Director of Public Prosecutions v Artwin (a pseudonym)

[2025] VCC 1232

IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA

AT MELBOURNE

CRIMINAL DIVISION

 Revised
Not Restricted
Suitable for Publication

DRUG AND ALCOHOL TREATMENT COURT

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

CALEB ARTWIN (A PSEUDONYM)

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JUDGE:	HIS HONOUR JUDGE D SEXTON
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:	22 January 2025; 7 March 2025; 29 May 2025; 3 July 2025; 21 July 2025
DATE OF SENTENCE:	25 August 2025
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Artwin (a pseudonym)
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2025] VCC 1232

REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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Subject:CRIMINAL LAW

Catchwords:  Armed Robbery; Possession of a drug of dependence; Possession of a prohibited weapon

Legislation Cited:  Sentencing Act1991 (Vic)

Cases Cited:Bugmy v The Queen (2013) 249 CLR 571; R v Mills [1998] 4 VR 235; R v Verdins (2007) 16 VR 269

Sentence:  Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order, with a custodial part of 3 years and 3 months’ imprisonment; Fine with conviction in the sum of $200

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APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the DPP	Ms V. Kambouropoulos	Office of Public Prosecutions
For the Accused	Mr D. DeWitt (for Hearings) Ms A. Sutherland (for Sentence)	Greg Thomas Barrister & Solicitor

HIS HONOUR:

Introduction

1Caleb Artwin,[1] you have pleaded guilty before me to various charges relevant to two Indictments.

[1]        A pseudonym.

2The first Indictment[2] relates to offending which took place on 30 December 2023.  On 22 January 2025, at a Determination Hearing, you pleaded guilty to:

·        one charge of armed robbery, which carries a maximum penalty of 25 years’ imprisonment;

·        one charge of robbery, which carries a maximum penalty of 15 years’ imprisonment;

·        three charges of possession of a drug of dependence, which depending on the circumstances, carries a maximum penalty of up to five years’ imprisonment; and

·        one related summary offence of possession of a prohibited weapon, which carries a maximum penalty of two years’ imprisonment.

[2]Q10026694

3In relation to the second Indictment,[3] you pleaded guilty on 22 January 2025 to one charge of armed robbery, which, as I have stated, carries a maximum penalty of 25 years’ imprisonment.

[3]Q11501219

4At the Determination Hearing, you also admitted your rather extensive criminal history.

Circumstances of offending

2023 offending

5The circumstances of your offending, which took place on 30 December 2023, were outlined in the Summary of Prosecution Opening upon Plea dated 29 October 2024, Exhibit 1 at your Determination Hearing.

6On the date of this offending, you were 23 years old.  You were on bail in relation to other offending which was subsequently dealt with at the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on 17 December 2024.  You were in the company of your co-offender, Graham Knight,[4] who was 19.

[4]        A pseudonym.

7At about 5.50 pm, your two male teenage victims, aged 16 and 15, were walking through the Dan Murphy’s car park in Kingsway, Glen Waverley.  They were approached by you and Mr Knight.  After making small talk, you asked the first victim, for his wallet.  When informed that he did not have a wallet, you told him to empty his pockets.  When he pulled out his Apple AirPods, you and Mr Knight directed him to hand over the AirPods, which he did.  He was then directed to unpair the AirPods, with you telling him to hurry up.  At this point, you pulled up the hoodie that you were wearing to reveal a large knife in the waistband of your pants.  You told your first victim that you would count down from five and stab him.  Your conduct in this regard forms the basis of Charge 1 on this Indictment, armed robbery.

8You and Mr Knight then turned your attention to your second victim and demanded cash.  After initially demanding his phone, you and Mr Knight then demanded money instead, with you moving closer to him and providing PayID information to facilitate a transfer of bank funds.  The PayID information was linked to an account that belonged to you.  Unsurprisingly, your second victim felt threatened and in shock.  Your conduct in relation to this incident forms the basis of Charge 2 on this Indictment, robbery.

9Ultimately, both of your victims ran away from the two of you, essentially hiding until police arrived.

