A single mum who claimed she used cannabis to medicate herself and calm her nerves was told “self-medication does not exist” by a judge.
Kayley Baker, 35, was arrested when police raided her family home in Anfield, Liverpool after a tip-off and found 1g of the drug.
Baker, a school cleaner with two previous warnings about her use of cannabis, had kept it in a jar by her bed and claimed she suffered anxiety due to being in an abusive relationship.
Baker, who pleaded guilty to possession of the class B drug, insisted she smoked the drug as a form of self-medication, which was dismissed by District Judge Wendy Lloyd.
The judge said: “Not only is cannabis illegal, self-medication does not exist. The only person who can medicate for drugs is a doctor.
"I know there's some background, but cannabis can have enormous effects, physically and psychologically.
"Some people become psychotic through the use of cannabis alone. Please do not think it's some innocuous substance.
“As well as being illegal, it does harm."
Earlier Angela Conlan, prosecuting, said: "It was 6.30am on September 16 of last year when a search was executed at the defendant's address.
"As police entered she told officers she had a jar containing cannabis by her bed. A large glass jar was recovered from next to her bed containing approximately one gram of cannabis.
“I do understand she has two previous out-of-court disposals for cannabis.
"She was deemed eligible for a conditional caution but subsequently refused to contact the officer and hence she has been charged.
“The lady did have her chance."
In mitigation, Baker's lawyer Joseph Ely said: "You have heard this is a lady who cooperated fully at the scene with the officers upon their arrival and indicated that there was a small amount of cannabis next to her bed in a jar.
"She made full and frank admissions in interview and pleaded guilty at the first opportunity. “At the time, some six months ago, she was using the drug as a form of self-medication. She suffers significantly from anxiety having been domestically abused on occasions in the past.
"It is particularly upsetting for her and she has explained it to me in private.
“This lady now has the use of the drug under control. She no longer needs the drug to assist with her anxiety."
When Baker was asked why she had not replied to the offer of a conditional caution, which would have involved going on a course, rather than end up in court, Baker said she thought she had done the course by phone and added: "The lady on the phone said that's all I have to do."
She was conditionally discharged for 12 months and ordered to pay £146 in costs and a victim surcharge.
Cannabis is still illegal to possess in the UK with the maximum penalty being five years in jail and an unlimited fine.
