Director of Public Prosecutions v Giddings

[2023] VCC 1985

IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA

AT MELBOURNE

CRIMINAL DIVISION

Revised
Not Restricted
Suitable for Publication

Case No. CR-23-00870

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

CARL GIDDINGS

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JUDGE:	HER HONOUR JUDGE RIDDELL
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:	19 October 2023
DATE OF SENTENCE:	20 October 2023
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Giddings
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2023] VCC 1985

REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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Subject:Sentence

Catchwords:              Attempted Armed Robbery --- Common Law Assault --- Summary charges regarding firearms and ammunition --- Use of imitation rifle --- Plea of Guilty --- Limited Prior criminal history --- Child Protection from age 14 --- Chronic mental health issues --- Deterioration in custody --- Positive performance on CISP bail

Legislation Cited:      --

Cases Cited:R v Verdins [2007] VSCA 102; Bugmy v The Queen [2013] HCA 37; DPP v Hermann [2021] VSCA 160; Worboyes v The Queen [2021] VSCA 169

Sentence:                  2 year and 2 month and 5 days Community Correction Order

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APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the DPP	Ms E. Addams	Office of Public Prosecutions
For the Accused	Ms J. Swiney	Victoria Legal Aid

HER HONOUR:

1Carl Giddings, on 19 October 2023 you were arraigned and pleaded guilty to one charge of attempted armed robbery and one charge of common law assault. You have also pleaded guilty to summary charges of unlawful possession of cartridge ammunition and possession of an imitation firearm without an exemption.

2You were 34 years old at the time of the offending and are now 35.

Summary of Offending

3The offences of attempted armed robbery and common law assault were committed by you as part of the one incident on 19 January of this year. The victim of Charge 1, Mr Ahmed, and the victim of Charge 2, Ms Bekkali, were partners.

4At around 11:40 pm you approached their car which was parked outside Debney Meadows Primary School in Flemington, near where you were residing. You were holding what looked like an assault rifle with one hand, which was attached to a strap around your body. There was a second gun attached to that strap. Your face was covered by the hood of your jumper.

5Mr Ahmed was lying down in the driver's seat and Ms Bekkali was sitting upright in the front passenger seat.

6You approached the driver's door. Mr Ahmed saw you and thought that the gun may be fake, as it looked very light. Ms Bekkali also thought that one of the guns may have been plastic. Nevertheless, you pointed the rifle directly at Mr Ahmed, and yelled at both of the victims to get out of the car. Ms Bekkali did so and hid behind the car, as she was scared. This forms the basis of Charge 2 – Common Law Assault.

7Mr Ahmed also got out of the car, and his phone fell to the ground. As you continued to point the imitation rifle at him, you told him to put his wallet on the ground. That forms the basis of Charge 1 – Attempted Armed Burglary.

8Mr Ahmed told you that he did not have anything, and that he was living out of the car. He opened his car door and showed you the clothes in his car to prove to you that he and his partner were living in it, at which time you calmed down. After about 10 seconds, you put your rifle away and started walking away.

9Mr Ahmed yelled out after you to ask if the gun was real, at which point you turned around and pulled out what appeared to be a black handgun from your waistband. Mr Ahmed believed this to be metallic and real. You pointed it at him, cocked it, and yelled at him to get back in the car. Mr Ahmed complied, and you then ran away.  The incident lasted in the vicinity of 5 minutes.

10Ms Bekkali had already called Triple 0. Police attended and located a mobile phone nearby, in which there was a SIM card subscribed to you. Your screensaver image is of a homemade 'slamgun', and the phone had a sticker on the back depicting a rifle. Later examination of the phone SD card located further photograms of firearms and firearms parts, instructions of how to build firearms, and photographs of shotgun cartridges.   

11You were arrested a couple of days later on 21 January 2023 at your home. Police executed a search warrant and obtained the following items –

a. an imitation assault rifle on a strap (forming part of Summary Charge 5);

b.  a black imitation handgun (forming part of Summary Charge 5);

c.  a metal imitation handgun (forming part of Summary Charge 5);

d.  three shotgun rounds (constituting Summary Charge 4); and

e.  two scopes and various imitation firearm parts.

12You were assessed on that day by a forensic medicine registrar as fit to be interviewed with an independent third person; however, an interview could not be conducted as no such person was available.

13You were remanded on that day but were later granted CISP bail on 22 February 2023 after 32 days on remand.

Sentencing Principles and Objective Gravity

14Your Counsel rightly concedes this is serious and violent offending. I accept the submission by the prosecutor that it is inherently serious.

