Mums who have faced court in NSW for crimes: List
Mothers are meant to provide security but these parents’ actions landed them in courts across NSW.
Police & Courts
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Mothers are meant to provide security but these parents’ actions landed them in courts across NSW.
CONVICTION
Mother convicted for neglect of a child
A mother from Sydney’s southwest left her three young children alone covered in human faeces with access to a bong and mouldy food to see her boyfriend, a court heard in March.
The 26-year-old pleaded guilty to neglect of a child or young person and was convicted and sentenced to a community correction order for two years.
In documents tendered to Liverpool Local Court, police state the woman’s three children – aged between two and 11 – were left without adult supervision at an Heckenberg address about 9pm on October 9.
A short time later the children became aware and upset their mother had left and began crying out and banging loudly, prompting neighbours to contact police, police facts state.
When police arrived, the residence appeared in a “complete disarray, strewn with dirty clothing and rubbish/old food”.
Police state on further inspection of the living room“McDonald’s and KFC boxes with half eaten food were sighted throughout the living room”.
Officers also found piles of dirty clothes and animal faeces blocking the rear door and a used bong, which was accessible by the children, according to police.
Police made the decision to remove the children from the premises and take them back to Green Valley police station due to concern for the children’s welfare.
Police later attended an address in Abbotsbury to locate the mother, where she was found seated on the floor of her boyfriend’s driveway.
The woman, who cannot be legally identified, told police she was waiting for a taxi and could not provide a valid reason for not contacting police as requested, police state.
Magistrate Holly Kemp said the woman was “gravely mistaken” for leaving her children alone.
The children remain in the care of their mother and other relatives interstate.
Mum sentenced for dealing cocaine
A single Sydney mother and aspiring lawyer who needed to find work was told by her friend: “I have a job”.
A court heard Zara Lauren Lees soon learned that job was dealing cocaine across Sydney’s glitzy eastern suburbs — and no small amount.
The day Lees discovered what the work entailed was her first day on the job. Lees got into the driver’s seat of her Toyota Camry with her friend in the passenger seat and nearly 24g of cocaine hidden behind the panel of the front door’s armrest.
It was also the day police busted them, making Lees’ first drug run her last, Waverley Local Court heard in October 2022.
The then 21-year-old single mother from Rosehill in Sydney’s west initially pleaded not guilty to supplying more than an indictable but less than a commercial amount of cocaine, being 23.89g, as well as dealing with the proceeds of crime worth $1,000. She also pleaded not guilty to driving with an illicit drug in her system, being THC.
But she changed those pleas to guilty before being sentenced for them in October 2022.
According to agreed facts, Lees and her friend — a co-accused — were stopped in her car by police doing drug and alcohol testing at Rawson Rd, Vaucluse, at 6:10pm on November 27 last year.
Lees appeared nervous, with her hands fidgeting and having a slight tremor.
She told police she was driving her friend around as she does hair braiding — but police soon found the cash and cocaine stashed behind the front door’s armrest panel and knew that was not the case.
Lees’ lawyer, Jessica Kells-Spartalis, told the court her client could not afford childcare, and in desperation, accepted her friend’s offer to deal drugs.
Magistrate Clare Farnan said she was caught with a “significant” quantity of cocaine and could not be treated as immediately remorseful given her initial not guilty plea.
She was convicted of the drug supply, proceeds of crime and drug driving offences and sentenced to 11 months imprisonment to be served in the community by way of an intensive corrections order.
Grafton mother pleads guilty to punching daughter, 13
A Grafton mother caught up in the northern NSW housing crisis had an AVO put on her to protect her children after she punched her daughter, a court heard in February.
The mother in her 30s with an alcohol problem faced Grafton Local Court, pleading guilty to common assault.
She cannot legally be named to protect the identity of the victim – her 13-year-old daughter.
The mum punched the child in the eye during an argument after she had been drinking, the court heard.
The prosecution and defence argued about the practicality of the AVO considering all of the offender’s children live with her.
Defence lawyer Brett Marshall told the court: “Your Honour, my client and her children are homeless.”
He said the woman and her family were kicked out of a house. New owners leased the home to new tenants and left the woman’s family in the lurch amid the housing crunch.
Mr Marshall said the woman and her children had found a temporary home with another family, but having them all packed in was proving tense.
Magistrate Annette Sinclair said the offending was “too serious to not warrant a conviction” regardless of the woman having “no priors”.
The mother was sentenced to a nine-month community corrections order and a year-long AVO was put in place to protect her children.
The conditions include not assaulting her children, damaging their property and not approaching them within 12 hours of consuming alcohol or illicit drugs.
