Director of Public Prosecutions v Coumvoulidis

[2014] VCC 1907

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

AT MELBOURNE
CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

CR 14-01617

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

MICHAEL COUMVOULIDIS

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JUDGE:	HIS HONOUR JUDGE SMALLWOOD
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:
DATE OF SENTENCE:	18 November 2014
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Coumvoulidis
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2014] VCC 1907

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 A. Albert
For the Offender	Mr A. Purcell

HIS HONOUR:

1Michael Coumvoulidis, you have pleaded guilty to 20 charges of robbery, two charges of attempted robbery and one charge of handling stolen goods on indictment ending 916.  Those crimes carry maximum penalties of 15 years, 10 years and 15 years respectively.  You have also pleaded guilty to two related charges, one of committing an indictable offence, that is, obtain property by deception whilst on bail and one of dealing with property suspected of being the proceeds of crime.  Those charges carry maximum penalties of three months and two years respectively.

2You have also pleaded guilty to a number of unrelated summary offences.  I will be dealing with those later.  In your particular situation, the matters that carry terms of imprisonment are one of driving at a speed dangerous, and two of drive whilst suspended.  The balance of those charges carry monetary penalties only and I will be imposing an aggregate monetary penalty in relation to them.

3You have also admitted the breach of a suspended sentence which has been uplifted from the Magistrates' Court.  On the charge of breach of a suspended sentence, I convict and discharge.  The sentence itself will be wholly restored and I will be dealing with that in terms of concurrency at the end of these sentencing remarks.  The circumstances of the offending can be dealt with fairly briefly.

4Firstly I annex the Crown opening to use my sentencing remarks so that the full detail of the offending is apparent.  Essentially what was occurring between 19 February 2014 and 31 March 2014, you committed a number of robberies.  They occurred in some 13 incidents and involved the robbery of 20 people.  They all occurred on the street late at night or in the early hours of the morning.  You were doing it with what can be fairly described as a gang of between two and five males.  The victims were all young males with one exception.  As it is pointed out, many were Asian students but I am working on the basis that that is because they would be defenceless.

5In each of the robberies, demands were made for phones and cash and in a couple of them, an assault took place though there is no charge for that.  It is clear that you played an active role in each of the robberies and you and your co-offenders wore hoodies.  The circumstances were such that you as a gang were standing over these young people and taking their property.  That offending has to be regarded as serious.  There is simply no way around that.

6Your particular circumstances are such that your driving is a matter of real concern as well.  As I have indicated you will be fined a sum of money in relation to a number of those matters.  But the speed dangerous charge warrants a custodial sentence.  The circumstances of that were that you were detected doing 129 km/h, therefore 127 in a 60 km zone.  Your driving record is certainly not a good one and you have driven while suspended and you would appear to, on your record at least, to have not a great deal of respect for the potential consequences of the way you drive.  I will also annex to these my sentencing remarks, the summaries of the unrelated summary offences.

7So far as these matters are concerned, there has been a great endeavour to have all your matters dealt with at the one time and that is laudable.  You have pleaded guilty insofar as the indictment is concerned at committal and have avoided the need for people to be cross-examined.  Attempts were made to settle the matter prior to that.  I note that at the actual committal a number of people were victims attended.  You must get the benefit of the plea of guilty.  There is a strong utilitarian benefit for it and in these circumstances I am prepared to give you the benefit of the doubt insofar as remorse is concerned.

8You were 18 years of age at the time the offending commenced and turned 19 I note, that the offending all occurred within a period of one month.  You obviously are a young offender and it would have been my preference to have dealt with you by way of a youth justice detention order.  However you have now been on remand for well in excess of 200 days and I do not seek such a report for such an order because I know in advance that they would not accept someone who had done so long in the adult system.

9The suspended sentence that was reached relates to as I am told, being in possession of stolen golf clubs.  There is one victim impact statement in regard to the robberies, and I have read and taken it into account.  In my view, having read all the material a custodial sentence is the only appropriate sentence.  The question was whether that be with a parole period or, which as I can now, a community corrections order to flow on from your release.  I have read over a report from Mr Ives, a psychologist which says that you have a post-traumatic stress disorder and that may well be, but you certainly do not seem to be struggling in gaol and to your credit you have done a number of courses and have endeavoured to better yourself.  In fact you've done, in my view, very well in gaol for one so young.

