'They assumed I was a criminal' - Kettering man hits out at police after medical cannabis arrest

A Kettering man says he was wrongly treated like a criminal after being arrested for having what was lawfully-prescribed medical cannabis.

Andy Byatt has complained to Northamptonshire Police after he was handcuffed and put in a van having been detained on suspicion of possessing a class B drug.

Officers only knew Andy had cannabis on him because he had approached them and asked them for help, having been turned away from nightclub Decades because door staff could smell it.

He said he had proof on him that it had been legally prescribed – but an officer arrested him and confiscated his medication. Northamptonshire Police declined to comment.

Andy, who is disabled, said: "I have been quite surprised by the reaction of the police.

"I asked for help and they made no effort to try and help me. They assumed I was a criminal and treated me like one."

A birth defect means Andy’s elbows are permanently dislocated and almost 20 years ago the condition began to cause painful flare-ups. He was given prescribed drugs and spent eight years taking tramadol to ease his discomfort.

Taking medicinal cannabis was legalised in 2018, but only when it is prescribed by specialist doctors, and 42-year-old Andy has lawfully been using it since 2021. He vaporises five 0.2g doses a day and says it’s been amazing – enabling him to come off all other prescription medication apart from occasionally taking co-codamol.

In August it wrongly got him into trouble. He went to Decades in Carrington Street and said door staff confiscated his medication, which was in its original pot, before giving it back to him when he needed to use it later that evening.

Andy said that, when he attempted to re-enter the nightclub, he was refused entry because door staff could smell cannabis and he tried to explain that it was legal for him to use it. He said that he sought assistance from police officers but that, instead of being helped, he was arrested.

Andy said: "I heard a group of officers discussing it and saying it wasn't legal.

"I was trying to explain that I had my prescription on my phone but I was arrested, put in handcuffs and put in the back of their van."

Government guidance says that proof of a prescription and ID, or furnishing the dispensing label attached to the medicine, is sufficient to demonstrate legitimate use of a cannabis-based medical product – something Andy insists he was sticking to.

Guidance about prescribed cannabis medicines, created for police, says officers should not make an arrest if they are unsure about compliance with prescriber and manufacturer guidance, or that they should seek advice before making an arrest if they are in doubt about how to proceed.

An email sent by a police officer involved in the case, seen by the Northants Telegraph, said ‘relevant checks were completed at the scene’ but that there were ‘several things’ which were not able to be confirmed or were believed to be suspicious to officers.

Andy said he believes officers did not know the law when he was arrested. He said he asked for a sergeant and was then de-arrested at the scene having been detained for about 15 minutes.

He said: "I was following the Home Office guidance and I was flabbergasted. I knew I had done everything right. They obviously didn't know what to do but there was just such a basic lack of logic.

"I walked up to them and asked for help. Why would you do that and say 'please help me with this cannabis' if it was illegal? If they weren't sure there should be a presumption of innocence."

Despite being de-arrested Andy’s medical cannabis was still seized and he had to wait about 20 days to get it back. He managed to get a repeat prescription, at his own expense, but was forced to go about four days without taking any medical cannabis.

He said: "It was hard. I just had to take more co-codamol. Any medication that you’re on long-term and then don’t use, it’s difficult initially.”

Andy said he has since been refused entry at Decades and that he is taking legal action against the nightclub for alleged discrimination arising from disability.

He added that he has not received any form of apology from Northamptonshire Police and that the force is taking no action over his report of discrimination.

A Northamptonshire Police spokeswoman said: “This incident is currently subject to a live complaint and therefore we won’t be able to provide a comment at this time.”

Decades has been contacted for comment but is yet to respond. An email sent by them, seen by the Northants Telegraph, said they deny that they are in breach of the Equality Act.