10You were subsequently arrested by police on 3 January 2024 outside the Dorset Gardens Hotel where you disclosed to police that you had a knife in the waistband of your trousers.  Police then seized a large combat knife, your conduct in this regard forming the basis of the related summary offence of possession of a prohibited weapon.

11During a search of the room at the Dorset Gardens Hotel where you had been staying, police located and seized:

·        a deal bag containing 4.262 grams of methylamphetamine, this being relevant to Charge 3 on the Indictment, possession of a drug of dependence;

·        five bottles of alprazolam, containing 138.5 tablets, this being relevant to Charge 4 on the Indictment, possession of a drug of dependence; and

·        3.772 grams of cannabis, this being relevant to Charge 5 on the Indictment, possession of a drug of dependence.

12You were remanded in custody in relation to this matter on 3 January 2024, before being bailed on 7 February 2024.

2024 offending

13Some months after being bailed in relation to the 2023 offending, you committed the armed robbery referable to the second Indictment on 28 June 2024.  The details of this offending were set out in the Summary of Prosecution Opening dated 6 January 2025, Exhibit 2 at your Determination Hearing.

14At about 7.49 am on Friday 28 June 2024, you, along with your co-offender, Daniel Bayswater,[5] who was then aged 22, attended at the Parkmore Shopping Centre in Keysborough.  Just after 8am, you both entered a pharmacy, and went into the dispensary area.  At the time, you were wearing a blue-coloured face mask.  You were also carrying a black leather duffel bag.

[5]        A pseudonym.

15Upon entering the dispensary area, your co-offender, Mr Bayswater, stated, “Put your hands up” to two employees.  Whilst this occurred, you placed diazepam tablets inside the duffel bag.  Your co-offender then asked one of the employees where the opioids were and asked that the safe be opened.  At the time, Mr Bayswater was carrying a knife in his hand, and he held the knife against his own stomach.

16One of the employees opened the safe, and you then removed the contents of the safe and placed the items into the black leather duffel bag.  Various medications were taken, with the list of items set out in the Summary of Prosecution Opening.[6]  The total approximate value of the medications taken was $2,000.

[6]Exhibit 2

17You both then exited the store and returned to your vehicle before driving away.

18You were subsequently arrested on 17 July 2024 at the Bruce County Motel in Mount Waverley.  In a subsequent police interview, you essentially denied any criminal responsibility for this offending.

19You were remanded in custody, and you have remained in custody since this time.

20Whilst no victim impact statements were filed in these matters, it can be reasonably assumed that your victims were adversely affected by your actions, especially your two teenage victims in relation to the 2023 offending.  The Prosecution Opening in relation to that offending refers to your second victim feeling threatened and in shock.

Nature and gravity of your offending and your level of responsibility for it

21Overall, your offending must collectively be seen as serious indeed.  The maximum penalties for the crime of armed robbery self-evidently reflect the seriousness of your conduct.  Both armed robberies were committed in company, thereby constituting Category 2 offences pursuant to the Sentencing Act 1991.

22At the time of the 2023 offending, you were subject to a grant of bail.  Of course, one of the primary conditions of bail is that you do not reoffend.  Your conduct on 30 December 2023 is aggravated, therefore, due to the fact that you were on bail.  You also must surely have known of the seriousness of your behaviour, and the potential adverse consequences for you, given your extensive criminal history.  In particular, on 18 December 2020, you were sentenced to 30 months in a Youth Justice Centre for the offence of armed robbery.  Given this, the fact that you made a decision to engage in similar serious criminality increases your level of culpability for this and the 2024 offending.

23You were in company at the time of the 2023 offending, which no doubt would have increased the degree of apprehension and fear on the part of your victims.  Your victims were young, only 16 and 15 years old respectively.  This must have been a frightening experience for them.  The incident appears to have been relatively short-lived.  Whilst a knife was revealed to your victims, it does not appear to have been produced or actively used in the commission of the crime, though your reference to counting down from five and then stabbing your first victim highlights the threatening and menacing nature of your criminality.  The particular offensive weapon utilised in the commission of the armed robbery, a knife, is a serious example of an offensive weapon, given that it is a bladed instrument, no doubt capable of significant harm.

