Director of Public Prosecutions v Blackler

[2018] VCC 1480

IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA      Revised
    Not Restricted
     Suitable for Publication

AT GEELONG
CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

CR-18-01574

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

LEE SINCLAIR BLACKLER

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JUDGE:	HIS HONOUR JUDGE GRANT
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:	13 September 2018
DATE OF SENTENCE:	13 September 2018
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Blackler
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2018] VCC 1480

REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the Director	Mr A Grant	OPP
For the Accused	Ms H Cooper	Leanne Warren and Associates

HIS HONOUR:

1       Lee Blackler, you have pleaded guilty to one charge of attempted armed robbery and one related summary offence of committing an indictable offence on bail.  The maximum penalties for these offences are:

·    Attempted armed robbery – 20 years' imprisonment;

·    Commit an indictable offence on bail – three months' imprisonment or 30 penalty units.   

2       I have heard a summary of the offending.  It is not my intention to repeat the whole summary.  It has been tendered as Exhibit A in the plea proceedings.

3       Briefly, on 10 May 2018, you attempted to rob the Bendigo Bank in Geelong.  You had disguised yourself with a brown coloured wig and a black scarf covering your face.  You carried a 15 cm long knife and a cream coloured bag.  You approached the rear teller's counter with the knife in your right hand.  Two female bank employees were present at the counter.  No other customers were present in the bank at this time.  You put the bag on the counter and said, "Put the money in the bag."  One of the tellers activated the alarm beneath the counter.  The tellers then told you they did not have access to money.  You made a second demand that was met with the same response.  You were told the alarm had been activated.  You said, "This is bullshit", and left the bank.

4       You were arrested at 9.45 pm on the same day.  You cooperated with the police by assisting them in the search for evidence.  The next day, you were interviewed in the presence of a third person and made admissions to the offending.

5       Both victims have provided statements detailing the significant impact the offending has had upon them.  One victim, who had a pre-existing condition of mild generalized anxiety disorder, is now suffering mixed anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.  She has had to seek both psychological and psychiatric assistance to deal with these conditions.  She feels unsafe at work and detached from her workplace and co-workers. She is unable to work full-time.  She is struggling with the fact that she does not feel safe anymore.  The second victim also feels unsafe.  She is anxious and jumpy and has flashbacks about what happened, and she will be attending counselling sessions to deal with her anxiety.

6       This offending is, by its very nature, serious.  It usually causes great harm to its victims and, as I have just explained, it has done so in this case.  The extent of the harm suffered by both victims is a matter to be taken into account in assessing the gravity of your offending.  In addition, whilst I accept the offending was not highly sophisticated, it was planned and you did disguise yourself.  Further, it is an aggravating factor that at the time you committed the offence you were on bail for other matters.  Given these circumstances, general deterrence is a paramount sentencing consideration.  Just punishment and denunciation are also relevant.

7       You have an extensive criminal history.  It commences in 1980 with an appearance at the Coburg Magistrates' Court.  Thereafter, there are many appearances in various venues of the Magistrates' Court.  You have often been sentenced to terms of imprisonment.  You have generally committed offences associated with dishonesty, drugs and the driving of a motor vehicle.  However, in June 1999 you appeared in the Melbourne Magistrates' Court for offending that included two counts of robbery and then, in March 2011, you appeared in the Geelong County Court for armed robbery, attempted armed robbery and attempted robbery. On that occasion you were sentenced to a total effective term of six years' and six months' imprisonment with a non-parole period of four years.  Your criminal history means that specific deterrence and protection of the community are also highly relevant sentencing considerations.

8       I now move to matters relevant to your background.

9       You are 56 years old.  Your early years were marked by hardship and disadvantage.  Your father died in a car accident when your mother was pregnant with you.  You were born into a family of six siblings and your mother struggled to support you appropriately.  Your older brothers were apparently poor role models, engaging in criminal conduct and drug use.  One of your brothers overdosed in 1998.  He introduced you to drugs when you were just 14 years old.  You attended Bellfield State School and Heidelberg Technical College.  You were not a good student and you left school at the end of Year 8.  You have difficulty with reading and writing.

10      You have been assessed by Dr Aaron Cunningham, forensic psychologist, who reports that you have a full scale IQ of 75 and that your cognitive functioning is in the borderline intellectually disabled range.  No doubt your low level cognitive functioning helps explain your poor performance at school.  Since you left school, your life has been blighted by drug and alcohol abuse.  You have a limited work history and you have been on the disability pension for many years.  You have also spent many years in prison.  Apart from the support provided by one of your sisters, you are socially isolated within the community.

11      After receiving your last sentence you were released on parole after serving six years.  Whilst you were only on parole for six months you did manage to successfully complete that parole period.  The fact that you had been provided with stable public housing in Winchelsea may help explain this.  Unfortunately, after completing parole there was a relapse into drug use and further offending.  When you committed the current offence you were under the influence of Serepax and Valium.

12      There is not a lot that can be said in mitigation.  

13      You entered a plea of guilty at the earliest possible time.  The plea is an acceptance of responsibility.  It has saved the victims from the trauma of giving evidence and also saved the community the cost and expense associated with a criminal trial.  You will be given credit for all these matters.

14      I accept that the deprivation and disadvantage suffered in your formative years is a matter to be taken into account in a general way in determining your sentence, so too your cognitive deficits.

15      

Because of your long history of drug abuse and your lengthy criminal history, I am very guarded about your prospects of rehabilitation.  In his report dated

12 September 2018, Dr Cunningham opines that given your cognitive deficits you would benefit from some form of case management through the National Disability Scheme to assist you upon your release from prison.  I have no doubt that assessment is correct.  However, all the case management in the world will come to nothing unless you can somehow manage to do what you have not been able to do in the past, namely, cease the abuse of drugs and cease the abuse of alcohol.   

16      For the attempted armed robbery, you are convicted and sentenced to three years' and nine months' imprisonment.  On the summary charge, you are convicted and sentenced to one months' imprisonment to be served concurrently. I fix a minimum term of two years and six months before you will be eligible for release on parole.  I declare 127 days pre-sentence detention. 

17      Had you pleaded not guilty and been found guilty after trial, I would have sentenced you to five years' imprisonment with a minimum term of three years and nine months.

18      I make the disposal order sought by the prosecution.  Is there anything more, Mr Grant?

19      MR GRANT: 

Your Honour, just in relation to the disposal order, my learned instructor noted that there were - I know Your Honour's been provided a

copy - - -

20      HIS HONOUR:  Yes.

21      MR GRANT:  - - - but there is a few errors in that copy.

22      HIS HONOUR:  We have, I think, been given a corrected version and - - -

23      MR GRANT:  As Your Honour pleases.

24      HIS HONOUR:  - - - I will sign that.

25      MR GRANT:  I apologise for that oversight.

26      HIS HONOUR:  No, that is all right. 

27      MS COOPER:  Thank you, Your Honour.

28      MR GRANT:  As Your Honour pleases.

29      HIS HONOUR:  Yes, thank you. 

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