Knife-carrying nurse Kate Westrip pleads guilty to drug supply
Knife-wielding nurse who became addicted to meth to ‘process trauma’ pleads guilty to drug trafficking
- Young Sydney nurse pleads guilty to drug dealing
- Placed on order for 2 years of community corrections
A young nurse who became addicted to drugs to “cope with trauma” and turned to dealing has pleaded guilty to a long list of criminal offences.
Kate Westrip, 21, from North Wahroonga, was on trial in Hornsby local court on Wednesday for supplying and possessing drugs and possession of a prohibited weapon.
Westrip was apprehended by police at 2 a.m. on September 9, 2022 at Mt Colah and found with 294.8 grams of cannabis and an illegal butterfly knife.
She told officers she planned to get the knife from her car.
Kate Westrip, 21, of North Wahroonga, avoids jail time despite charges of supplying and possessing hard drugs
Westrip faced Hornsby local court on Wednesday where she pleaded guilty to charges of supplying and possessing drugs and possession of a prohibited weapon
Westrip was detained and when police confiscated her phone they found she had just sold a gram of MDMA for $200, the North Shore times reported.
A police search of a home in North Rocks a month later by officers with a sniffer dog found 13.2 grams of meth in a bedroom.
Quetiapine (seroquel) and diazepam pills were also found.
Hornsby’s court heard she supplied 3.7 grams of meth to others, as well as marijuana.
Her lawyer described Westrip as “embarrassed and remorseful,” aware of the damage caused by dealing drugs, but said she was unable to think clearly.
“She was unable to think rationally due to trauma,” said her lawyer, Ms Stoddart.
The young nurse was in survival mode, she said, self-medicating her trauma and feeling “crushed under the weight of multiple mental health issues.”
“She described herself as totally unstable, financially, personally and mentally,” Ms Stoddart said.
The court was also told that Westrip remained in her job as a nurse and was considered to be of good character, with no prior criminal history.
Her lawyer claimed that Westrip’s crime was short-lived and that she had “good prospects” for rehabilitation.
When Westrip was apprehended by NSW police at 2am on September 9, 2022, she was found with 294.8 grams of cannabis and a butterfly knife, which is illegal in Australia
Prosecutor Sergeant Denise Vavayis said drug trafficking endangered the community and the public expectation was that it would be punished by the courts.
Magistrate Alexander Mijovich sentenced her to two years of community service.
He said he had taken into account her age and mental health issues, but noted that she had previously been warned in court to address her drug use.
The court also learned that she abstained for two months and participated in the Magistrates Early Referral into Treatment (MERIT) rehabilitation program.