Drug toll on the family

Peter had moved to the Great Southern to escape an all-too familiar life of drugs but was quickly dealing with more than just his own addiction.

Despite living remotely away from a major centre in Albany, by 2016 his life was, as his lawyer put it, “off the rails”.

The 36-year-old, who faces a string of serious drug possession and weapons charges, was reminded by Magistrate Raelene Johnston his ongoing issues would not go away quickly.

His urge to remove himself from that life of cannabis and methamphetamine use was clear and the court heard he had engaged with Palmerston.

His wife had begun using meth again and he had noticed their bank account had been getting lower, to the stage it was emptied and he had been left with their two children.

Under severe pressure because his wife owed a drug debt in Perth, Peter attempted to reconcile with those she owed, only to have his arm broken by a blocksplitter.

The drug debt was eventually settled by a relative.

Peter had reached a “turning point in his life”, according to his lawyer, but had not lost support from his family, who sat in the back of the court.

He was placed on a 12-month community based order with supervision and program requirements.