Man claimed cannabis was from passenger in his vehicle
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A man caught driving with cannabis traces in his system claimed it was because a passenger in his vehicle had been smoking the drug in close proximity to him during their journey.
Shane Downey (24) was pulled over for a routine check by police on mobile patrol on October 24 last year on the A9 near the Munlochy junction.
However they noticed a strong smell of cannabis and decided to do a drugs test.
He was found to have 3.5micrograms of delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol per litre of blood.
The legal limit is two micrograms.
The court heard the plasterer was travelling from Grimsby where he lives to a job in the Highlands.
Downey's solicitor Willie Young said his client, who was not present at Inverness Sheriff Court when the case called, admitted the charge but provided an explanation.
Mr Young said: "He is a young man who has not been in trouble before.
"He was in the company of another.
"It's his position that at no point did he smoke cannabis but his passenger was consistently smoking during the eight hour journey."
Downey was fined £500 by Sheriff Ian Cruickshank and disqualified from driving for 12 months.
