Man Grows Pot to Help Wife With Pain Relief, He Tells Police

A South Carolina man told police he grew more than 100 pot plants in his backyard because his wife was sick and needed the drug for relief.

Frank Dennis Peters, 66, of Bluffton, S.C., turned himself in to police this week after they raided his home on a tip from neighbors and discovered 137 marijuana plants May 30, according to The State.

Peters told authorities Wednesday he was growing the pot because his wife of 40 years suffers from fibromyalgia and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and marijuana improves her appetite and helps her sleep.

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"I have a moral obligation to make my wife as comfortable as possible," The State quoted him as saying.

Peters reportedly voluntarily allowed officers into his home to confiscate the marijuana plants and even offered them coffee while they conducted their search.

He has been charged with marijuana trafficking but was released on his own recognizance until his next court appearance.

Technically, medicinal marijuana is not illegal in South Carolina. A law has been on the books since 1980 that says it may be obtained from the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control.

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However, the DHEC has never actually distributed the drug because it is illegal under federal regulations.

In 2011, an Ohio man was sentenced to 49 days in jail, 30 days of house arrest, and two years probation for growing marijuana he claimed was for his cancer-stricken wife.

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