'DAKTORY' CANNABIS CLUB OWNER JAILED

The man behind New Zealand's first cannabis club, The Daktory, was
today jailed for eight months after appearing in the Auckland District Court.

Dakta Green, who ran the west Auckland club where cannabis could be
bought and sold freely for more than 30 months, was found guilty on
three cannabis related charges earlier this year.

The 61-year-old was sentenced to eight months for possession and
supplying cannabis and three months for permitting his premises, The
Daktory, to be used for commission of a crime.

The sentences will be served concurrentl,y meaning Green will serve
eight months.

Green objected to the sentence, but Judge Phil Gittos said the law
"must be upheld" and said the sentence was much more lenient than the
four years the Crown had sought.

About 30 Daktory supporters protested outside the court before
Green's appearance and their chants could be heard inside the
courtroom throughout his sentencing.

Green was charged following police raids on The Daktory in January
2010 after he'd detailed nationwide cannabis-club expansion plans to the media.

Green closed the doors of The Daktory to its 2000-plus members last
month following his convictions.

The New Lynn warehouse would, however, continue to be used as a
centre of activism for marijuana law reform.