A HEROIN addict who abused the generosity and kindness of his mother won a cut in his "manifestly excessive" sentence yesterday.

In July, William Frederick Smith pleaded guilty to burglary and theft at Durham Crown Court and was sent to a young offenders' institution for three years.

Yesterday, Mr Justice Butterfield, sitting at London's Court of Appeal with Lord Justice Potter and Judge James Paget, reduced the sentence to 30 months.

Smith was living with his mother at a pub she owned in Seaham, east Durham, when the offences occurred.

Last November, he was released from a nine-month sentence for stealing money from the pub's fruit and cigarette machines, a crime which cost his mother more than £1,400.

His mother took him back, but two months later she kicked him out when she caught him taking drugs on New Year's Day, said the judge.

As he left he stole £40 from her handbag, then returned in the evening and made off with £780 in takings.

Mr Justice Butterfield said Smith - who has been on a drug-free wing since being sent to a young offenders' institution - had taken advantage of his mother's kindness and generosity. He warned 20-year-old Smith that he ran the risk of spending long spells behind bars if he refused to address his offending.

Smith's barrister, John Adams, argued that the youth - a "hopeless junkie" - had not been given sufficient credit for his guilty plea.