Director of Public Prosecutions v Cook

[2016] VCC 1176

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

AT MELBOURNE
CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

CR 14-01964

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

JOSHUA COOK

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JUDGE:	HIS HONOUR JUDGE RYAN
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:
DATE OF SENTENCE:	12 August 2016
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Cook
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2016] VCC 1176

REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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Subject:
Catchwords:
Legislation Cited:
Cases Cited:
Sentence:

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APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the Director of Public Prosecutions	Mr S. P. Thomas
For the Accused	Mr M. Habib
For Corrections Victoria	Ms S. Richardson

Pages 1 - 3

 

 

HIS HONOUR: 

1On 5 September 2015, some four months or so after I released you on a community corrections order with conditions for very serious offending, you breached the community correction order by the commission of another criminal offence.  A criminal offence of a kind that you have been committing since you first appeared in the Children's Court.

2Since the date of my order last year, your work has been sporadic.  You have had some months of employment working on a casual basis between September of last year and April of this year - a period of six months or so - but in recent weeks, you obtained a permanent position at the abattoirs at Stawell.

3But for the fact that you are in employment, I would have confirmed the existing community corrections order and sentenced you to a term of imprisonment of 14 days in respect of your breach. 

4The fact that you are in employment has moved me not to do that, but I intend to take some more out of your hide.  I will vary the existing order by extending it for a period of 12 months.  I will vary the number of hours of unpaid community work to be performed under my order to 400 hours.  That is an additional
100 hours. 

5You will appear before me on the anniversary of this variation.  That is, every 12 months you will come before me.  And I direct that the appropriate community corrections officer provide a written report to me every six months in respect of your performance under this order.  

6Do you understand how I varied your community corrections order? 

7OFFENDER:  Yes, Your Honour.

8HIS HONOUR:  Do you consent to it?

9OFFENDER:  Yes, Your Honour.

10HIS HONOUR:  Please sit down. 

11MR HABIB:  Your Honour, I might at this stage, simply raise with Your Honour if it is possible to be noted or ordered that the judicial monitoring might be done by way of video link from Horsham as opposed to my client attending?

12HIS HONOUR:  Upon the anniversary of the order, I will consider an application.  I will not make that order now. 

13MR HABIB:  As Your Honour pleases.

14HIS HONOUR:  By that, Mr Cook, you need to deal with your community corrections officer and if I am minded to have you appear by video link, it will be organised.  If I am not, I will see the body in front of me.  Do you understand?

15OFFENDER:  Yes, Your Honour.

16HIS HONOUR:  Sit down please.

17In respect of the offence for breaching the community corrections order, I will simply find the matter proved and make no further order. 

18The order is being brought to you, Mr Cook, for your signature. 

19Mr Cook, you have effectively been re-sentenced in respect to the original offending that came before me by way of a variation of the order. 

20The purpose of that variation is because you have demonstrated to my satisfaction the condition that I placed upon you, you did not understand, and by your failure to comply with both the conditions - although not breached by the authorities - and your further offending, that you need to participate in the programs that I have directed and to put more hours in. 

21I have found the charge of breaching the community corrections order proved.  Do not bother buying a Tatts lotto ticket this weekend.  Your luck has come in.  All right, come out of the dock and sit behind your counsel. 

22Ms Richardson, I would like to thank you for making yourself available to the court today.  Ten thirty please.

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