Warwick mum fronts court over late-night Malt House trespass

The mother-of-three was rebuked in the Warwick court for jeopardising her parole efforts after her late-night gambit for a game of pool went awry.

IN COURT: The Warwick mother-of-three let herself and a friend into the Malt House in a late-night gambit to play pool. Picture: Warwick Daily News

A Warwick mother-of-three has been chastised for jeopardising her parole after she pleaded guilty to trespassing through a popular pub.

Police were called to the Malt House on Wood Street at about 1.45am on May 7 after reports from nearby residents of several people inside the then-closed bar and restaurant.

The Warwick Magistrates Court heard officers found Sandra Lee Howard and an unidentified man playing pool in the beer garden when they reached the scene.

Police prosecutor Steve de Lissa said the pub initially closed last year due to COVID restrictions and was yet to reopen, with any entry to the premises still prohibited.

“The gate had been locked with a padlock, which had been moved aside to allow them entry,” Sergeant de Lissa said.

“Police spoke to (Howard) at the scene and she told them she’d entered the building to play pool, and she knew she shouldn’t be there.”

The 43-year-old appeared in the Warwick court with a mostly drug-related criminal history.

Duty lawyer Clare Hine said the mother-of-three acknowledged she’d done the wrong thing and was remorseful for her crime, especially given she was on parole and supposed to be of good behaviour at the time.

This was a factor acting magistrate Gary Finger stressed again while sentencing Howard for her offending.

“You’re on parole, which means you shouldn’t be doing anything wrong at all – that’s what it comes down to,” he said.

Howard pleaded guilty to one count of trespass in a business.

She was fined $500.