The New Plymouth District Court heard she was placed in multiple foster homes as a child, began drinking alcohol at the age of 11 and later developed substance abuse issues.
Defence lawyer Jacob Bourke submitted that background helped explain the depth of her reaction after the visit with her son.
The court heard that on June 25, the woman, who can not be named for legal reasons, was having a supervised visit with him.
The boy was in the full-time custody of his father, the woman’s ex-partner.
She became upset because the boy was not interacting with her, left before the visit was scheduled to end, and threatened to harm herself.
The woman then drove to her ex-partner’s home but found he was not there.
That afternoon, she drove to the Stratford home of her ex-partner’s mother.
She went into an enclosed yard where the woman maintained a well-kept garden and set about destroying it.
Three large pot plants, six smaller pot plants, seven sentimental garden ornaments, and numerous other decorations were damaged.
The woman then ripped the door off a garden shed before entering and tearing pictures from the walls.
The damage was estimated at $1000. But her rampage did not end there.
She then drove to the home of her ex-partner’s sister, who also lived in Stratford.
When she found nobody home, she entered through an unlocked back door.
Once inside, she smashed an $1100 coffee machine and threw a baby’s bottle steriliser onto the floor.
Police located her shortly afterwards and found she was intoxicated.
When speaking to officers, she admitted damaging property at both addresses.
The woman was charged with two counts of burglary to which she later pleaded guilty.
Judge warns she has to beat her habit
At this week’s sentencing, which also covered an unrelated charge of failing to stop for police in April, Bourke told the court the woman had recognised she needed to make significant changes in her life.
Since the offending, she had focused on improving her physical health, was undertaking a parenting course, engaging in alcohol and drug counselling, and had connected with an employment agency.
Bourke said those efforts should be viewed against a background of instability that had followed her from childhood into adulthood.
“To her credit, she’s recognised in life she needs to do better,” Bourke said.
“Better for herself and to get custody of her child.”
The woman was sentenced in the New Plymouth District Court.
He said she acknowledged the damage she had caused and intended to pay reparation once she secured employment.
Bourke urged the court to impose community detention rather than home detention, submitting it would allow her to continue the progress she had made while maintaining supervised contact with her son.
Judge Noel Walsh said a letter from an alcohol and drug counsellor confirmed the woman was regularly engaging with treatment and was motivated to address her substance abuse issues.
The judge said overcoming those issues would be critical if she hoped to rebuild her relationship with her child.
“If you are going to have any chance in getting your son back into your care, and have unsupervised care, you’ve got to beat your drug and alcohol habit,” he told her as she wiped away tears.
The judge said aggravating features of the offending included the violence used to damage property, unlawfully entering one of the homes, and the fact that she was subject to a suspended sentence at the time.
Her previous history included threats of violence towards her ex-partner’s mother and assaulting a person in a family relationship.
Judge Walsh took into account the woman’s age and what he described as impulsivity and immaturity aggravated by alcohol.
The nature of the burglaries, coupled with the circumstances surrounding the care of her son, warranted a starting point of 12 months’ imprisonment, he said.
After uplifts and discounts for her history, guilty pleas and rehabilitative efforts, Judge Walsh sentenced the woman to four months’ community detention with a nightly curfew from 7pm to 7am and 12 months’ intensive supervision.
She was also ordered to pay $1000 reparation to each victim.
Judge Walsh said the sentence would provide structure for the woman while allowing her to continue addressing her alcohol and drug issues.
A protection order sought by police prosecutor John Simes was granted in favour of the ex-partner’s mother.
Tara Shaskey is an assistant editor and reporter for the Open Justice team. She joined NZME in 2022 and has worked as a journalist since 2014.
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