(Kingston Crown Court) Two brothers, in their mother’s absence but with her permission, held an overnight party at her house. During the evening cannabis was smoked by their guests. The judge had applied Mogford. Judge Oddie: ‘To be ‘the occupier’ the person charged must be proved to have had, whether lawfully or otherwise, such an exclusive possession of the premises at the material time as to enable him to prevent the smoking of cannabis in them. Not every transient use of premises or physical ability to remove another from the premises would enable the court or jury to find the nature, extent and degree of possession sufficient for a finding that the person was the occupier of the premises. On the agreed facts the parents remained occupiers but had delegated to their sons their authority to licence the entry of guests during their absence overnight. In these circumstances the children did not become ‘occupiers’ for the purpose of an offence under the Act.’
Judges:
Judge Oddie
Citations:
[1982] Crim LR 595
Statutes:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Citing:
Cited – Regina v Mogford 1976
(Glamorgan Assizes) The two daughters of parents who owned, but were away from, a house in South Wales had invited some friends in to smoke cannabis.
Held: The daughters could not in those circumstances properly be charged as occupiers of . .
Cited – Regina v Ben Nien Tao CACD 1976
Tao was an undergraduate at Cambridge who had occupied a room in a college hostel. He appealed a conviction for being an occupier of premises used for the smoking of cannabis.
Held: His conviction was upheld. Roskill LJ: ‘On those facts it . .
Cited by:
Cited – Read v Director of Public Prosecutions Admn 20-Jun-1997
The defendant appealed against his conviction for being an occupier of premises used for smoking cannabis. The Appellant lived at the premises together with his common law wife and children as a family. On the facts the magistrates found that the . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Crime
Updated: 07 May 2022; Ref: scu.241349
