Pubdate: Tue, 24 Jun 2014
Source: Press, The (New Zealand)
Copyright: 2014 Fairfax New Zealand Limited
Contact:  http://www.press.co.nz/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/349
Page: B6

CANNABIS BROWNIES LEAVE TEEN FACING LIFE

A Texas teenager could face up to 99 years in prison for making and
selling brownies infused with cannabis, despite the product being
legal elsewhere in the United States.

Jacob Lavoro, 19, was arrested on April 14 after a neighbour smelled
suspiciously pungent smoke and called the police. The authorities
allege that after entering his apartment they found an illicit baking
operation that included the brownies, a pound of cannabis, hash oil
and US$1675 (NZ$1900) in cash.

His case is more serious because prosecutors can charge him based on
the entire weight of the brownies' ingredients, which amounted to 660
grams, instead of just the weight of the oil, a substance that is more
tightly controlled than ordinary cannabis buds. In Texas, possession
of more than 400g of hash oil with intent to deliver can yield up to
life in prison.

Lavoro, who allegedly sold each brownie for US$25, has been charged
with a first-degree felony. The case comes amid signs that other parts
of the United States are relaxing their attitudes to cannabis. Federal
law prohibits the drug, but the attorney-general has indicated that he
will not interfere with experiments in Colorado and Washington state,
where recreational consumption was recently made legal under local
laws.

Lavoro's mother condemned the charge, saying: "Murderers get less time
than that and the thought that my son could go to prison at all is
something that I can't even get my head around."

His lawyer has filed a motion to dismiss the evidence, claiming that
police entered Jacob's apartment illegally. Lavoro turned down a plea
deal for a second degree felony.

The Times
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