10I do not consider that the principles Inverdens apply in this situation.  It is a circumstance where the offending was considered, was done in a group, the victims were targeted and it took place over about a month.

11Your background is outlined in that report of Mr Ives.  You were abused as a child and from a dysfunctional family, your father, sad to say was or is a criminal and indeed you have been in custody with him, both working as I understand it as billets in the kitchen.  You had family support at the plea and I accept that family support exists.  What is of concern, and I make this clear that it worries me, is that whilst you have sent me a letter, which you purport to be the author of, relating to your attitude towards all this, when interviewed by the police you made denials to everything and as I understand the circumstances, two members of your family made false statements providing you with an alibi.  You are very lucky that they are not in the dock with you for pervert the court of justice.

12Be that as it may, the overriding factor in your sentencing situation is your age.  Rehabilitation obviously has to be given for greater weighs this circumstance and on the face of it at least, you have woken up to yourself and are doing well.  It is a situation where parole could be of benefit but I would feel much more comfortable with you being on a CCO and therefore having more direct contact and more assistance available to you if it becomes necessary.  The prospects of your rehabilitation are entirely up to you and the risk of you reoffending as it stands, has to be regarded as significant.

13

You have not offended now as for some time but that is obviously because you have been in gaol.  You told me through your counsel that you no longer associate with that group of people.  That is understandable too.

Insofar as parity is concerned, only one co-accused has been dealt with.  That was a man called Russo who was, I understand it, 26 years of age, was dealt with the six of the robberies and received a community corrections order.

I have to take that into account in this sentencing process and I do.  You however, whilst being six years younger have committed clearly nearly four times as many offences and that takes you out of the non-custodial circumstance in my view.

14I have had you assessed for a community corrections order and they have found you suitable and I propose to, if you agree, after the completion of your sentence on these matters, enter a community corrections order with the conditions of mental health assessment, offending behaviour programmes and supervision.  That order will be for two years from the time of your ultimate release and I make it clear to you now before you enter into it, that I am doing it realistically in lieu of parole.  So if you are brought back before me for breaching that community corrections order, the odds on you receiving a very significant further period of imprisonment are very high indeed.

15However having said that, I have indicated that the sentencing remarks are brief because they are dominated by your age.  You are sentenced as follows, and you can stay seated for this, it will take some time:

16On the 23 charges on the indictment, sentenced to be imprisoned for an aggregate period of 12 months.  That is to be followed by a community corrections order with conviction of two years duration with the conditions of mental health assessment, offending behaviour, programmes and supervision.  The mental health is put there because of the significant matters that are referred to in the report of Mr Ives and if you are genuinely trying to turn your life around, they can give assistance to you.

17On the related matters, prescribed as Charges 41 and 42 you are sentenced to one month imprisonment on each.  Those sentences to be concurrent with each other and with the 12 months already imposed. These are so entwined that I do not see any need for accumulation.

18Insofar as the unrelated matters are concerned, in respect of each you are convicted on what is described as Charge 2, the dangerous driving, you are sentenced to be imprisoned for a period of three months.

19On Charge 12 and Charge 1, that being the informant Karsei, you are sentenced to one month imprisonment on each.  Those two one months' are to be served concurrently with the sentence imposed upon Charge 2 for driving at a speed dangerous.  Making on the unrelated matters, an effective sentence of three months.

20On the balance of those charges, you will find an aggregate $750.  I will make no order as to a stay and you can apply to have that be turned into concurrent gaol time.  I will leave it to your solicitors to explain to you how to go about that.

21The one month of the sentence imposed on the unrelated matters and one month of the restored suspended sentence are to be served cumulatively upon each other and upon the sentence imposed as an aggregate on the indictment.  That gives an effective sentence of 14 months.  As I understand the law, I am not obliged to impose a minimum term and do not intend to because the minimum term, in effect, would be a sentence I have imposed.  I am getting a community corrections order instead of having a significantly higher head sentence and I make that clear for these sentencing purposes.