24In addition to the armed robbery, you have pleaded guilty to the separate charge of robbery in relation to the second victim.  This must be reflected in the penalty imposed, though I accept that this was really one global incident.

25Overall, I regard this offending as representing concerning examples in particular of the crimes of armed robbery and robbery and I find your level of culpability in the circumstances to be high.

26At the time of the 2024 offending, you were on bail in relation to the 2023 offending.  You had spent a period of time in custody before being granted bail.  That you would engage in another armed robbery in those circumstances very much aggravates the 2024 offending and elevates your level of culpability.  As with the 2023 offending, you were in company, no doubt increasing the level of apprehension and fear on the part of your victims.  The location of your offending and the impact on the employees reflects offending on a soft target.  Employees of pharmacies are of course entitled to go about their business without fear of such serious and inherently violent offending being committed against them.  These types of offending are prevalent in the community, enhancing the need for any penalty I impose to denounce your serious criminality, and send a strong message to others of the gravity of such wrongdoing.

27There was, in my view, a level of planning involved in this offending, with you and your co-offender targeting a particular location where drugs would likely be found, and with you bringing along a duffel bag to facilitate the removal of drugs.  You also had concealed your face with a blue mask.  I accept that this incident was also likely relatively short-lived, and that you did not carry the knife.  Whilst the knife was produced by your co-offender, he appears to have held the knife against his own stomach rather than any direct or overt menacing behaviour towards the victims.  Nevertheless, this must surely have been a frightening experience for them.

28Overall, I regard this conduct as also representing a concerning example of the crime of armed robbery, and your culpability is high.

Personal circumstances

29You are now 25 years of age.  A significant amount of material has been provided to the Court with regard to your background and personal circumstances.  In gaining an understanding of your personal history, I have had regard to the two psychological reports tendered on your behalf,[7] the various assessment reports produced by experts within the Drug and Alcohol Treatment Court,[8] and your counsel’s written and oral submissions in this regard.

[7]Psychological Report of Guy Coffey dated 1 December 2022, Exhibit B; and Psychological Report of Austin Campbell dated 12 March 2025, Exhibit D

[8]DATC Case Manager Assessment Report by Isabella Claassen dated 24 December 2024, Exhibit 4; DATC Clinical Advisor Assessment Report by Terry Sequeira dated 7 January 2025, Exhibit 5; Addendum Case Manager Assessment Report by Ms Claassen dated 3 March 2025, Exhibit 6; and DATC Family Violence Assessment Report by Erica Beard dated 4 March 2025, Exhibit 7

30You were born in Iran but fled the country with your family when you were just two years of age, in the context of your family’s exposure to war and worsening conflict.  You lived in Malaysia with your parents until you were five years old.  You have a younger brother, who is approximately two years younger than you.  When you were five, you travelled with your mother and younger brother to Australia as a refugee.  Your father was unable to travel with the family, as he was convicted of criminal offences and incarcerated whilst the family were living in Malaysia.  Unable to travel to Australia, your father ultimately returned to Iran at the expiry of his sentence, where he lived up until his unexpected death in late 2024.  Whilst you apparently had some phone contact with your father in your early childhood, this appears to have ceased as time went on.

31After arriving in Australia, you and your family were detained in the Baxter Immigration Detention Centre for a period of nine months.  You have recalled during this period being exposed to violence and poverty, and no doubt traumatic separation from your mother for a period of time.

32You and your family ultimately entered the broader Australian community upon being granted visas, and started a life here with support from the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre.

33It was in this context that your mother commenced a relationship with a man when you were about six, through to the period when you were 15 years of age.  Most unfortunately, during this period both you and your brother and your mother were subjected to physical and sexual abuse at the hands of your mother’s partner.  You have recalled being forced to take various drugs by your stepfather, to conceal the abuse.  Your stepfather would often threaten and bully you to facilitate the abuse being kept from your mother.  You have also recalled ongoing exposure to violence perpetrated against your mother in your presence.  You have reported still feeling distressed with regard to your inability to protect your mother.  This relationship finally ended when you were 15 years old and Child Protection became involved.

