A former nursing student in San Diego has pleaded guilty to assisting inmates to sneak meth-laced greeting cards into jail, Rancho Bernard Patch reports.
Nicoll Koval, 25, had been sentenced in June 2011 to a year in prison for a hit-and-run incident that had occurred the previous year, according to UT San Diego.
While in prison, Koval made phone calls to assist a fellow inmate smuggle in greeting cards that had been soaked in a liquid form methamphetamine.
Before transport, the meth-soaked cards would be dried out. Inmates who received the cards would then heat them up to release the meth, according to 10 News.
Koval's laywer, Gretchen von Helms, said the woman was tricked into being part of the scheme. "More sophisticated felons," von Helms claimed, had asked to use Koval's calling card and had then used it for illicit purposes.
DRUGS HIDDEN IN THE DARNDEST PLACES (story continues below):
Drugs Hidden In The Darndest Places
Von Helms also noted that Koval was sexually abused as a child, and has since experienced psychological injuries that have led her to make poor choices.
Though Koval initially pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to smuggle drugs into a jail or prison, according to 10 News, she changed her plea to guilty in July, Patch reports. She also pleaded guilty to possession of marijuana and illegal prescription drugs while incarcerated.
On Tuesday, Koval was sentenced to four years in state prison. However, because she has credit for time already served, Fox 5 reports, she is likely to get out in eight or nine months, according to attorneys.