Woman now banned from several Welland stores

A certified addictions counsellor who became hooked on heroin and methamphetamines has been banned from entering several Welland stores including Walmart and the LCBO.

Rachell Groulx, of Welland, appeared in an Ontario Court of Justice in St. Catharines on Wednesday and pleaded guilty to several offences including possession of property obtained by crime and possession of a prohibited weapon. The offences occurred between 2017 and 2018.

“This young woman fell off the rails when she started dabbling with meth and heroin,” defence lawyer Jeffrey Root told Judge Tory Colvin.

Root said his client needs to take steps to address her addiction issues.

“If not, it’s just a matter of time before disaster strikes,” he said, adding there have been numerous cases of overdoses and deaths in Niagara recently linked to street drugs laced with other substances.

“It’s a sad road indeed,” the judge added, after Groulx told him she had previously spent 20 years working as a dental hygienist and is a certified addictions counsellor.

The judge imposed a sentence of time served based on the number of days the defendant had spent in pretrial custody.

He also placed her on probation for 12 months and ordered her to stay away from Avondale, Walmart and LCBO in Welland and the Shopper’s Drug Mart in Pelham.