A former pot grower who turned himself into an expert on hydroponic marijuana grow operations has failed in a bid to prevent another Saskatchewan pot grower from going to jail.

Jason Hiltz, twice convicted of growing cannabis, offered his services as an expert witness for the defence in the trial of Mark John Evanishen, 35, charged with several offences related to growing pot in an old rural school near Saskatoon.

Hiltz, of Saskatoon, testified at the trial, describing the operation run by Evanishen as "low end," but Evanishen was convicted of a handful of charges Thursday anyway.

Hiltz said in an interview that prosecutors and police treat small-scale pot growers unfairly and he believes they often exaggerate the size and scale of marijuana grow operations. After hearing about the case, he decided to speak up for Evanishen, of Mayfair.

"I've played the game long enough, effectively. And honestly I was living a lie. I have this information. I have this wealth of knowledge," he said.

Hiltz said he decided to help out, using information gleaned from his experiences, because it was better than "sitting back, complaining and whining" and he thought he had something valuable to say.

Bill Roe, a defence lawyer for Evanishen, seized the opportunity to bring Hiltz into the courtroom.

"Certainly I can tell you as a defence counsel, it's always difficult to find an expert in these kinds of areas. Over the years, the RCMP are the only people who have any available expertise and it's extremely difficult to challenge them in a court of law," Roe said.

Hiltz testified that Evanishen is not very good at growing marijuana and that he lacked the proper equipment and controls to make his grow operation commercially viable.

It was a unique defence but it didn't work and Hiltz said he will keep testifying at drug trials if only to try to keep the courts fair.

Provincial court judge Robert Jackson said Hiltz failed to raise reasonable doubt about the viability of the grow operation.
    
Among other related charges, Evanishen was found guilty of producing cannabis marijuana and cannabis resin and possession of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking. He was sentenced to two years less a day.