Jess Nicholas sits down with her Mother to talk about her addiction. Video / Jess NZ
The daughter of high-profile victim rights campaigner Louise Nicholas has been sentenced to home detention after admitting repeatedly supplying methamphetamine.
And details of the recovering drug addict's remorse and the "positive changes" she has made in her life since her arrest have been revealed.
Jessica Frances Nicholas was arrested duringa major police drug operation focused on the Rebels gang and their involvement in the supply of meth to the Bay of Plenty area.
Nicholas pleaded guilty to six charges of supplying meth and was sentenced in May.
She was ordered to serve seven months' home detention at her parents' Rotorua home.
Once that time is up Nicholas will be subject to six months of post-detention conditions.
The Herald earlier revealed that during Operation Ulysses police were authorised to intercept the private communications of suspected meth suppliers and to monitor their movements through tracking devices.
Surveillance was also used to identify "key meetings, people and activities".
In August and September Nicholas either delivered methamphetamine to people or supplied it when they visited her home.
Meth is currently priced at between $300 and $800 per gram and $4000 and $13,000 per ounce.
On the street it's usually sold in small plastic bags known as "points" - containing a tenth of a gram and worth between $80 and $100.
Police said that the six "transactions" Nicholas was involved in resulted in the sale and supply of at least 11.75 grams of meth.
However, on two occasions the amount of the drug that was supplied could not be determined.
Judge Phillip Cooper said Nicholas was "not really directly" involved in the "organised criminal enterprise" and was "primarily the courier".
"I note that you were not coerced into doing what you were doing, but nevertheless, you were largely acting under the instructions of [another person]," he said.
"You had no influence on those above you in the chain of methamphetamine dealing and your own addiction is a factor which I have taken into account in assessing your accountability."
Nicholas, who has no previous convictions, has spoken about her addiction on social media.
Neither she or her mother wanted to speak further about her case.
But both wrote to the court ahead of sentencing outlining her new meth-free lifestyle.
Police say meth is "firmly embedded" within the illicit drug landscape in New Zealand. Photo / File
"Your offending was largely driven by your own methamphetamine addiction," said Judge Cooper at sentencing.
"You are 30 years old… you started using methamphetamine about 10 years ago.
"You are remorseful… you did not think about the consequences of your offending, only your own need for the drug.
"You are presently drug-free and that is confirmed by regular testing… you are in a pro social environment with your parents."
In a letter to the court Nicholas said she was "insightful about the impact" of her offending.
"You have started counselling… you have been able to reflect on where your addiction has been leading you," said Judge Cooper.
"I have also seen a letter from your mother, which talks about the positive changes that you have made."
Judge Cooper said he had to impose a sentence that met "the needs of the case".
"Those sentencing needs are deterrence, denunciation, holding you accountable for what you have done, but also providing for your rehabilitation," he explained in court.
"I am satisfied that home detention meets all of those sentencing goals."
Louise Nicholas, right, and her daughter Jessica Nicholas talk on a facebook video about Jessica's methamphetamine addiction and legal troubles. Photo / Facebook
He also ordered Nicholas not to possess or consume any drugs or alcohol while on home detention, to submit to testing to ensure she was abiding by the conditions, and to attend and complete any appropriate rehabilitation or counselling programmes as directed by her probation officer.
The judge said that was to "assist" Nicholas so she did not "end up back in this predicament in future".
The post-detention condition was that Nichols complete any programmes she does not finish during her sentence within six months.
The maximum penalty for supplying methamphetamine is life in prison.
But a landmark ruling in the Court of Appeal in October last year means meth dealers who can prove their own addiction caused their drug offending could have their sentences cut by 30 per cent.
The role of an offender in a drug network now also has a greater bearing on the length of a prison sentence, or if they are jailed at all.
Louise Nicholas became well known after she accused a number of police of rape, triggering an exhaustive investigation and a commission of inquiry into the culture of the organisation and how sexual assault cases were investigated, and works with the police advising new recruits and supporting victims of abuse.
After Nicholas entered her guilty plea the mother and daughter appeared in a video together discussing her situation.
"This journey has been an eye-opener for us all," said Louise Nicholas.
"I work with people, survivors, that have to be supported through the courts because of bad stuff that happened to them.
"And then being on the other side when I'm supporting the offender … [the charges] that was the kick - it's the fact it was meth, it's the fact it was supply, it was that bad shit you hear on the news."
Her daughter acknowledged the gang element in her life and said she was also learning how to stay part of that while sober.
She intends on staying with her partner.
"I am the only one like this in my family," she said
"I am the only drug addict with a gang member in that life… I don't blame anyone, it's just a choice and that's a choice I made.
"And I know there are consequences - there's good ones and there's bad ones and I have to accept whatever that is whether it's good or bad."
