In many respects, organisations like Bud Buddies (www.budbuddies.com), emulate the licensed medical marijuana dispensaries which operate quite legally in the United States, but with a subtle difference.

In a nut-shell, a person grows cannabis for their own consumption. Thats going to happen anyway!

Once a person has grown enough marijuana to last until his or her next harvest, anything which is surplus to requirements, is quietly moved along to help those unabe to grow for themselves, including cancer patients and MS sufferers.

Sometimes an exchange of money takes place, albeit at around 40% of "street" prices. But more often than not the marijuana is donated.

Its a wholly altruistic act by a group of people who are as enthusiastic about their own carefully tended crops, as any wine grower, or cigar roller.

And had Mr Cotton been prepared to promise not to grow cannabis any more, Judge Marten Coates had alluded to a non-custodial sentence.

Judge Coates told Cotton: "I know you have a personal crusade, but you waste so much public time and money achieving nothing.

"I am not without sympathy for your point of view."

"Indeed I was tempted not to send you to prison, but you have ruined that."

This, after Roderick Cotton told Warwick Crown Court that he would not stop his campaign to help people with medical conditions. He would not stop growing his medical cannabis.

Jailing him, Judge Coates said: "Mr. Cotton has a previous conviction for producing cannabis at his home, and here we are again.

"I have asked if he will give an undertaking never to commit this kind of offence again and he cannot give that undertaking."

"Therefore I cannot pass a non-custodial sentence."

Cotton received a 12-month jail sentence and is planning to take his case to the Court of Appeal.

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