A JUDGE who jailed a mother with a £180-a-day drug habit warned her to quit for the sake of her children.

Mother-of-two Joanne McKie was jailed for 18 months after she pleaded guilty to possession of crack cocaine with intent to supply, and possession of heroin, cannabis resin and Subutex.

Speaking at Teesside Crown Court, the judge, Recorder Gillian Matthews, told McKie: "At the time of your arrest you were spending £150 a day on crack cocaine and £20 to £30 on heroin.

"If you carry on that way in the future you will be dead.

"Your children deserve you to make the effort. They want their mother around, I am sure, even if it is only on a visiting basis."

The court heard McKie was found asleep in bed when police armed with a search warrant raided her home, in Borrowdale Street, Hartlepool.

In the bedroom they found two large rocks of crack cocaine, a syringe holding heroin, and small amounts of cannabis resin and Subutex. Under her pillow were two pencil cases holding a toal of £1,482 cash and a separate £33, said prosecutor Harry Hadfield.

Also in the bedroom were three sets of electronic scales, with traces of heroin, and three mobile phones.

One phone had 15 text messages over two days from people wanting crack cocaine, the court was told.

McKie told officers that she was going to inject the heroin later, and she claimed that £800 of the cash was a benefits loan, which was denied by the authorities.

Christine Egerton, mitigating, said McKie was entrenched in drug use, and her children, aged ten and seven, were living with her mother under a court order.

She said her drug addict partner introduced her to illegal substances in her teens.

She tried to get him off drugs, but began taking them when she was 20, and had been pooling together to share with a few friends.

McKie had been remanded in custody since July 31 and was on a detoxification programme.

Miss Egerton added that she was anxious to put drugs behind her.

The judge told McKie: "You are well aware that offending such as this means prison.

"You have 64 convictions for 151 offences. It is absolutely disgraceful, for you are only 28 years of age.

"The court has no other option but to send you to prison.

"Until there is an improvement in your drug taking, you will continue to offend and you will continue to go to prison.

"But society must be protected from you because you are now sharing with others, and the culture must be brought to an end."