Double Bay eyebrow queen Kristin Fisher vows to never do cocaine again: court
Sydney socialite Kristin Fisher has vowed “never” to do cocaine again as her conviction for being caught in possession of the drug was quashed.
NSW
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Sydney socialite Kristin Fisher has vowed “never” to do cocaine again as her conviction for being caught in possession of the drug was quashed on Wednesday after a lengthy court saga.
Fisher, 36, was in the middle of a Saturday night drug deal on Curlewis Street on July 17, when her dealer illegally overtook another vehicle – leading police nearby to stop the Kia Rio and find two bags of cocaine at her feet.
Fisher, the owner of a prominent Double Bay eyebrow salon frequented by Sydney celebrities, did not show on the day she was meant to face Waverley Local Court last month leading Magistrate Ross Hudson to fine her $550 and record a criminal conviction in her absence.
After finding out about her missed court date the eyebrow queen vowed to fight her conviction, leading her to front court alongside her solicitor Michael Bowe on Wednesday as they applied for it to be overturned.
As part of the application, a letter of apology in which Ms Fisher called her cocaine possession a “dreadful mistake” was handed up to Magistrate Hudson.
“I remember going home and just sat in silence alone for hours,” Ms Fisher’s letter read.
“I admit that I was completely in the wrong, I have vowed that I will never do it again.”
Mr Bowe said the reason his client missed her initial court appearance was that a small “yellow slip” listing her court date had been taken from her fridge by one of her two young children.
She had been left “mortified” after discovering she had missed her day in court.
“When police spoke to her they gave her a yellow slip … and she took that with her,” Mr Bowe told the court.
“She had a conversation with a police officer who said ‘How do you want that (official notice), do you want that by email?’ … and she said ‘I’ll take it in the mail’.
“She put the yellow slip on the fridge door with a magnet, she thinks one of the kids took it – she’s got a six-year-old and an eight-year-old … (and) everyday she has checked in the mailbox for the letter to come as the police officer had indicated … and nothing arrived.”
Magistrate Hudson told the court that after Ms Fisher missed one of her previous court dates, he ordered for her to be sent an email to the address she had given to police.
But the eyebrow queen interrupted the court proceedings to claim she did not receive that email either.
“Can I ask how the email address is spelt, because I didn’t get it,” Ms Fisher said, leading to a stern lecture from Mr Bowe telling her “Do not talk”.
Magistrate Hudson said he believed Ms Fisher’s claim that the slip with her court date had been taken from her fridge and agreed to overturn her conviction.
Ms Fisher then entered a plea of guilty to the cocaine possession charge and provided character references.
Mr Bowe told the court his client had raised $250,000 for those affected by bushfires in the 2019 summer and had a suffered financial hardship during the COVID-19 pandemic.
He also said the death of her close friend Michele Singh to suicide had caused enormous “strain”.
In re-sentencing the beauty queen, Magistrate Hudson warned Ms Fisher that despite having built up her reputation as a leader in the industry over a number of years – it takes “seconds” to destroy it.
“Everything I read in the material at least leads me to the conclusion that your reputation is not a lie,” he said.
“In terms of who you are and what you are in terms of your business, it is about your reputation.
“Not withstanding the years and years to build your reputation it takes seconds to destroy it. Hopefully you can now reflect on that.”
Ms Fisher – who also goes by her married surname Barnes – had her conviction quashed and instead was handed a conditional release order (CRO).
The $1000 fine for breaching Covid-19 rules remain.
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