A WOMAN arrested with almost 1000 cannabis plants has been spared jail after claiming the harsh north Queensland frost cut her yield for personal use.
Chauntelle Denise McCosh, 38, pleaded guilty in a Cairns court to producing 550 marijuana plants in an irrigated, fenced-off paddock, as well as tending a nursery of 360 seedlings on Ravenshoe acreage.
But her lawyer argued it was not a commercial operation because the
harsh Tableland winter would kill many of the plants, leaving only enough cannabis for her and her partner, The Cairns Post reports.
Justice Stanley Jones ordered Ms McCosh perform 180 hours of community service over the next 12 months and did not record a conviction.
Margo Zlotkowski, The Cairns Post
http://www.news.com.au