34Unsurprisingly, your education has been significantly disrupted due to the traumatic home life that you experienced.  The family apparently constantly moved, in the context of substantial financial hardship.  You left school at Year 11 level, a time period roughly corresponding with the commencement of your criminal history in 2018.  By July 2019, you had been sentenced to a period of detention in a youth training centre in relation to a raft of offending which included matters of dishonesty, drugs, and weapons.  Sadly, you ultimately completed your final year of education not in the community, but during a period of incarceration at the Malmsbury Youth Justice Centre.

35To your credit, you have subsequently shown a capacity to secure and maintain employment whilst in the community and whilst sober.  You have reported that you pride yourself on your hard work.  You have completed various qualifications, including carpentry, electrical engineering, and traffic control, and you have obtained your white card.  You have also apparently completed a course in community services.  You have managed to secure and maintain part-time employment in various roles, including retail, bricklaying, carpentry and hospitality.

36Significantly, your introduction to substances commenced when you were quite young.  You were first introduced to benzodiazepines at the age of 12 in the context of the abuse you suffered from your mother’s ex-partner.  You have continued to struggle with dependence on this particular substance since then.  You commenced your use of Xanax from the age of 16, and you have struggled with dependence on this substance throughout your life, particularly during periods of psychological distress.

37You reported to Clinical Advisor Terry Sequeira at the Clinical Advisor Assessment on 23 December 2024 that you would ingest 10 or more unprescribed pills when you felt overwhelmed and anxious.  Mr Sequeira set out significant detail with regard to your polysubstance abuse history.  You reported to Mr Sequeira that your use of unprescribed opioids was your primary substance of dependence historically, though you also disclosed use of methamphetamine irregularly historically, with your use occurring once every few months.  You reported lapsing into daily ice use in the months leading to your current period of remand.

38In written submissions, your Counsel outlined your reported development of substance dependence, particularly escalating following a serious incident in 2020 when, at the age of 19, you and your family were subject to a home invasion which resulted in you being stabbed and shot, requiring hospitalisation for treatment.  Unsurprisingly, you have recalled being traumatised by this incident, which apparently brought up previously suppressed mental health symptoms.  You managed your issues with mood, sleep, and anxiety, through the use of Xanax, with resulting deteriorating behaviour.  According to your Counsel, your developing dependence coincided with more frequent interactions with the criminal justice system as your mental health declined and you became desperate to fund your own drug habit.

39In relation to your circumstances leading up to your offending, your accounts provided to the Drug and Alcohol Treatment Court Clinical Advisor and Case Manager and to psychologist Austin Campbell, and your instructions to your Counsel, reflect your problematic substance-abuse issues, degrading mental health, and the impact of peer pressure from negative associations, collectively contributing to the offending.  According to Clinical Advisor Mr Sequeira, you were likely to have been heavily dependent on drugs over the 12 months prior to your arrest.[9]

[9]Exhibit 5, p. 2

40You described to Case Manager Isabella Claassen in relation to the 2023 offending that your mental health was at its worst point, and you were using OxyContin and ice.  You also referred to negative peer pressure.

41In relation to the 2024 offending, you told Ms Claassen that on the day of the offending you were using 20 to 30 benzodiazepines.  You also referred to peer pressure.

42You informed your Counsel in relation to the 2023 offending that you were then homeless and couch-surfing amongst friends and having reduced contact with your mother and extended family.  In relation to the 2024 offending, whilst you had initially proceeded well on bail, you lost your job at Woolworths and you relapsed into substance abuse and committed this offending in the context of a desire to source drugs to support your habit.

