A magistrate has urged a heroin supplier to honour his girlfriend's memory by abstaining from illicit drugs in the wake of her death.
Brooklyn Armstrong Beattie, 22, was sentenced in the ACT Magistrates Court on Wednesday to a pair of six-month good behaviour orders after he pleaded guilty to drug supply charges.
The Conder man admitted giving Elana Gaiyich, 20, a "tiny" amount of heroin and six Valium tablets on the Easter long weekend, just days after the pair had started dating.
As magistrate Jane Campbell would later say, the result was "nothing but tragic".
Ms Gaiyich, who took the drugs in her dormitory at the Australian Catholic University, suffered a fatal overdose on the night of Easter Monday.
On Wednesday, defence lawyer Rachel Bird said Beattie had, to his credit, taken immediate action in the hope of saving Ms Gaiyich's life when he realised she had overdosed.
"He's truly devastated by her passing," she said, telling the court Beattie's family had sent condolences to Ms Gaiyich's loved ones.
Ms Bird noted the tragic nature of what had transpired, acknowledging that no sentence could bring Ms Gaiyich back.
But she said Beattie was "still here in the community", where he now had "wonderful supports in place" to help him combat his illicit drug addiction and mental health issues.
He was attempting to re-engage with employment, Ms Bird added, having lost work as a forklift operator and courier after his name was published in the media.
Prosecutor Emma Bayliss noted the "self-evident harm" illicit drugs caused the community as she agreed it was "entirely appropriate" for significant efforts to be directed towards Beattie's rehabilitation.
Rehabilitation was, she said, the best form of long-term protection for the community.
In sentencing, Ms Campbell said there was a risk of death every time an illicit drug was supplied.
"That is the reason why the legislature takes such a serious view about drugs, because of the risk they present to the end user," the magistrate said.
Ms Campbell told Beattie she accepted he was genuinely remorseful, having assisted police and pleaded guilty at a very early stage, acknowledging he was probably still grieving.
The magistrate also said the former church youth group leader, who had begun using drugs at an early age, had "a very caring nature" and had demonstrated it with his attempts to save Ms Gaiyich.
Ultimately, Ms Campbell was left with no doubt Ms Gaiyich's death would affect Beattie for the rest of his life.
She expressed hope his mental health would not "spiral" as a result and that he would stay off illicit drugs, noting his current abstinence was the result of "the biggest wake-up call".
"That is the only silver lining in this whole sad saga," Ms Campbell told Beattie.
"Your rehabilitation and your continued abstinence is something you can do to honour [Ms Gaiyich]."
Ms Campbell stressed to Beattie that she was not sentencing him for causing Ms Gaiyich's death, and only for supplying the drugs that led to the overdose.
While subject to his good behaviour orders, Beattie will be supervised by ACT Corrective Services.
He must, among other things, attend any programs and counselling sessions as directed.
Ms Campbell said that was particularly so in relation to drug use, grief and mental health.
Beattie must also supply samples for drug testing if asked to do so.
Ms Gaiyich's mother, Kate Gategood, previously told The Canberra Times she was not angry at Beattie and she hoped he would receive a sentence that helped him address his "demons".
Ms Gategood urged other parents to keep engaging with their university-aged children, and warned people around her daughter's age that one bad decision with drugs could prove fatal.
She described Ms Gaiyich, an aspiring nurse or paramedic who had only moved to Canberra to study in February, as "a really, really beautiful person who had her whole life ahead of her."
- Support is available for those who may be distressed. Phone Lifeline on 13 11 14; MensLine on 1300 789 978; Kids Helpline on 1800 551 800; beyondblue on 1300 224 636.
