Illinois Man Sentenced to 4 Years for Marijuana Possession Day Before State Legalized It
Written by SOURCE on June 10, 2019
An Illinois man was sentenced to prison for ordering 42 pounds of chocolate edibles.
CNN reports that Thomas Franzen of the Chicagoland area pled guilty to possession of upwards of 5000 grams of cannabis and received the minimum sentence: 4 years in prison. In a statement from the Kane County State’s Attorney’s Office, prosecutors made it clear that they believed Franzen bought the chocolate with the intent to sell it across the country via mail.
Franzen is suffering from testicular cancer and was given a reduced sentence in light of his medical condition, according to State Attorney Joe McMahon.
“In recognition of the seriousness of Mr. Franzen’s medical condition, our office reduced a 12-year mandatory minimum sentence to 4 years, of which he is required to serve only 2 years,” McMahon said in the statement. “We did this in spite of evidence that proves that Mr. Franzen is a drug dealer.”
McMahon added that “the marijuana-laced product found at Mr. Franzen’s home was not purchased from a medical marijuana business, and the amount he purchased far exceeds what would be used for personal consumption.”
Franzen was found out after postal workers became suspicious of his shipping habits. In 2014, authorities obtained a warrant to open a package and found over 40 pounds of THC-infused sweets.
A further search of Franzen’s home found 100 grams of marijuana, cocaine and what they believe to be evidence of a drug dealing operation. Franzen was sentenced one day before the Illinois legislature voted to legalize the recreational use of marijuana. The state will allow the purchase and use of the drug recreationally beginning this January.