43Likewise, similar sentiments with regard to the impact of substance use, degrading mental health, and the impact of peer pressure, were referred to in the most recent psychological report from Mr Campbell.  You apparently then referred to abusing non-prescribed medications at the time of both offences in an attempt to reduce or avoid experiences of psychological distress stemming from acute stressors and unresolved traumatic experiences.  You also referred to the impact of associating with antisocial peers.[10]

[10]Exhibit D, paragraph [26]

Matters relevant to determination hearing

44I turn now to matters relevant to the making of a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order.  The purposes of a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order are to facilitate your rehabilitation, to take account of your drug or alcohol dependency, to reduce the level of criminal activity associated with drug or alcohol dependency, and to reduce your health risks associated with drug or alcohol dependency.[11]  Importantly, if I am considering making such an Order, I must regard your rehabilitation and the protection of the community from you, achieved through your rehabilitation, as having greater importance than other sentencing purposes such as denunciation and general deterrence.  This is a significant matter.  The offending to which you have pleaded guilty ordinarily would give significant prominence to the sentencing purposes of denunciation and general deterrence.  However, in your case, community protection, viewed through the lens of your rehabilitation, must have greater importance in the sentencing analysis.

[11]Sentencing Act1991 (Vic) s18X(1)

45The criteria for the making of a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order are set out in s18Z of the Sentencing Act 1991. Of relevance to this case, I am satisfied on the balance of probabilities that you are dependent on drugs or alcohol and that your dependency contributed to the commission of the offending now before me. Neither of these matters were controversial as far as the Prosecution is concerned.

46In order to impose a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order in your case, I must be satisfied that it would otherwise be appropriate to impose a sentence of imprisonment of no more than four years.  The Prosecution submitted in your case that I could not be satisfied of this criteria, and that in all the circumstances it was not open to sentence you to a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order as there is insufficient sentencing scope to give proper effect to the necessary sentencing principles in your case.[12]

[12]Paragraph 1(a) of the Outline of Prosecution Submissions on Determination Hearing dated 16 January 2025, Exhibit 3

47I accept in your case that there exists a powerful constellation of mitigatory factors which very much impact upon the length of any sentence of imprisonment that I would consider appropriate in the particular circumstances of your case.  As conceded by the Prosecution, you fall to be sentenced as a youthful offender at the age of 25.  At the time of your offending, you were 23 and 24 respectively.  Pursuant to well-known principles, whilst of course you were an adult at the time of the offending, your relative youth is a relevant matter for sentencing.  Rehabilitation remains a significant sentencing purpose, impacting upon the length of any sentence of imprisonment.[13]

[13]R v Mills [1998] 4 VR 235

48Having regard to your personal circumstances and background, as conceded by the prosecution, I accept that you have had a disadvantaged and extremely troubled childhood.  From an extremely young age, you have been exposed to war, conflict, significant instability, and significant family violence extending to both physical and sexual abuse.  Whilst drug use generally is not a mitigatory factor, in your case you were initially introduced to benzodiazepines by your stepfather at the age of 12 in the context of sexual abuse.  I accept that you have struggled enormously since then to overcome your substance-use issues, which have broadened and escalated in the context of you attempting to self-medicate to deal with the effects of trauma and hardship.  Your moral culpability for the offending is therefore decreased in accordance with a general application of the well-known Bugmy[14] principles.

[14]Bugmy v The Queen (2013) 249 CLR 571

49I accept overall that you resolved both matters at early stages in the proceedings, and that your early pleas of guilty therefore have a significant benefit to the Court and the broader community, warranting a sentencing discount.

50I also accept that your pleas of guilty are consistent with your remorse for your offending.  I note that when reflecting on your offending to psychologist Austin Campbell in the psychological assessment on 11 March 2025, you spoke of your feelings of regret and shame due to your actions towards the victims; you took responsibility for the inappropriateness of your actions and spoke of feelings of disgust towards yourself when reflecting on the young age of some of the victims; and you were able to describe your offending behaviour as wrong and harmful towards others.  In those circumstances, a further mitigatory allowance on the basis of remorse is warranted.

51A significant mitigatory matter relevant to an assessment as to the length of any sentence of imprisonment that I would otherwise impose, relates to the hardship of the custodial environment.  Given your traumatic personal history, it is entirely unsurprising that you have been diagnosed with complex post-traumatic stress disorder.[15]  You have been in custody awaiting finalisation of these proceedings for an extended period of time of a total of 410 days.  According to psychologist Austin Campbell, your mental health issues are likely to make any period of incarceration more challenging in comparison to those who do not have a complex history of trauma.[16]  I am satisfied therefore that as a result of your psychological functioning and trauma history, any sentence of imprisonment would likely weigh more heavily upon you than it would on a person in normal health, warranting a mitigatory allowance on sentencing pursuant to Verdins[17] principle 5.

