An unemployed Lockyer Waters woman cops $1000 fine for having weed, a bong and driving without a licence

Tucked away in her handbag was a bong made from a sauce bottle and two tins of weed, police then found the woman to be driving without a licence.

Melanie Dee Wilson in Gatton Court for multiple charges.

An unemployed woman who had two tins of weed and a water pipe made from a sauce bottle in her handbag has been fined $1000.

Melanie Dee Wilson, 52, was searched by police after they stopped her Mitsubishi Magna at the Freedom Fuels carpark in Laidley on March 7.

Police followed Wilson into the carpark at 4.20pm where they discovered her drivers’ licence had expired and that she had a sauce bottle bong that smelled strongly of cannabis.

Wilson, from Lockyer Waters, also submitted to a roadside breath test and was taken to Laidley Police Station.

Appearing in the Gatton Magistrates Court on June 14, police prosecutor sergeant Al Windsor said Wilson’s breath test came back at 0.044.

He said the reading would not have been an issue except that she was driving without a licence and was therefore required to have a reading of zero.

Sergeant Windsor told the court Wilson had about 4.5g of weed, inclusive of the tins, in her possession, which police located in her handbag.

Duty lawyer James Ryan represented Wilson in court and said his unemployed client had only renewed her licence for one year and was not aware it had expired.

Mr Ryan said Wilson suffered from chronic back pain and used cannabis to self-medicate.

“She’s looked into the medical stuff but it’s prohibitively expensive,” Mr Ryan said.

Magistrate Graham Lee noted Wilson’s two-page criminal history.

Wilson pleaded guilty to possessing utensils or pipes that had been used, driving over the no alcohol limit and driving without a licence.

She was fined $1000, disqualified from driving for three months and a conviction was recorded.