22I think I am right about that.  I do not have to give a minimum.  Just if I did, it would have to be a six month gap.

23MR ALBERT:  Yes.  I'll just check that.

24HIS HONOUR:  No, just check that.  I am making it clear why what I am doing.  But it seems to me to be that if you give up to two years on a - I am sure I am right.  Can you just check that for me, please?

25MR ALBERT:  Section 11 subsection 2, I think Your Honour.  It says, "Court sentences for a period of less than - more than one year, less than two years.  The court most part of the sentence fix a period - may ‑ ‑ ‑ 

26HIS HONOUR:  May?  Yes.

27MR ALBERT:  Fix a period.

28HIS HONOUR:  But if I do it, it has got to be six months, the gap.  All right, so that is clearly understood is it?

29I direct that 229 days be reckoned as having been served under this sentence.  In the normal course of events I would have had a three years community corrections order but that seems to me unfair where he has already undergone a year of imprisonment.  Did any of that not make sense?

30MR ALBERT:  No, got that.

31HIS HONOUR:  If you want to get your client to sign this.

32On the only other matter that I have to deal with before this is signed, on the charge of speed dangerous, any licence to drive a motor vehicle is hereby cancelled, he is disqualified from obtaining a further - reobtaining a licence for a period of 24 months.

33On Charge 1 of speeding, disqualified for one month to be concurrent with the 24 months.  Insofar as the other matters are concerned, disqualification is discretionary and the overall circumstances here I do no not propose to disqualify in relation to them, two years.  The time of disqualified falls sufficient.

34That is going to be have to be as effective from today because there was no s.51 notice.  I am working on that basis.  I mean, he obviously has not driven for quite a while.

35MR ALBERT:  Yes?

36HIS HONOUR:  Yes?

37MR ALBERT:  Sorry, that compensation order, the 19th one ‑ ‑ ‑

38HIS HONOUR:  Yes.

39MR ALBERT: - - -we will withdraw that.  Apparently it was charged, but it was in the Magistrates' Court and it was withdrawn ‑ ‑ ‑

40HIS HONOUR:  No, all right.

41MR ALBERT: - - -And the name came up.

42HIS HONOUR:  That is (indistinct)?

43MR ALBERT:  Yes (indistinct), I will withdraw that and s.6AAA, Your Honour?

44HIS HONOUR:  I do not think I do that when I am giving a CCO.

45MR ALBERT:  Your Honour, does that include that - there is another charge that needs to be transferred.  Maybe it has been added already.

46HIS HONOUR:  What charge is that?

47MR ALBERT:  It was not listed.  It has escaped my attention.  It was Charge 2 for Mr Karsei which was a breach of suspended sentence.  Mr Karsei issued - the informant Karsei issued a breach of suspended sentence charge as well which we have missed, but that has got to be transferred back to the Magistrates' Court.  The breach of suspended sentence is now encompassed by another charge that Your Honour has dealt with.

48HIS HONOUR:  Yes.

49MR ALBERT:  It has been added to my instructor's copy.

50HIS HONOUR:  I will sign the added two copy.

51MR ALBERT:  Yes.

52HIS HONOUR:  I could make an order to direct him that he be regarded as (indistinct) convict on that one, could not I?

53MR ALBERT: If your Honour is so minded.  Let me think about that.

54HIS HONOUR:  We will have to do something to ‑ ‑ ‑

55MR ALBERT:  I will go my Sentencing Act again.

56HIS HONOUR:  We will have to bring this to end somehow because this is a nightmare.  The mended order is now signed.

57

MR ALBERT:  They are all going back to the Magistrates' Court.

They will all be withdrawn so that will tidy everything up.

58

HIS HONOUR:  I just cannot believe that a judge cannot do it.

I know you are dead right, you cannot or she cannot.  All right, that is that.

59Mr Coumvoulidis, you understand what you have done, you cannot do it again.  You did it a lot last time.  I just want to make it really clear to you that if you breach this and you are brought back before me, I am treating it like a parole period, if you get brought back you are going to get a whack.  No way around it.  You are doing well, I am not having a go at you but just keep it that way, all right?  Thank you Mr Albert, Mr Purcell.

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