MOM DETERMINED TO KICK COKE TO REGAIN HER CHILD

Doreen Oulette appeared in Yukon Supreme Court on Tuesday on charges of
drug possession, in front of an overflowing courtroom.

The 32-year-old Yukoner was facing charges of possessing seven to eight
grams of cocaine, after the drugs were found in her bedroom during a search
of her mother's house at 810 Wheeler St.

Deputy Justice Rene Foisy, who heard the case in the packed courtroom,
sentenced her to a three-month conditional sentence and one year's
probation, as well as 150 hours of community service.

A conditional sentence does not need to be carried out in jail, as long as
the person follows the rules of his or her release. Oulette has been in
custody at the Whitehorse Correctional Centre (WCC) since June 26.

Since she was serving time before her conviction, the month she spent at
WCC counts for double. This means she has one month remaining on her
conditional sentence, as well as community service and probation.

In order to encourage her to attend drug and health counselling, the time
Oulette spends in treatment will also count toward community service hours,
said Foisy.

Defence lawyer Gordon Coffin said Oulette is committed to turning her life
around. She has a child with her common-law husband, and wants to regain
custody of the one-year-old.

Due to Oulette's substance abuse problems, the child is currently in care.

She understands that in order to get her child back, she must first get "a
handle on her cocaine problem," Coffin said.

"She wants to do things differently now," he said. "I think it's in the
best interest of everyone to support her in this plan." Before delivering
her sentence, Foisy spoke directly to Oulette.

"Doreen, are you serious about this?" he asked.

"Yes, I am," she said.

"I know that you have a serious incentive, because you want to get your
child back, and the only way to get your child back is to become a good
citizen and to stay clean," he said.

The terms of her conditional sentence and year of probation include not
consuming any alcohol or drugs, reporting to her bail supervisor and
staying at least three blocks away from the house on Wheeler Street.

While Oulette has no previous criminal record, she was originally charged
with possession and trafficking.

After the hearing, while answering questions from community members who
attended court, Crown prosecutor David McWhinnie said the RCMP did not have
enough evidence for a trafficking charge.

There are certain types of evidence that police look for when a person is
allegedly trafficking drugs, he said. Some of these objects include scales
for weighing the drugs, cutting instruments and special kinds of paper.

While a large number of needles were recovered from 810 Wheeler, that only
proves that drugs were being consumed, he explained. For a trafficking
charge, there needs to be evidence that a person meant to sell or trade the
drugs.

Oulette has struggled with drug addiction for many years, according to Coffin.

She lived in her mother's house at 810 Wheeler St. an environment, he said,
played a role in her drug abuse.

Her addiction was also more serious in the past, he said. While she used to
inject cocaine, she stopped when she discovered she was pregnant. For the
past year, she has been inhaling cocaine.

Over the past month, while in custody at WCC, however, Oulette has been
sober and clean.

There was an exceptionally large audience in the courtroom because the
Downtown Residents Association had planned a protest outside the building
to coincide with Oulette's court proceeding.

The group gathered for a rally before heading inside to attend the hearing.
They were wearing black ribbon on their arms to symbolize the damage caused
by drug use and trafficking in the community.

Attendees of the protest said they were sending a message to those working
in the justice system that drug abuse is hurting the community.