[15]Exhibit D, p. 8

[16]Ibid, paragraph [43]

[17]R v Verdins (2007) 16 VR 269

52Furthermore, having regard to your recent custodial experience, and as conceded by the prosecution, I am satisfied that there is a serious risk of imprisonment having a significant adverse effect upon your mental health, such that a further mitigatory allowance is warranted pursuant to Verdins principle 6.

53In relation to this particular issue, I had the benefit of significant oral submissions from your counsel, consideration of subpoenaed material in relation to your custodial placement, and direct evidence from yourself.  By way of brief summary, I accept that following an altercation between yourself and another prisoner at Fulham Prison in January 2025, when you perceived there to be derogatory comments with regard to the situation in Palestine, over your objections you were placed in protection, which triggered reports of self-harm on your part in the form of a hunger strike.

54Again over your objections, you were transferred from Fulham Prison to Port Phillip Prison on 20 February 2025, where you continued to experience the rigours of protection, which have included a 23-hour lockdown, and restricted, if any, access to programs and educational opportunities.  Following a problematic exchange with custodial authorities after your arrival at Port Phillip Prison, you have, for an extended period of time, been subject to a handcuff regime when outside your cell.  Since February 2025 you have been placed in the Management Unit at Port Phillip Prison.

55At the hearing before me on 3 July 2025, you gave detailed evidence with regard to your experiences in the custodial environment.  In addition to coping with the isolation of management, the restrictions associated with this regime and the impacts of the handcuff arrangement, you spoke of your difficulties arising from your hunger strike, which led to the development of gallstones, which caused you considerable pain, and ultimately resulted in the removal of your gall bladder in recent months.  This procedure, a significant one for a 25-year-old inmate, was documented in recently subpoenaed materials by your lawyers.  I accept, without passing judgment with regard to decisions made by custodial authorities, that the objective reality of placing a young man such as you with a significant trauma history in an extremely onerous custodial environment has no doubt made your experience in custody particularly difficult, and has likely impacted upon your mental health.  A significant mitigatory allowance is therefore warranted.

56Turning now to some final matters relevant to my assessment of the four-year criteria, I have considered your prospects of rehabilitation in this matter.  Given your concerning and relevant criminal history, the nature of your current offending and the fact that you have offended whilst on bail, your personal circumstances and challenges, and matters raised in the materials with regard to negative peer associations, your prospects of rehabilitation realistically must be seen as somewhat guarded, notwithstanding your relative youth.  However, you clearly have the support of your mother and siblings, who have been present in court at previous hearings and again today. 

57As I have indicated, you gave evidence before me on 3 July 2025, and overall I formed the view that you applied yourself well to this task, notwithstanding the fact that this was likely a stressful experience for you, given the significant consequences of this matter.  You clearly have many challenges ahead of you, not the least of which are your substance-abuse issues and mental health challenges.  You were adamant before me of your desire to avoid negative peer associations and your motivation to embark upon a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order.  Your prospects of rehabilitation are clearly tied to your ability to follow through with these sentiments.

58I have also considered the issue of parity in the sentencing analysis, noting though that your co-offender in relation to the 2024 offending has not, to my knowledge, yet been dealt with; and your co-offender with regard to the 2023 offending was dealt with for lesser offending, very much impacting upon the applicability of the parity principle.

59Finally, I have considered the issue of current sentencing practices primarily for the most serious offences of armed robbery in your case, noting that whilst significant sentences of imprisonment are often imposed for this type of offending, current sentencing practices remain just one of the many applicable sentencing factors in the sentencing analysis.

60In all the circumstances, and having regard in particular to s18X(2) of the Sentencing Act1991, which essentially establishes the primacy of rehabilitation as a sentencing purpose, I am satisfied that it would otherwise be appropriate to impose a sentence of imprisonment of no more than four years in your case.

61I turn now to the final matter of relevance to the consideration of whether or not to impose a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order in your case.

