Kellie Robertson: Six drug drives amid huge ice diet for Tasmanian

A Tasmanian woman who relapsed in 2020 was consuming an extraordinary amount of meth daily and drove with the drug in her system six times among other offences, a court has heard.

A Tasmanian woman who relapsed into addiction was gobbling up five points of methamphetamine a day and drove with the drug in her system six times in eight months, a court has heard.

Former Deloraine resident Kellie Shannon Robertson, who Launceston Magistrate Simon Brown heard on Tuesday had since moved to Hobart to be closer to her support network, pleaded guilty to nine offences.

They included six charges of driving while a proscribed illicit drug was present in her oral fluid and one charge each of failing to appear, possessing cannabis and possessing an MDMA capsule.

Her first offending occurred on November 17, 2020, at Meander Valley Rd, Deloraine, where a search of her vehicle revealed small amounts of MDMA and cannabis.

Then, between April 20 and November 3, 2021, Robertson was busted six times driving with methamphetamine and amphetamine in her system, with one of the oral fluid analyses also uncovering cannabis in her system.

Robertson was detected several times at Glen Dhu St, South Launceston, as well as at Newnham, Newstead, West Launceston and Deloraine.

While Robertson had a “considerable number” of prior convictions, only one was for drug driving.

Defence solicitor Andrew Lonergan told the court his client had been intermittently addicted to substances since turning 18 and relapsed in 2020.

He said she was consuming up to five points of ice per day during her current offending.

However, he noted that after her final arrest in November last year she checked in to a rehabilitation centre and had managed her addiction since.

He said Robertson had relocated to Hobart to be closer to her supports and was working in hospitality at Cambridge.

Mr Lonergan said Robertson would apply for a restricted work licence.

Mr Brown disqualified Robertson’s licence for 18 months, fined her $2100 and jailed her for six weeks, wholly suspended for an operational period of 18 months conditional on her completing a 12-month community correction order.