Claire Louise Henderson pleads guilty to commercial drug trafficking

A woman who was called a “parasite” by a magistrate and slammed for treating home detention “like a party room” was selling drugs to pay off her own drug debt, a court heard.

A woman who copped a spray from a magistrate for treating home detention like a “party room” was dealing to pay off her own drug debt, a court has heard.

Claire Louise Henderson, 27, was due to face sentencing submissions in the Adelaide District Court on Wednesday but her lawyer said he needed time to take instructions on new evidence.

A prosecutor told the court police seized a mobile phone from Henderson’s car, which revealed several text messages related to drug dealing.

“Ms Henderson states that she trafficked for the purposes of funding her own addiction and also paying off a drug debt,” the prosecutor said.

“The offending … is not isolated.”

Henderson was slammed by Magistrate Susan O’Connor last year when she asked to move out of her father’s home and into her own home, but had recently failed a Department of Corrections drug test.

“She’s into party drugs, she uses them every day and she’s supposed to be on home detention,” Ms O’Connor said.

“She’s treating it like a party room.

“She’s up to her eyeballs in criminal activity and she is perilously close to the women’s prison.”

Claire Henderson pleaded guilty to commercial drug trafficking. Picture: Facebook

Ms O’Connor said Henderson was put into custody for three weeks with a “raging drug habit”.

“She was psychotic (because) she used so much drugs,” she said.

“Think about the community sitting behind me asking what are you doing in criminal courts to allow these people who do so much harm due to the fact the whole drug trafficking trade means that you’re a parasite and preying on the misfortunes of other people.

“Your only interest in life is getting cheap money, cheap drugs and a cheap fix.”

The Christies Beach woman pleaded guilty to commercial drug trafficking and two counts of drug trafficking, occurring on February 5, 2021 at South Plympton.

In the Adelaide District Court on Wednesday, Judge Heath Barklay adjourned Henderson’s case until next month.