A United States Peace Corp volunteer who last Friday pleaded guilty to one count of trafficking in psychotropic substances has been slapped with a twelve months suspended sentence by Magistrate Sanford Ngobola.
Appearing before the court was Jacqueline Frances Walsh, 24 a US Peace Corps Volunteer who is currently based at Kozele village of Chief Zingalume in Chadiza District.
Walsh was facing a charge of trafficking in Psychotrophic substances contrary to section 6 chapter 96 of the Laws of Zambia as read with statutory instrument number 119 of 1995.
Particulars of the offence were that on Monday 16, May 2013, Walsh did traffic in 313 grams of marijuana, a herbal product of cannabis sativa without lawful authority.
Walsh who pleaded guilty to the charge was represented by Andrew Chewe of Nchito Advocates, operates in Chief Zingalume’s area in Chadiza district was arrested by the Drug Enforcement Commission (DEC) officers at a lodge in Chipata district.
In mitigation, the accused pleaded with the court to exercise leniency saying she was a first offender.
The defense lawyer said her client did not waste the court’s time adding that she was very remorseful of what had transpired.
He noted that under the immigration and deportation Act, his client was liable for deportation or liable to imprisonment as she was a foreigner.
He however stated that his client once deported was liable to suffer for the rest of her life because the American government will not employ her for security reasons.
He also noted that the offence committed by the accused was also illegal in the USA.
“Let me also note that the convict has been in Zambia working with the community of Chadiza District since 24th January 2012.She has been doing a commendable service to the community of that area,” Mr Chewe said.
He pleaded with the court to impose a suspended sentence.
And passing ruling Magistrate Ngobola said he had taken note of the mitigation and warned the convict not to commit a similar offence within a year.
“You will be imprisoned for ten months with hard labour if you are found with a similar case within the next 12 months,” he said.
Tut tut. Zed more generous than the US would have been if roles reversed and it was a Zed person trafficking in the US.
My Friend, is it Generosity or Poverty and lack of self esteem amongst most of the Zambian fellas?? If this was the other way round or had it been Asian countries kaya kaya…
Please feel free to interpret it as you wish, my friend.
Remember the euphoric Seattle cannabis show? It is fast becoming acceptable to smoke pot in the US of A…
@ Rebased- In general every Zambian feels sorry for a foreigner suffering in Zed. Just imagine a white chick in a Chipata prison it would be torture. The punishment would not fit the crime it does not matter what other countries would do it’s what majority of Zambians want or think should be done that is important. What should happen now is for lawyers around Zed to use this case as precedence in all other similar cases involving Zambians. And don’t forget she would have hired a good lawyer a poor person will go to jail because of a lack of quality lawyers to represent them through legal aid
Fake zambian laws,if it was in china,she would be hanged by now!
it doesn’t mean the chinese are right, if anything they are just looking for ways to reduce their population.
Laws are for the poor people and poor countries. At least in Africa. Simply because she is American, the government has failed to touch her. Why am I not surprised. What do you expect anyway from an impoverished country. I am sure if it was a villager from Lufwanyama , he would be behind bars right now.
Pantufye nika buga mwakaleka ? Inferiority comeplex iyo.
What’s going on here?
A Zambian national would straight get 6 months with hard labour for the same crime.
country men and women.have you forgoten what happend to Nasty D,St Maiko,Dandy crazy etc?all these were given suspended sentences over the same case and were warned. now,wats the difference and were is injustice here?Recently ,for yo own information, a zambian lady called Musialike who was arrested in China for drug trafficing,found guilty and sentenced to death by firing squard was released and returned to zambia.do you suppose that the chinese are inferior? lets not just comment anything without understanding issues hence revealing onse ignorance…
Olo ninshi umunandi Fox mwalimukaka for six months pama bola fye yabili ? very unbalanced justice pa Zed.
The justice system in Zambia is biased and rotten. What more with a use/less justice minister.
He is not white neither is he famous, the society won’t lose anything by the lack of his contribution to the economy!
C’mon guys! St. Michael got suspended sentence, Dandy Crazy suspended sentence, Nasty D suspended sentence, so let the American girl also get suspended sentence. If they catch us smokin’ weed with Nubian Princess, they’ll also give us suspended sentence.
In law, its called precedence.
Solola Bye!
Too true!
Too jail a white-person in Zambia, would be travesty and incomprehensible
Right decision!
Thanks
is Jackelyn (the Bolivian) not white?
I’m sorry for i said
I mean i’m sorry for what i said… it sounded racist…..
In US states like Colorado and Washington Marijuana is legal.
meanwhile fellow Zambians are rotting in jail for lesser offences. tsk tsk..
Can somebody explain the Zambian Law please. Is there a difference between possession and trafficking or has it all been ignorantly bandled into one. Are there different fines and/or sentences for possessing one joint or 10 kg? Why do the papers write trafficking for somebody caught with a joint?
#12 Zamule – Exactly the point. She was obviously in possesion for personal consumption and not trafficking. In this instance, the sentence is sensible as even in the western world people are normally just cautioned. Trafficking is usually transporting with intent to supply and the pernauty for this is usually a jail sentence. May they could have asked her to disclose the supplier, who should have been jailed instead.
Someone is using my name here so i have made changes to my name, i’m called Mushota1…. i dont know who this other Mushota is. Please, leave my name alone you chicken!!
Wenkonko we! would have sounded better
Only in Zambia, if I was caught with such things the system would make sure i’m served with the maximum penalty as example or deterrent to other foreign nationals.
Jay Jay – Obviously you Jay…. Wilalanda sana.. akulyafye in moderation…
In moderation this is good food… Lekeni abantu balelya ichakulya…
She should be recalled by the Peace Corps. She is not fit for this work
No where in America is marijuana legal unless for medical reasons. Get busted with a large quantity of weed and you sure will do some time….be it community service or in jail time. For foreigners it,s even worse ,so why let whittie get away with her crime. You can not compare her to our fellow Zambians that have messed up doing weed. Jail the cracker and give the key to Obama.
cracker??? wowww……racist much? By the way, marijuana is legal in Colorado and Washington State in the USA. She deserves to be fined and deported. She knew what she was doing was wrong (and illegal). She was taking advantage of her position and she deserves to be punished….but, seriously, why the racist comments?