A woman addicted to pain-killing medication Tramadol forged doctor’s prescriptions and tried seven times to gain the drug at Central Otago pharmacies.
She was successful on some occasions, Judge Michael Turner said when sentencing Courtney Jane Lena Everest (28), of Cromwell, in the Alexandra District Court on Thursday. Her husband was unaware of her addiction and she even sent him to a chemist with one of the forged prescriptions. He was arrested by police when pharmacy staff became suspicious. He was held in a cell before being questioned by police and was later released.
Judge Turner said Everest became addicted to the drug after being legitimately prescribed it following the birth of a child. The court heard Everest later forged doctor’s prescriptions for Tramadol on her home computer and used real and fictitious patients’ names.
She was sentenced to 18 months’ intensive supervision on seven charges of using a forged prescription as if it was genuine, between July 24 and October 30 last year. On a separate charge of driving with a breath-alcohol level of 895mcg in Cromwell on June 2 this year, she was disqualified from driving for eight months.
"You seem to have swapped alcohol for your Tramadol addiction," Judge Turner said.
Since admitting her addiction to the painkiller, Everest had spent time in a detoxification programme. She had not touched alcohol since her arrest for drink-driving.
She was "in quite a bad place" when she forged the prescriptions and told the court it was not in her nature to do such a thing.
"I’m extremely disappointed and ashamed."
Everest was a first-time offender and her offending was driven by her addiction, Judge Turner said.
