing that a kali user is committing sins ?,what about those who have never smoked this weed like you are you sinless?. get a grip ,if the gov’t wants people to get out of poverty this is one step that they can take ,legalize marijuana..
It is also known that marijuana prohibition creates even more significant problems.
Doubly so in that anyone who actually knows any marijuana smokers knows that most of what you’re saying about them is completely false.
It seems to me that none of the civil and law agencies, organizations, groups, professionals, bodies, establishments, offices, etc., is serious about stopping or taking steps to eradicate this evil call drugs.
You cannot tell me that the police has caught a man red-handed with so much drugs and you allow a lawyer to persuade the state to give this man a slap on the wrist and tell him please do not do it again.
Are we for real?
Arrested on January 5th and 3 days later he already had his court date. But the big crimes are going years without the matters being settled.
You should consider, New Year, New Rule. Do not live in the past.
So just like that things those happen nuh?? I just walking… Out of no where police can just decide to search me for fun?? A joke da man?? Stupz Allu Dominicans to free
In this day and age police in dominica still stopping man for ganja?How pathetic!!!!!The problem is not weed the problem is cocaine.Take a look around the country and Roseau in particular, paro everywhere.ce pa weed ki fe sa.Look at St Vincent they have a new international airport. weed ki fe sa. Amsterdam have a vibrant tourist weed industry.Why not do the same in Dominica.Organic weed,cafe everywhere,fruits,vegetables tout sa for por vendre.People would make money like peas,not to mention all dem tourist going to need places to stay.
It is illegal drugs. What else do you expect?
Do not try to emulate others and adopt their practice.
All these copycats and legislation will lead everyone down slippery slopes. It is already bad enough.
Protect your morals, that of your country and nationals. Emulate what is good to practice. It will have better results.