A Queenstown finance industry professional caught dealing cocaine and ecstasy cannot be named after indicating he would appeal a judge’s decision to decline permanent name suppression.
The 31-year-old’s application for a discharge without application was also turned down by Judge Russell Walker in the Invercargill District Court yesterday.
The man earned a lucrative secondary income selling the drugs for 14 months until police searched his home on March 22.
Self-sealing bags containing 25g of cocaine, with an estimated street value of $11,250, were found in his bedroom drawer.
They also found 55g of ecstasy with an estimated value of $16,500, a set of scales with traces of white powder, and $2820 cash.
The man told police he bought the drugs in 1 or 2-ounce lots, selling some to friends and using the rest himself.
He charged up to $400 a gram for cocaine, and up to $300 a gram for ecstasy.
Based on the amounts he sold over the previous 14 months, police estimated he earned between $17,000 and $29,000.
At a hearing last month, counsel Michael Walker said the defendant made a "tremendous mistake", and felt relieved after his arrest because his drug use had got out of control.
He had been diagnosed with a cocaine addiction since his arrest.
Prosecuting Sergeant Ian Collin said discharges without conviction for serious drug offending should be "rare".
The man’s claim he was addicted to cocaine was based on "self-reporting" rather than an independent professional assessment.
Using the drug two or three days a week did not suggest an "out of control" addiction.
In submissions for yesterday’s hearing, Mr Walker said the defendant had done 10 sessions with a therapist, completed a positive-lifestyle programme and carried out 237 hours’ voluntary work.
He had also made a $1500 donation to the Salvation Army and written a letter of apology to the court.
The defendant was "ashamed of his behaviour and determined not to repeat it".
However, a conviction would have consequences for his ability to work in his chosen career, including its registration and accreditation requirements, and be a potential bar to international travel.
Difficulty in finding employment would mean he would struggle to service the loan on the home he co-owned with his parents.
Judge Walker said the defendant had committed drug dealing offences involving significant amounts of cocaine and ecstasy.
The offending continued what appeared to be a "well-established pattern over many years, beginning after you left school".
Starting with cannabis, it had moved on to cocaine and ecstasy for his own use and supply to others.
The judge declined the application for a discharge without conviction because he was not satisfied a conviction’s consequences were out of all proportion to the gravity of the offence.
After applying discounts for the man’s guilty plea, drug addiction diagnosis, rehabilitation efforts and remorse, he came to a term of imprisonment of 10 months.
He converted that to a sentence of five months’ home detention at a Dunedin address, with conditions enabling assessment and treatment for any addiction issues.
The man has 28 working days to file an appeal in the High Court against Judge Walker’s decision to refuse permanent name suppression.
guy.williams@odt.co.nz , PIJF court reporter
