Before his arrest, Prior said he was consuming about 12 grams of marijuana each day in the form of a tea he would brew.

That licence was signed by a pain specialist along with his prescription for oxycodone.

However the case also heard his son misplaced a Health Canada letter requesting the signature of a doctor before granting renewal of the licence.

The Crown eventually withdrew the possession charge and lowered his intent to traffic charge to one of possession.

Prior insisted that he was not able to purchase marijuana from a licensed facility as, at $10 a gram, it would cost him about $3,000 a month for his dosage, something he could not afford considering he and his wife’s income of $4,000 a month.

“To impose a sentence of jail would be completely disproportionate to the gravity of the conduct engaged in by Mr. Prior and his motivation and reasons for producing the marijuana,” Justice West added. “Consequently, I am suspending the passing of sentence and placing Mr. Prior on probation for a period of two years.”

The decision comes weeks after Darren Sederoff, a lawyer representing a number of Markham men, said he was unsatisfied with the Crown’s insistence on seeking mandatory minimum sentences for medical marijuana users who have been caught using licences, which were made invalid for administrative reasons.

In the weeks following that story, a federal court ruled that rules obligating patients to purchase marijuana from Health Canada-authorized producers was in violation of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

Prior’s wife, Wendy, had her charge for possession also withdrawn.

Prior said he was pleased with the outcome via email.

“At the end of the day, I got a $5 fine and Wendy’s charges all withdrawn,” he said. “Justice West made a very extensive ruling very much in my favour.”

York Regional Police stated they respect the court’s decision.

“Officers conduct a thorough investigation and lay the charges that are applicable at the time based on the evidence,” the service commented. “The court process is separate and is not our decision to speak to, however we respect the findings of the courts in this matter. “