A Blenheim man turned to cannabis after being unable to find suitable medication to help the physical pain of a motorcycle accident that happened 18 years ago, the Blenheim District Court heard on Friday.
Darryl Bruce Aberhart, 37, was sentenced to 15 months' imprisonment after admitting cultivating cannabis, possessing equipment to cultivate cannabis and possessing cannabis.
A sentence of six months' imprisonment for possession of equipment and two months for possession of cannabis will run concurrently.
Judge Tony Zohrab said when police searched Aberhart's home, where his partner and several small children also lived, on December 22 they found a total of 2.1 kilograms of dried cannabis throughout the property and 90 cannabis plants, including 43 mature plants growing in a glasshouse.
Police also found a purpose-built growing room, three containers of liquid fertiliser, seedling growing trays and heat lamps.
Crown prosecutor Mike Turner said Aberhart had 18 previous convictions for drug-related matters, six of which were for cultivation.
Judge Zohrab said it was a point of contention whether there was a commercial element to the cultivation.
Defence counsel Rob Harrison said Aberhart had sometimes offered cannabis to a friend, but aside from this there was no suggestion he grew it for commercial purposes.
Mr Harrison said no medical practitioner had been able to alleviate the pain Aberhart had been suffering since his motorcycle accident in 1992.
He said the whole reason for growing the cannabis was Aberhart's chronic pain.
Judge Zohrab said personal circumstances did not usually carry weight in drug cases, but Aberhart was given the discounted sentence because of an early guilty plea. The maximum sentence was two years in jail.
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