62Pursuant to s18Z(3)(a) of the Sentencing Act, I must not make a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order unless satisfied in all the circumstances that it is appropriate to do so.  In relation to this matter, often referred to as the residual discretion, the Prosecution submitted that it would not be appropriate to make a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order in your case, primarily on the basis that you have been found unsuitable by Drug and Alcohol Treatment Court Case Manager Isabella Claassen.  According to Ms Claassen in her primary report dated 24 December 2024, concerns were raised with regard to you being vulnerable to influence, with a self-report of impulsive actions, links with gangs, and self-reported violent attacks.  Concerns were also raised with regard to your proposal to reside at the home of your mother and brother in East Oakleigh, given the family violence history where your mother has been a protected person.  According to Ms Claassen, given your age and vulnerability, alternative emergency accommodation would not be appropriate.  Accordingly, Ms Claassen found you unsuitable for a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order.

63In Ms Claassen’s subsequent report dated 3 March 2025, she made clear that she had subsequently conducted a home assessment with regard to the proposed accommodation in East Oakleigh, and had conducted an interview with your mother on 27 February 2025.  Your mother then confirmed that you were able to reside at the three-bedroom home with her and your brother, who assists in the care of your mother, who is unwell with lupus and arthritis.  Your mother outlined that your ability to reside at the family home was conditional upon you abstaining from using substances.  She indicated to Ms Claassen a preparedness to contact the Drug and Alcohol Treatment Court team if necessary to obtain further support.

64

Ultimately, Ms Claassen accepted that living with your mother and brother may act as a protective factor for your substance use and support further desistance. 

Ms Claassen also recommended cogent safety planning to manage the family violence risk, given the historical matters between yourself and your mother.

65A detailed Family Violence Assessment Report was authored by Ms Erica Beard on 4 March 2025.  Clearly, there were some concerning aspects to Ms Beard’s report, particularly in regard to your self-report of involvement with negative peers and weapons-related incidents.  You also referred to previous incidents relating to self-harm.

66Ultimately, Ms Beard concluded that, given the pattern and history of you perpetrating violence towards your family members, and what she referred to as a thinly-veiled pro-violence narrative when referring to your conduct in the community, some reservations were held with regard to the proposed address with your family, particularly if you were to resume substances.  However, according to Ms Beard, on the basis of conversations with you and your mother, there is capacity to work with the family to develop some clear rules and expectations around your conduct in the home, with the Drug and Alcohol Treatment Court team having some oversight over this.  Ms Beard expressed a measure of confidence that your mother would contact the Drug and Alcohol Treatment Court team or the police if and when needed.

67Whilst your risk of family violence was assessed as serious, you were, according to Ms Beard, cognisant of what contributed to your previous conduct.  You were able to detail practical ways of preventing this from happening in the future, and you showed some signs of insight, accountability, and a commitment to address your use of violence.  Ms Beard concluded that rigorous monitoring and safety planning were needed to continually assess and manage your family violence risk in the community.

68Having carefully considered all matters of relevance on this particular issue, including your troubling criminal history, and your self-report of problematic behaviours in connection with negative peers and weapons, whilst I do have some reservations, I am satisfied that it is appropriate to place you on a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order.  In contrast to many applicants for a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order, you clearly maintain the love and support of your mother and siblings.  You have a stable family home available to you.  You impressed me as a young man with growing maturity and insight into your problematic history and the need for you to wholeheartedly embrace the intensive rigours of a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order to stop your historical trajectory of offending leading to incarceration.  Your difficult period of incarceration has likely, in my view, reinforced to you the alternatives, should you fail to embrace the opportunity that I am about to give you.

69Whilst there remain, in my view, some risks associated with your return to the community, I am satisfied that an appropriately-crafted Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order, with rigorous monitoring, in particular with regard to your family violence risk and risk associated with your connection to others, is the most appropriate way of both protecting the community and facilitating your rehabilitation.

Sentence to be imposed

70In relation to Charge 5 on the Indictment relating to the 2023 offending, you are convicted and fined the sum of $200.

71In relation to all other charges across both Indictments, you are convicted and placed upon a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order (‘DATO’).  This order commences today.

