33-year-old given suspended sentence for supplying drugs to 16-year-old

A 33-year-old Derry man was yesterday given a suspended sentence for supplying drugs to what the court was told was a ‘vulnerable 16-year-old girl.’
Rory O’Doherty of 25, Friel Close in Derry admitted three charges of supplying drugs to the girl on dates between July 12 and December 1 2009.
The court was told that the police were contacted by the parents of the 16-year-old vulnerable girl who said that O’Doherty had supplied their daughter with drugs over a period of time.
At the time O’Doherty was living with the girl’s sister.
The court heard that on the first occasion on the girl’s 16th birthday O’Doherty had shared a joint with her.
This had happened on two other occasions.
A prosecutor said that the girl was vulnerable due to her age and several other factors.
Deputy District Judge Philip McAteer said that people who supplied drugs faced more serious charges than those who simply possessed them.
He said that the period of time over which the offences occurred was a factor against O’Doherty and that he had supplied drugs to a vulnerable young person who in the eyes of the law was still a child.
He added that the gravity of this offence had to marked by a prison sentence.
He sentenced O’Doherty to two months in prison on each charge consecutively making a total of 6 months suspended for three years. He also fined him £300.