A Quesnel man was sentenced Monday to 20 months probation with a suspended sentence for possessing and trafficking cocaine.
It could have been much worse for Chad William Dickey, 30, had B.C. Supreme Court Justice Bruce Greyell not concluded earlier this year that Dickey was not near a location usually frequented by young people when he sold the drugs while on the grounds of a now-closed school.
Had Greyell found otherwise, Dickey would have been subject to the "mandatory minimum" of two years in prison under the federal Conservatives' Safe Streets and Communities Act that came into effect in 2012.
However, in reaching his conclusion, Greyell also found the imposition of a mandatory minimum sentence would be "cruel and unusual punishment" under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, in part because there is no evidence the "conditions and programs" to deal with Dickey's drug addiction while behind bars are available.
Dickey was arrested in April 2013 after he was caught trying to sell $100 worth of cocaine to an undercover RCMP officer on the grounds of the old Maple Drive junior high school.
According to testimony heard in court, it had not been used as a school for a number of years, possibly not since 2002.
Crown prosecution had been seeking a sentence of two years and four months in prison and defence counsel argued six to 12 months would have been more appropriate.
