Cannabis case cites human rights charter

A shopkeeper who changed his name to Free Rob Cannabis went on trial yesterday accused of growing cannabis plants and possessing a range of drugs, including LSD and ecstasy.

A shopkeeper who changed his name to Free Rob Cannabis went on trial yesterday accused of growing cannabis plants and possessing a range of drugs, including LSD and ecstasy.

A jury at Taunton Crown Court was told Mr Cannabis, 33, of Glastonbury, Somerset, did not deny possessing the substances. But he believed the laws forbidding possession of such drugs contravened Article 18 of the United Nations Charter of Human Rights.

Counsel for the prosecution said: "He accepted the seizure from his premises and in essence he accepted he was in possession. What he did not accept was that the items were controlled drugs and [possession] was therefore illegal."

The case continues.