Adam Chavasse 'a bright light in otherwise dark tunnel' of Canberra courts

Adam Paul Chavasse, 42, was part of a group that stole $880 worth of parcels from the doorsteps of eager recipients in suburban Gungahlin on October 20 last year.

He pleaded guilty to 10 counts of joint commission minor theft over the strange loot, which included a sex toy, a set of "spinning circus sticks", five bottles of vape juice, a pot of dried flowers and a children's book.

His Legal Aid lawyer, Solitaire Zahnleiter, convinced Magistrate Louise Taylor to defer sentencing in March so the Nicholls man could attend residential drug rehabilitation and tackle the cause of his offending.

When Chavasse returned to the ACT Magistrates Court last week, Ms Taylor admitted having been skeptical about whether the 42-year-old would actually change his ways.

But she was happy to learn Chavasse had "done the hard work of getting clean" while demonstrating deep insight into "the wicked impact of illicit substances on his life".

"My cynicism ... was wrong, and I'm fully prepared to admit that," Ms Taylor told the 42-year-old.

"You should be very proud of yourself.

"It is a delight to sit where I'm sitting and see what you have done."

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The court heard Chavasse had completed every program available to him in rehabilitation despite what had been a "confronting and challenging" journey at times.

"He's learnt that his worst day in recovery was better than the best day he had ever had whilst in the throes of addiction," Ms Taylor said.

The magistrate said she hoped to see Chavasse in court again one day, not as a defendant but perhaps as a support person for others wanting to kick a drug habit.

"Mr Chavasse, you are a bright light in what can otherwise be a dark tunnel in these courtrooms," she said.

Ms Taylor had previously warned Chavasse he was "heading very close" to time behind bars because of his drug-related criminality.

But she said she had promised to spare him incarceration if he returned from rehabilitation as a success story, and it was time to hold up her end of the bargain.

The magistrate accordingly imposed a three-month suspended jail sentence and an associated 10-month good behaviour order, saying this would have been longer if not for the work Chavasse had already done in rehabilitation.

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