72A DATO has two parts: the treatment and supervision part, and the custodial part.  The treatment and supervision part itself has two parts, which are as follows.

73The core conditions, which are that:

(a)   you must not commit, whether in or outside of Victoria, another offence punishable on conviction by imprisonment during the time the order is in force;

(b)   you must attend Drug Court when required by the Court to do so;

(c)   you must report to the Melbourne Drug Court House within two clear working days after the order is imposed;

(d)   you must report to and accept visits from the members of the Drug Court;

(e)   you must undergo treatment for alcohol and drug dependency as specified in the order or by the Drug Court;

(f)    you must give notice of any change of address at least two clear working days before the change, to a specified Drug Court officer;

(g)   you are not to leave Victoria without the permission of the Drug Court; and

(h)   you are to obey all lawful instructions and directions from the Drug Court team.

74The core conditions will operate for 39 months, or until further order.

75The program conditions, which are that:

(a)   you comply with the Individual Treatment Plan dated 21 August 2025 and signed by you this day 25 August 2025;

(b)   you must submit to drug and alcohol testing as directed;

(c)   you must submit to detoxification or other treatments specified in the order as directed;

(d)   you must attend vocational, educational, and employment programs as directed;

(e)   you must submit to medical, psychiatric, and psychological treatment as directed;

(f)    you must reside at an address in Oakleigh East, 3166;

(g)   you must comply with a curfew that you remain at your address between the hours of 9 pm and 6 am;

(h)   you are not to use a drug of dependence without lawful authorisation;

(i)    you are to abstain from alcohol;

(j)    you must not drive a motor vehicle;

(k)   you must not associate with Graham Knight or Daniel Bayswater;

(l)    you must engage with the family violence social support worker in relation to family violence issues;

(m)     you are to do, or not do, anything else that the Drug Court considers necessary or appropriate concerning your drug and alcohol dependency and the personal factors that the Drug Court considers contributed to your criminal behaviour.

76These program conditions will operate for two years or until further order.

77The custodial part of the Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order is the term of imprisonment that I would have imposed had I not placed you on a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order, and it is a term of imprisonment of three years and three months.  That is made up as follows:

(a)   in relation to the 2024 offending (CR-24-01953) on Charge 1 of armed robbery, two years and six months’ imprisonment;

(b)   in relation to the 2023 offending (CR-24-01204), on Charges 1 and 2, an aggregate term of two years’ and four months’ imprisonment;

(c)   on Charges 3 and 4 in relation to the 2023 offending, possession of a drug of dependence, an aggregate term of two months’ imprisonment; and

(d)   on the related summary offence in relation to the 2023 offending, of possession of a prohibited weapon, one month’s imprisonment.

78I order that nine months on Charge 1 on the Indictment relating to the 2023 offending (CR-24-01204) be cumulative upon the sentence of two years and six months’ imprisonment imposed on the Indictment relating to the 2024 offending (CR-24-01204), making a total term of three years and three months’ imprisonment.  To repeat and clarify, this is not to be served now, it is the sentence which I would have imposed had I not placed you on a Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order.  It now represents the custodial portion of the Drug and Alcohol Treatment Order which is essentially suspended whilst your undergo the treatment and supervision part of the order.

79I declare that you have served 410 days of pre-sentence detention.

80Pursuant to s6AAA of the Sentencing Act1991, had you pleaded not guilty but been found guilty at trial, I would have sentenced you to a total effective sentence of four years and six months’ imprisonment with a non-parole period of three years and three months’ imprisonment.

81I make the disposal order sought by the prosecution in this case.

82Ms Kambouropoulos, are there any orders required pursuant to the Road Safety Act?

83MS KAMBOUROPOULOS:  I do not believe there are.

84HIS HONOUR:  Thank you.  Firstly, Ms Kambouropoulos, any issues or ambiguities with regards to the sentence I have just imposed?

85MS KAMBOUROPOULOS:  No, Your Honour.

86HIS HONOUR:  Same question for you, Ms Sutherland?

87MS SUTHERLAND:  No, Your Honour.

88HIS HONOUR: Thanks, adjourn the court.

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