Patrick Beadle, 46, says the cannabis in his possession was purchased legally to treat chronic pain

An Oregon man has received a 12-year prison sentence in Mississippi for possession of medical cannabis.

Patrick Beadle, 46, says the nearly three pounds of cannabis in his possession was purchased legally in Oregon to treat chronic pain in his knees from playing college basketball, and that he has a medical cannabis card that authorizes him to purchase and use the drug.

Medical cannabis was legalized in Oregon in 1998, with recreational cannabis made legal in 2014.

The Jamaican-born musician and father was originally facing up to 40 years and sentenced to eight years in prison with no chance of parole until a Madison County judge struck down the trafficking conviction and agreed to let Beadle plead guilty to drug possession instead. While the new sentence is longer, Beadle could become eligible for parole in three years.

“My client didn’t want to roll the dice on an appeal since he was facing eight years in prison day for day,” Beadle’s lawyer Cynthia Stewart told the Clarion Ledger.

Stewart says that this is her client’s first offense, which could bode well for a potential early release.

The cannabis was found when a deputy in Mississippi pulled Beadle off the road for drifting over highway lines, which Beadle denies, on the way home from a trip to visit his 8-year-old son. According to prosecutors, the only indication that Beadle was trafficking is the significant amount of cannabis in his possession and that it was allegedly hidden in the vehicle. No scales, cash, or paraphernalia were found.

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