A businesswoman with five drug-driving convictions, who was found to be eight times the legal limit for ketamine, has avoided jail. Lucy Newall, 30, was sentenced on September 3 at Liverpool Magistrates' Court to a 12-month community order, including 15 rehabilitation activity days.
Newall faced a potential 12-week jail sentence after pleading guilty to being in charge of a vehicle while under the influence of drugs. Her defense cited addiction issues stemming from a past abusive relationship and significant life trauma, including the recent loss of her grandmothers, which led to health problems that sometimes left her bed-bound.
During arrests in January and March, police found traces of white powder on a bank card and a rolled-up £5 note in Newall's vehicle. In one instance, her Cupra SUV collided with railings. On January 3, officers stopped Newall in a Peugeot 208 with the engine running, finding ketamine in her system at 160 micrograms per litre of blood, well above the legal limit of 20 micrograms. A subsequent arrest on March 11 followed a crash where her Cupra Formentor VZ hit pedestrian railings. Blood tests again showed 160mcg of ketamine per litre of blood, along with cocaine below the drug-drive limit.
Newall's lawyer, Elizabeth Manning, informed the court that the convictions correlated with her addiction struggles and trauma. Manning stated that Newall sought solace in ketamine use during a difficult relationship, which escalated. Despite previous attempts at rehabilitation, Newall has faced ongoing challenges, including bladder problems and periods of being bed-bound. She expressed a desire to return to work in the care sector.
District Judge Mary Dowrick acknowledged Newall's stated trauma, both recent and from childhood, as well as her health issues. The judge cited Newall's early guilty plea as a significant mitigating factor in the decision to impose a community sentence instead of custody.
Recent figures indicate a rise in ketamine offenses, with police recording a 151 percent increase in possession offenses between 2020-21 and 2025-26. During the same period, amphetamine possession offenses more than halved. This trend raises concerns about ketamine's growing popularity as a recreational drug, particularly among young people, despite its associated risks.