Woman staying in hospital took heroin from another patient to ‘help her sleep’

A court heard how a woman who was staying in hospital was given heroin by another patient to “help her sleep”.Melanie Luxton, 47, of Weedon Way in Fairstead, appeared at Lynn Magistrates’ Court on Thursday where she pleaded guilty to having a Class A drug in her possession.Crown prosecutor Nicola Lamb explained to magistrates that on November 8, 2023, police were called to Lynn’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital to a report that a patient had a brown powder in their possession which was suspected to be heroin.

That patient was Luxton – who had one gram of the drug on her – and admitted to officers that she had taken some of it previously but “didn’t like how it made her feel” and was going to throw the rest away.In mitigation, George Sorrell explained that Luxton was in hospital for having low oxygen levels.“The defendant would like to give her thanks and appreciation to the nurse who discovered it (the heroin),” he said.“It was given to her by another patient to help her sleep.“Consuming that drug could have put her into a sleep where she wouldn’t have woken up.”The solicitor added: “She knows well enough from problems in the past the effects heroin brings.“It only happened while she was in hospital, she wasn’t in the right state of mind. She was a bit desperate, she shouldn’t have taken it, it has been a long time since she has troubled the courts.”Luxton was handed a fine of £120 and will also pay a victim surcharge of £48 and court costs of £50.