Man fined after trying to evade police check stop with marijuana

KAMLOOPS – A 39-year-old man was ordered to pay a $300 fine today after he was caught with a 'personal' amount of marijuana and attempted to avoid a police road check.

Crown counsel Anthony Varesi told Kamloops provincial court Judge Stephen Harrison that Ian McPherson spotted and tried to avoid the police check stop Sept. 2, 2011 around 11:30 p.m. on Paul Lake Road.

Police caught up with him, however, and his vehicle was pulled over. The arresting officer smelled a ‘strong odour of marijuana' before McPherson admitted to smoking marijuana two hours before, with six grams — about $50 worth — of it also in the glove box.

McPherson's vehicle was impounded, and he was handed a 24-hour driving prohibition. Defence lawyer Richard Begin said McPherson has a new family with no criminal record.

“It was clearly… for personal use,” he told the court.

Varesi proposed the fine with a conditional discharge including probation.

“This is a reasonable proposition,” Harrison said.

McPherson was ordered to pay $300 and abide by standard probationary terms such as keeping the peace and maintaining good behaviour.

To contact a reporter for this story, email: jwallace@infotelnews.ca, call: (250) 319-7494 or tweet: @jess__wallace.