Cannabis smoker caught behind wheel in Mansfield

A Mansfield man was fined after a police officer spotted him smoking cannabis as he drove through the town, a court heard.
Mansfield Magistrates CourtMansfield Magistrates Court
Mansfield Magistrates Court

The officer was on mobile patrol when he smelled cannabis and saw smoke coming from the window of Joseph Askin’s car on Abbott Road, on March 4. Three small amounts of the drug were found.

Askin, 27, of Worcester Avenue, Mansfield Woodhouse, admitted possession of the Class B drug when he appeared at Mansfield Magistrates Court, on Wednesday.

Mary Dixon, mitigating, said Askin had a previous conviction for possession from five years ago and had stopped using the drug.

But the break up of a relationship, the loss of his job, and the death of his grandmother had combined to make him start again.

District judge Jonathan Taaffe said: “You clearly have a good future ahead of you. But the fact you are dependent on cannabis fills me with fear.

“You should not be doing what you’re doing with any cannabis in you.”

Askin was fined £200 and ordered to pay £85 costs and a £30 government surcharge.