Sentence Reduced: ‘Medical Marijuana’ Tourist

June 21, 2011

medical_marijuana__weedAn American tourist who was jailed last month for marijuana possession had her initial 30 day sentence reduced after an appeal in the Supreme Court, and has returned to the United States.

Last month Edith Norton Lord Wolff, a 59-year-old California woman, was fined $3,000 and sentenced to thirty days in prison for importing approximately 35 grams of cannabis.

The marijuana was found during a Customs search after she had landed in Bermuda on 17th May 2011.

During her first court appearance her lawyer Marc Pettingill pointed out that the marijuana had been prescribed to her by a medical doctor in California for treatment of Menieres Disease.

At the time, Mr Pettingill provided the Court with a faxed copy of the prescription and pointed out that the defendant had never denied possession and was completely cooperative.

Speaking after the sentence was reduced lawyer Marc Pettingill said, “We took the position that the fact that this lady had possession of cannabis which was legally prescribed to her in the state of California for the treatment of a specific condition was at least mitigation against a non custodial sentence.”

“Her initial sentence of 30 days incarceration was appealed and she was given bail and stayed on Island until Friday when the Appeal was heard in the Supreme Court and allowed on the basis of time spent imprisoned at the Co-Ed for one day. We were pleased with the out come and she has returned to California.”

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Category: All, Court Reports, Crime, News

Comments (11)

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  1. GPS says:

    It’s official…our court system is the reason why we are in a recession…time and time again they waste our tax paying dollars on foolishness.

    What a laughing stock system we have!

    • Organic Bermudian says:

      Free Granny Campaigner!!!

    • Fighting a losin' Battle... says:

      Can someone enlighten me on how something can be prescribed by a DR….LEGALLY…in one part of this world we live in but yet be ILLEGAL in another..???. Either CANNIBUS is bad for you (hence illegalities..coz they are “genuinly” concerned for your health}…OR is it something which provides a better quality of life for some…? Chemotherapy {CHEMICAL THERAPY} LEGAL..
      BUT DOES NOT DISCRIMINATE KILLS ALL CELLS…..Radiation Therapy…doesn’t have a homing device..kills what ever it comes in contact with…but its legal because a man in a white coat prescribes it …but yet they rant and rave about cellphone usage…DUH!…come on people wake up. What amazes me is that it was prescribed by an American DR….in the very same country that has wasted time money and energy fighting against something that CANNOT be beaten.
      Out of the five continents in this world America is the one that the rest are waiting for to Decrimanalize Marijuana…for fear of Americas Bullying Tactics.
      Look the BOTTOM LINE is this ..Until the Drug Cartels agree to pay taxes on their Commodity then it will never be addressed…GOVERNMENTS NEED THE MONEY!
      AS long as its kept illegal REVENUE will COME..{IE. TAXES}DISGUISED AS FINES
      OH WELL IM TIRED ….AND WHEN THE PEOPLE GET TIRED …LOTS OF TROUBLE IS ON THE HORIZON …trust me

      • YES MATE! says:

        We’re down to just five continents? What happened to the other two? Continents are really big chunks of land so they can’t hide too easily especially on a planet whose surface is 70 percent covered in water.

  2. Concerned Bermudian says:

    The reason she got a break on her sentence was because this government is trying to make sure that the tourist that come to Bermuda have a good experience and so when they do something illegal they give them a break so they can go back and tell their friends that they brought marijuana to Bermuda and only got a small fine and 3 days in prison. It would be nice if the people of Bermuda got a break for once.

  3. Citizen Banned (Original) says:

    The fact that she was given a prison sentence at all is pure embarrassment for Bda.

    • Concerned says:

      Agreed!! Others behind her only recieved a fine and they didn’t have a medical excuse. Give her the fine and send her on her way.

      Heck, a couple brings 40 rounds of ammo in and gets the case dropped!

      • Think about it says:

        Welcome to Bermuda, the most backwards country/island in the world.

        Every law in every book in Bermuda is extremely out dated and overly harsh. Traffic in particular. 12 points are supposed to last you for 2 years in a place where the police target drivers on a daily basis and the average fine is 5 or 6 demerit points! Ridiculous….

        • poooo says:

          we really need to get up with the times Backward goverment

  4. Rich says:

    The importation aspect of this offence is a pretty serious aggravating factor. All things being equal, someone pleading to importation versus someone pleading to simple possession will get a significantly longer sentence and can probably expect immediate custody.

    But it does strike me as bizarre that two individuals learned in the law looking at the same facts and hearing the same arguments advanced presumably by the same counsel can get at sentences as ridiculously varied as 3 days and a month in prison. I think the fact that the prosecution did not object to the appeal shows just how ridiculous the original sentence from the Senior Magistrate was.

    At least she was allowed bail pending the determination of her appeal.

  5. Arthur - Atlanta says:

    Arthur Raynor – Atlanta said:
    Even more concerning is the thought that a person traveling to any foreign country with ‘medical cannabis’ would not first do some background checking on the legality of importing it into that foreign country. Gun and gun ownership is legal here in the USA but I as a legal gun owner would not dare to carry my guns with me as I travel to a foreign country without first checking to see what their gun ownership laws are. Even in the different USA states, gun rules and laws vary and it is up to the owner to know the rules and laws of the state they are entering. Sitting in a jail cell saying “I didn’t know or I thought…!” does not help your situation. Check First! That would be the common sense thing to do, but common sense….is not so common anymore.
    “I’m just saying!”