Liverpool Crown Court heard Katie Carter had previously received an 18-month suspended sentence for two class A drug supply offences while her partner Paul Cordingley was given an immediate jail term
A pregnant woman ended up behind bars after visiting her drug-dealing boyfriend in prison. Days before, Katie Carter, of Cheshire, had previously stood in court alongside her partner, but while he was imprisoned, she was spared.
However, she squandered this second chance by smuggling cannabis into HMP Altcourse, concealing the drugs within the hollowed-out soles of a pair of trainers she’d brought for him to wear. The court heard their relationship was the “catalyst” for her criminal activities, with the mother to a 17-month-old baby said to have been “acting in his thrall”, according to the Liverpool Echo.
Cowardly thug stabbed man 22 times before hiding away in city centre hostel
Liverpool Crown Court heard that Carter had previously received an 18-month suspended sentence for two class A drug supply offences on April 4, 2023, while her partner Paul Cordingley was given an immediate jail term at the same hearing. Just over two weeks later, on April 20, Carter visited him at Altcourse prison, bringing with her several items of clothing for him to wear during his sentence, including a pair of Nike React trainers.
However, prosecutor Derek Jones explained how prison officers “noticed something amiss” when the shoes were scanned by an X-ray machine. They found that the soles of each shoe had been “hollowed out”, and discovered quantities of cannabis resin hidden inside.
One was discovered to hold 65.3g of the class B drug, with another 30.8g found in the other, substances worth between £950 and £1,400 on the streets. Carter, from Cranage Avenue in Handforth, claimed she “knew nothing about the presence of the drugs” during her interview with detectives, reports Cheshire Live. Mr Jones added: “She does appear to be in the thrall of Mr Cordingley.”
Carter’s only previous trouble with the law was a case before Chester Crown Court in spring 2023 for being involved in the supply of class A drugs, coincidentally, the sentencing hearing fell on the same day she discovered she was pregnant. Callum Ross, defending, told the court: “She accepts and respects the finding of the jury. She stands by what she said in terms of her explanation.
“The crown’s case was that she had been persuaded and pressured into her involvement. The jury were sure that she knew what she was doing. There is no suggestion that she benefited financially from this operation. From April 2023 until now, she has stayed out of trouble. That suspended sentence, since then, has had a chance to bite and has been hanging over her head while she has remained out of trouble.
“She now has a child. She is the sole carer to him. She has been working diligently with social services to retain custody of her baby and to ensure that her son’s needs are met. She does that, albeit with assistance, as a single parent. He would suffer a significant impact if his mother were to be sent to prison.
“There is a very different side to this defendant, a positive, hard working, kind, caring, resourceful woman who tries to give back to society and has done in her years of work. She recognises now, albeit late in the day, the impact that Mr Cordingley has had on her. She has ended that relationship.
“She has had support and assistance from a women’s refuge. To put it bluntly, she has recognised that, before she met Mr Cordingley, she was a woman of good character. He was, in my submission, the catalyst in removing her good character and causing her offending behaviour. She has cut him out, and that will benefit her in the future. You honour will have read about her mental health difficulties.”
Carter was found guilty of conveying a prohibited article into a prison following a trial. Appearing in the dock wearing a black blazer over a white top, she held her head back and closed her eyes before nodding as she was jailed for a year.
Sentencing, Judge Stuart Driver KC said: “Case law establishes that immediate custody is usually necessary in cases where drugs are smuggled into prison. There are significant mitigating features that make this a sad case. You now have a one-year-old child. Fortunately, you and your child have lived with your parents and they can continue with his care if you are absent. Nevertheless, the court acknowledges the punishment that you would feel if you were separated and that that must have a negative impact on your child.
“I note that you were of previous good character before you became involved with Mr Cordingley, and I am satisfied that he is largely responsible for both sets of offences. You performed the community requirements of the suspended sentence order very well. You have your mental health problems and there was a delay of about a year before you were charged with these offences, although the delay since then was largely caused by your denial.
“For those reasons, the sentence I am going to pass is significantly lower than it might otherwise have been. Although there is strong personal mitigation, a realistic prospect of rehabilitation and although custody will have a harmful impact on others, I cannot conclude that the sentence can properly be suspended in this case.”
