Client Avoids Prison for Supply of Class A Drugs

Case study summary

Our client was charged for supply of Class A drugs after he began selling to fund his addiction. We worked with him to prepare powerful mitigation that showed the court he had changed his life completely. The judge saw the truth in this and he received a suspended sentence.

Case study

Having been arrested in early 2020, our client contacted us when he was charged three years later. He was in shock after spending a considerable amount of time not knowing the outcome of his arrest. Our client had turned his life around since then and was worried all his hard work would be for nothing. To get the best outcome he knew he would need specialist drugs lawyers. That is why he contacted us.

After suffering abuse in the home, he explained he had endured a lot of hardship in his personal life and addiction came as a result of this. Our client had struggled with this addiction from 2018 and it had left him both in debt to his dealer and heavily dependent on him. As a result, our client began selling drugs to pay back the debt and buy drugs with what was left.

Following the arrest, our client returned home to a loving family. They supported him through withdrawal and encouraged him to start a new career. It became clear to us the person we met in 2023 was not the same person arrested in 2020 and we would need to work hard to ensure the court saw this too.

Knowing we needed the court to understand our client's account, we advised him to enter a basis of plea. This would allow him to plead guilty and earn maximum credit but also ensure when it came to sentence that the judge would take key details into account. This included that knives at his property were film collectibles, stab proof vests had actually been for his work in security, and most importantly he was only selling drugs so he could buy his own.

From here, we worked tirelessly to prepare strong mitigation on our client's behalf which included details of previous traumas, lack of previous convictions, his supportive family and the electrical business he built which he is now a proud sole trader for.

As we would need to make strong submissions on our client's behalf, we also instructed a specialist barrister. They explained to our client that, on the facts, this is a case that would normally receive a sentence of 3 years in prison. However, they knew this case was not typical and there were other factors which meant we could ask the Judge to pass a lower sentence.

At court, we told the judge how our client was someone who had entirely changed their life. Our client was not a threat to society or a threat to himself. We also highlighted that this case had taken three years to be heard which was no fault of our client's. We also ensured the judge knew of the hardships that led our client to where he was in 2020. The judge agreed with all that we had said and accepted this case was an extraordinary one. This resulted in him not sending our client to prison.

Instead, our client received a suspended sentence and left court that day with his family by his side. The prospect of prison was high and so our client was incredibly grateful to know he could now continue with the new life he had worked hard to build.