Amos v McCarron (No 3)

[2019] ACTSC 223

SUPREME COURT OF THE AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY

Case Title:

Amos v McCarron (No 3)

Citation:

[2019] ACTSC 223

Hearing Date:

9 August 2019

DecisionDate:

9 August 2019

Before:

Mossop J

Decision:

See [13]

Catchwords:

Cases Cited:

CRIMINAL LAW – JURISDICTION, PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE – Judgment and Punishment – resentence – breach of good behaviour order – offender taking steps towards drug and alcohol rehabilitation – whether suspended sentence should be imposed – resentence

Amos v McCarron (No 2) [2017] ACTSC 46

Parties:

Adam Amos (Appellant)

Theresia McCarron, Roger Watts and Suzanne White (Respondents)

Representation:

Counsel

S Platis (Appellant)

P Dixon (Respondents)

Solicitors

Legal Aid ACT (Appellant)

ACT Director of Public Prosecutions (Respondents)

File Number:

SCA 86 of 2013

MOSSOP J

Introduction

1. Adam Amos has been committed to this court to deal with a breach of a good behaviour order imposed by Refshauge J following a successful appeal against sentence in 2017: see Amos v McCarron (No 2) [2017] ACTSC 46. That appeal was against sentences imposed in 2013.

1. The good behaviour order was imposed for a period of two years on 15 February 2017 and was the condition upon which four sentences of imprisonment were suspended.  Those sentences were:

(a)a sentence of nine months’ imprisonment for trafficking heroin on 2 January  2011 (CC2011/3723);

(b)a sentence of three months’ imprisonment for driving on 25 May 2011 with more than the prescribed concentration of alcohol (CC2011/5802);

(c)a sentence of two months’ imprisonment for the offence of driving while disqualified as a repeat offender on 19 October 2012 (CC2012/9508); and

(d)a sentence of three months’ imprisonment for the offence of driving while disqualified as a repeat offender on 28 December 2012 (CC2012/11161).

1. As a result of partial concurrency the aggregate sentence was a period of 12 months.  The offender had served approximately two months of that period in custody.

1. On 9 April 2019 in the Magistrates Court, the offender was given a suspended sentence for two charges:

(a)CC2018/14095: driving with a prescribed drug in his oral fluid on 27 September 2018; and

(b)CC2018/14055: driving with a prescribed drug in his oral fluid on 20 May 2018.

1. At that time Mr Amos was also given a good behaviour order on charge CC2018/7668: speeding in a non-school zone by more than 15 km/h and not more than 30 km/h on 20 May 2018.

1. There were also two charges dating from 2014 which were dealt with by the Magistrates Court.  These were:

(a)CC2014/9378: driving while disqualified being a repeat offender, which received an 18 month good behaviour order and a two-year period of disqualification; and

(b)CC2014/9379: driving with a prescribed drug in his oral fluid as a repeat offender, which received an 18 month good behaviour order with a five-year period of disqualification.

1. Only the two 2018 driving with prescribed drug offences involved breaches of the good behaviour order.  On both occasions the offender had both methamphetamine and marijuana in his system.

1. As at May and September 2018, the offender had been subject to…