A 21-year-old Ruardean Woodside man who drove with an illegal level of cannabis in his blood was 'let down' by a solicitor who advised him to plead not guilty to the charge, magistrates have ruled.

Ross McKenzie, of Forest Road, Ruardean Woodside, denied driving a BMW 3 Series on the A40, Golden Valley, Cheltenham, on July 4 last year with excess Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol in his bloodstream.

The magistrates found him guilty and banned him from driving for a year and ordered him to pay £294 in fines, costs and surcharges.

They said they had reduced the usual penalty for the offence by 10 per cent, however, to take account of the legal advice he had received to plead not guilty.

"Reduction on sentence given because bench felt that he had been let down by his previous solicitor," the court stated.

"The defendant should have been advised to plead guilty."