A father of four who admitted supplying Cannabis to pay off debts and fund his own cocaine habit has been jailed for eight months.
Defence lawyer Denis Boyd had urged that 34-year-old William Thomas Cochrane be freed either on a community sentence, or suspended jail term.
However, Belfast Recorder Judge David McFarland said the prevailing policy of the courts in drug cases was the protection of the public, and those supplying drugs must expect to go to jail.
Earlier prosecution lawyer Simon Jenkins told the Crown Court that in a search of Cochrane's Kings Avenue home in Newtownabbey on December 17th, 2013, police uncovered a quantity of both herbal, and cannabis resin, along with cocaine and over £10,000 in cash.
Mr Jenkins said Cochrane initially handed over a black work bag containing a quantity of drugs. However, other drugs were found in the bedroom and follow-up search of a garden shed. Police also recovered the cash, in two envelopes, and a small quantity of cocaine which Cochrane said was for his own use.
Mr Boyd said Cochrane began taking drugs, mostly smoking cannabis with friends before “dabbling in cocaine”, quickly becoming addicted using it every other day.
The lawyer said Cochrane then began to supply cannabis to friends, essentially to fund his expensive cocaine addiction.
However, since his arrest, Cochrane has been drug free, and had sought help to remain so and to “steel his resolve” to get his “life back on track”.
Mr Boyd said that in all the circumstances, in particular his efforts of self-help, and low likelihood of reoffending he would “urge” the court to accept the recommendations in the pre-sentence report, or at the very least to suspend any custodial term.
Jailing Cochrane, Judge McFarlane said while there was not a substantial amount of drugs involved, the cannabis was found in deal size bags. He added that he would get full credit for his guilty pleas, and that other mitigating factors included a lack of a criminal record for drugs.
However, Judge McFarland said there was no recommendation for a community based sentence, only a suggestion, and that in all of the circumstances he did not “think it appropriate” to suspend his sentence.