Young offender recovering from brush with synthetic cannabis
An Oxford 20-year-old is back with his family and being closely monitored after a problem encounter with synthetic cannabis.
Allan Peter Trainor’s involvement with synthetic cannabis – and apparently with poorly chosen friends – lasted about five months.
It has earned him four months of community detention at his parents’ home in Oxford, a year of intensive supervision and regular monitoring by Christchurch District Court Judge David Saunders, and six months driving disqualification for driving while suspended.
He will also have to pay back $649 for the damage and the losses he caused.
Trainor had admitted charges of burglary, theft from a car, dishonestly using a credit card, receiving stolen property, and wilful damage.
He took a child’s quad bike from a barn at Oxford. It was recovered damaged.
He stole items from an unlocked car in a driveway on Oxford’s Main Street, and smashed a quarter-light window of a car in a service station about the same time.
He admitted a receiving a stolen credit card that was found in his bedroom, and dishonestly using it for two purchases.
The offending took place in August and September.
Defence counsel Tom Smedley said Trainor’s problems arose at a time when he was using synthetic cannabis. There had now been a change in his life. He was back living with his parents, looking for labouring work, and had been helping to build a barn for his cousin “to get work fit”.
“He is now living a more pro-social life with his family,” said Mr Smedley, pointing out that Trainor’s father was in court to support him.
The father spoke in court, saying that Trainor’s behaviour had certainly changed while he was involved with drugs, but he had now “come out of it”.
Judge Saunders said Trainor was fortunate to have parental support. Use of synthetic cannabis often led to breaches with families because of the destructive behaviour. “You can see the destructive trail you were leaving in the North Canterbury community.”
He had now distanced himself from anti-social peers.
The judge said he would get regular monitoring reports during the sentence, and if Trainor relapsed he could be resentenced.
He will have to do training and counselling programmes as directed.
Probation says he is already doing a community work sentence which has 79 hours outstanding. That sentence will have to be completed as well.
Category: News
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