'Ageing Hippies' Cannabis Ring

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Source: Sheffield Star

'Ageing hippies' cannabis ring



Spared prison: Valerie Owen

By Russ Newton


A COUPLE of ageing hippies have escaped jail sentences for their part in a cannabis co-operative run by women in a South Yorkshire village who smoke 'joints' to ease their painful joints. Jacqueline Bell and Valerie Owen were among a circle of six friends aged from 42 to 70 living in Highfields, Doncaster, who clubbed together to buy the drug because of their various medical conditions.

And today they vowed to carry on smoking dope even though they risk going to prison for ignoring a sentence imposed by a judge at Doncaster Crown Court.

Recorder Peter Kelson QC said he realised they would carry using cannabis because they had strong feelings about it and told them: "If you want to stand on your principles you can take your prison sentence - it's your choice."

Bell, aged 53, was given three months for possession with intent to supply and Owen, 46, received one month for possession, both suspended for 51 weeks. They will also be tagged to stay at home under curfew every night for the next six months.

The court was told how drugs squad officers found two blocks of cannabis weighing 716 grams in a wardrobe and 11 other pieces in various parts of the terraced house in South Street.

The street value of the drugs was more than £3,000 and Bell told officers that half a dozen women in the village would take it in turns to buy in bulk to take for medicinal reasons.

Speaking at the house where their hippie-style Volkswagen camper van, named Passing Wind, is parked outside, Bell told The Star: "We're not going to stop smoking.

"I've been crippled with arthritis for 13 years and Val also has arthritis and other health problems. "Cannabis makes such a difference. We have a couple of joints at night and that helps us both sleep. We're both in severe pain and if we didn't we would never have any sleep."

Bell added: "I was born in and brought up in the hippie era when most people smoked cannabis. We're known in the village as the hippie drug dealers and we've never kept it secret."

But the women are adamant they only sell the cannabis to their circle and would not consider dealing with young people or anybody else..

"It was just the six of us although one recently moved away. Another lady has just been diagnosed with a condition and has been given 10 years to live so why shouldn't she enjoy a joint? We all save up each week and it was unfortunately my turn to buy it when the police came.

"I don't normally have that amount. We're just a couple of geriatric hippies who smoke pot because we need to for medical reasons." Bell said she did needlework and sold items at car boot sales to raise her share of the drugs kitty money.