A man was found with more than two kilograms of cannabis in his Ballarat Central home and said he was using it for pain relief, a court has heard.
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Darren Pfeiffer, 52, pleaded guilty at the Ballarat Magistrates' Court on Wednesday to cultivating cannabis.
Police prosecutor Senior Constable Sam Young said police executed a search warrant at Pfeiffer's Drummond Street home in June 2020.
The court heard police found cannabis totalling 2.3kg in a number of boxes, buckets, bowls and containers in his work shed and some inside his house.
They also found two cannabis plants.
He has put himself in a challenging situation where police came into his home.
- David Tamanika, defence lawyer
Defence lawyer David Tamanika said Pfeiffer was growing the cannabis for personal use to deal with neck and back soreness and headaches that interfered with his sleep.
He said it was an unsophisticated growing set up, he had no relevant prior convictions, was well established and had a good job.
"This is something which often happens," Mr Tamanika said.
"He has put himself in a challenging situation where police came into his home."
Magistrate Noreen Toohey said he accepted defence submissions that the cannabis was for personal use but said there were other ways to deal with pain.
"He knows it is illegal to grow cannabis," she said.
"Medicinal cannabis programs are the only programs for legal cannabis use."
Ms Toohey said she did not think Pfeiffer would be accepted into a medicinal cannabis program in Victoria because they were generally for high end pain relief.
Pfeiffer was convicted and fined $1500.
"The reality for you is growing cannabis is illegal," Ms Toohey said.
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