Man sentenced to dig grave for his drug habit

Ric Latarski
Senior Staff Writer

CONYERS - A man charged with possession of marijuana will be given the chance to show the court his drug use is behind him, or in his case, under him.

Chief Superior Court Judge Sidney Nation sentenced Cecil Charles Daniel Jr. to serve 60 days of a 12-month sentence for possession of marijuana but told him he wanted the defendant to "sweat and remember" the conduct that brought him to court.

"I want you to dig a hole 6 feet long and 5 feet deep and bury a sign that reads, 'Here lies my dope habit,'" said Nation after accepting Daniel's guilty plea Monday. "Actually, I don't care what it says, but I want you to dig and with every shovel full of dirt I want you to think about that hole the next time you want to smoke dope."

Nation also ordered Daniel to undergo a drug screen each week for the balance of the sentence.

"One positive test for marijuana and you will spend the balance of the sentence in jail," Nation said.

Daniel, 26, was charged as a result of a search warrant that was executed at a residence on Pinedale during which a number of people were charged with various levels of drug-related offenses.

Daniel said he was "just chillin' with some friends" when authorities executed the search warrant and was not engaged in any of the drug distribution business that originated from the residence.

Daniel was reportedly found in possession of a small amount of marijuana at the time of the raid.

While simple possession normally means a year in jail, Daniel argued that he has four children and needed to be able to provide for his family.

"When this happened, your children were in school trying to learn something and Daddy was hanging out at a dope house," Nation said. "That's not the example you need to be setting. Don't let this happen again."

The main player in the raid at the Pinedale residence, Patiance Vandrique Fears, was sentenced to serve the first 10 years of a 15-year sentence for trafficking ecstasy and ordered to pay a $200,000 fine

http://www.rockdalecitizen.com/main.asp?SectionID=2&SubSectionID=2&Articl eID=1702


Small town justice at it's best.  Just think the guy may end up with a new profession.