Riverwood mum sentenced for thefts
A mother stole more than $10k worth of meat and cosmetic products from grocery stores during a six-month spree to fund her $700-a-day drug addiction.
Chloe Julie Williams, 22, was jailed in Sutherland Local Court in May for 17 shoplifting, six trespass and one resisting arrest charges.
The Riverwood mother-of-two and a man used the same modus operandi to steal large quantities of products from various grocery stores from September to February before Williams’ arrest in March.
Agreed facts tendered to court state Williams would go into Woolworths or Coles at various locations around Sydney and fill bags up with pre-packaged meat, cosmetic products and personal care items while the man stood at the entrance of the store as a lookout.
If either were approached by staff, the man would alert her and she would ditch the items and leave the store.
If not interrupted, Williams would walk out of the entrance with the stolen items with the man setting off the sensors at the entrance gates, and they would both leave the store before being questioned by staff.
On one occasion Williams stole 20 packets of vacuum sealed meat from Kingsgrove and in January she took nearly $1500 worth of personal care items and meat from Woolworths Riverwood.
She stole from stores in Bankstown, Edgecliff, Kingscliff, Caringbah, Hurstville, and World Square in Sydney, and had been banned from multiple locations.
The total amount of items stolen was more than $10,000.
The court heard Williams was trying to fund a $700-a-day drug habit but had been abstinent since her arrest.
Magistrate Philip Stewart noted William had family support from her grandmother and aunt who she planned to live with once released from prison to keep her away from the St George area.
Mr Stewart sentenced Williams to two years jail, with a non-parole period of eight months.
NO CONVICTION
Merrylands mother sentenced for cocaine supply
A 45-year-old mother in February came under fire by a magistrate for setting a bad example to her daughter after she was caught with almost 40 bags of cocaine, a court heard.
Rita Hanna of Merrylands appeared in Waverley Local Court after pleading guilty to supply prohibited drug and deal with proceeds of crime.
Agreed facts tendered to court reveal on November 19 Hanna was spotted by police picking up a man near Bondi Bowling Club.
After a short time he exited the car where police found a bag of cocaine in his possession.
Officers later stopped Hanna on Blair St where she said she did not have any illegal drugs in her possession.
She told police the man was a friend and she denied supplying any drugs to him.
Police found nothing on Hanna before locating two purses.
Nine bags of cocaine, weighing 5.7 grams were found in the pink purse and $3550 was found in a black purse.
Hanna was arrested and she made admissions, saying the cocaine was for personal use and the money was hers.
Further searches of the mother’s vehicle saw police find more bags of cocaine and cash.
She was taken to Waverley police station where a total of 37 bags of cocaine, weighing 23.4 grams were identified.
A total of $6290 was also found and believed to be the “proceeds of crime”.
Magistrate Ross Hudson said while it was a “significant amount” of drugs, “in my view (the offending is) not necessarily above the mid-range of objective seriousness”.
He said he couldn’t understand why a woman “with no previous criminal history” would come before the court for the first time with this type of offence.
She was ultimately convicted and placed on a two-year community correction order (CCO) for drug supply and fined $750.
For dealing with proceeds of crime, Hanna was placed on a 12 month CCO.
Mum sentenced for assault of women
A young mum who punched a woman in the head for dancing with her boyfriend at a pub in Terrigal learned her fate in March.
Faith Williams, 20, of Killarney Vale, pleaded guilty to one count of common assault over an incident at the Terrigal Hotel on October 7 2022.
An agreed set of facts tendered to the court stated that around 10pm the victim was on the dance floor with friends when a man, believed to be Williams’ boyfriend, approached her and started dancing.
“An unknown female approached the victim and told her the man she’s dancing with has a girlfriend and (a family),” the facts stated.
The woman called the victim a “slut” and homewrecker” before Williams walked up to the victim and the pair exchanged words.
At around 10.20pm Williams was seen on CCTV walking “erratically” back and forth along the main bar.
“The victim is seen walking towards the front of the main bar,” the facts stated.
“The accused has leaped towards the victim and punched the victim with a closed fist in the head connecting with the victim’s head twice.”
Williams’ boyfriend walked her out of the venue and the police were called.
Williams’ lawyer told the court that at the time of the incident, Williams had a four month old baby and had gone out which was “quite unusual” for her.
Magistrate Jennifer Price said this style of drunken violence was a “regular occurrence” and pointed out that violence was directed towards the victim as opposed to the boyfriend who danced with her.
Magistrate Price found the offence proven however Williams avoided conviction and was sentenced to a two-year conditional release order.
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