Police searched a man's house while his partner and infant son were home and found drugs, ammunition and knuckledusters, a court has heard.
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Nathan Gartside appeared via video link at the Ballarat Magistrates' Court on Tuesday to plead guilty to four charges.
Police lawyer Jenna Bridges said police caught Gartside driving with methylamphetamine in his system in October 2019.
The court heard police executed a search warrant at his Sebastopol home in March 2020 and found bags of methylamphetamine weighing a total of 1.8 grams and knuckle dusters.
They found four 0.22 calibre ammunition rounds in his car tool box and a knife in his pocket.
Defence lawyer Heidi Keighran conceded the offending was aggravated as Gartside had relevant prior convictions and said he had an issue with alcohol and drugs for some time.
I am only doing this because I get the sense you are trying to turn your life around.
- Magistrate Letizia Torres
She said Gartride turned to drug use to deal with his pain from a car accident in 2016 in which he suffered an acquired brain injury and that is when the addiction took hold.
The court heard Gartride had not worked due to COVID-19 but had an offer of employment waiting for the outcome of this case.
Ms Keighran said he was supported by his partner who he had a one-year-old child with and had three children from a previous relationship.
She said Gartride had the knuckledusters as part of a collection as he enjoyed collecting items but the possession of the ammunition could not be explained.
"His drug use is ongoing but reducing," Ms Keighran said.
"I ask your honour to take into consideration he is a father with a young family and had been offence free for three years."
Magistrate Letizia Torres said the offending was serious when considered in the context of his prior criminal history.
"It seems to me you are trying to reduce your involvement in criminality," she said.
"It is really a situation where you have to cut it out altogether... you have four children."
Gartside will be assessed for a community corrections order and will return to court on Friday for sentencing.
"You won't get any more opportunities like this one," Ms Torres said.
"I am only doing this because I get the sense you are trying to turn your life around."
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