15Attempted Armed robbery is a serious offence, reflected in the maximum penalty of 20 years imprisonment.  Your offence is aggravated in particular due to the menace of firearms.  The sentence I impose must have as a focus general deterrence, denunciation and just punishment.  It must also look to achieve community protection.

16These were innocent people going about their business.  To be confronted with firearms was clearly terrifying for them.  Your counsel rightly submits the fact those were imitation weapons is not mitigating – it is of no comfort to the victims in the moment.

Victim Impact

17Both victims provided Victim Impact Statements.  They were people living out of a car.  I can assume they were in a difficult situation.  Your offending against them has resulted in the breakdown of their relationship. 

18Ms Bekkali describes suffering extreme depression and anxiety. She has Multiple Sclerosis and she says the offending has made that condition worse. She lost her partner of 5 years given the incident resulted in him being hospitalised as a result of his Bipolar Disorder being triggered.

19Ms Bekkali says she is scared of strangers and being alone outside at night. She says she has developed trust issues.  She cannot go to the gym anymore. 'Stepping outside was extremely hard itself'. She says she missed important family and friend events and she cannot go to Flemington anymore, which has impacted friendships with those living in that suburb.

20She says she was unable to work for seven months because of the trauma – she could not leave her parents' house alone for that period.

21She experiences nightmares and has started taking anti-depressants and seeing a psychiatrist. She says she was shaking for a whole week – in shock and fear. She has also lost weight.

22Mr Ahmed says ever since the assault he has felt confused and traumatised, he too has trouble sleeping and is scared to go outside, fearing he may be put in danger again.

23The relationship between them has ended as a result of him being in and out of Royal Melbourne Hospital over the last several months. His relationships with family members has been affected. He says he has become a shell of himself, suffering mania, anxiety and depression. He feels afraid and alone, spending a lot of his time in hospital.

24He is scared he will never be mentally fit enough to have a relationship or a job again.

25His previous work as a contractor is now not possible for him because he is in fear.

26The consequences for victims of unprovoked violence are immediate and often long term.  I thank the victims here for taking the time to outline those matters and I take those matters into account. 

Objective Gravity

27Ms Swiney on your behalf acknowledges those aspects of your offending. It is accepted by you that the offences are of violence and committed against innocent strangers.

28Fortunately, they were not physically harmed although their victim impact statements bear out the ongoing psychological harm.

29Fortunately the incident was reasonably brief.  It seems perhaps you desisted on becoming aware that they were living in their car, although you demonstrated ongoing aggression by producing the handgun.

30I can draw no conclusion about the level of premeditation involved.

31Ms Swiney submits there is an unusual aspect to your offending in that you did not take anything from the victims, hence the offence is one of attempt.  It perhaps reflects some bizarre behaviour on your part.  Ms Addams for the prosecution too described this as an unusual example of this offence.

32I agree with the prosecution that it cannot be described as a low range example of attempted armed robbery.  In my view, it is nearer a mid-range example given the use of imitation firearms, one brandished in the attempt, and another soon after, along with the fact it is committed at night in a car park against strangers.

33There is little dispute that an offence such as this must be met by some term of imprisonment.  However, Ms Swiney submits that there are significant mitigating factors which mean I should not return you to custody but should continue your path towards rehabilitation by now imposing a Community Correction Order.

34Ms Addams on behalf of the prosecution submits that a combination sentence is within range, however, submits that more time in custody is warranted before I release you to a Community Correction Order.

Personal Circumstances

35I now turn to your personal circumstances which impact of course on those submissions.

36I have had the benefit of your Counsel’s submissions, along with a Neuropsychological report authored by Jane Lofthouse dated 26 August 2023, Psychiatric report authored by Dr Nina Zimmerman dated 12 August 2023 and five CISP progress reports from throughout 2023.

37Importantly, the reports of Dr Zimmerman and Ms Lofthouse draw on a range of documents which contemporaneously record your progress, in particular through your adolescence and early adulthood.  It is apparent that there are gaps in your own memory and there are gaps in the documentation and collateral information.  However, I note the following as far as your history is concerned.

38You were born in Melbourne and were an only child. Your parents had separated prior to your birth and you have only met your father on one occasion. Your mother informed you that your father suffers from schizophrenia.

39Your mother moved with you to Camperdown in regional Victoria apparently to be closer to family.  It seems your childhood was somewhat isolated.  You say your mother, a Social Worker, was strict and protective, to the point of limiting your social engagement with others.

40You report coping academically at school.  There are reports that your behaviour gradually became difficult involving outbursts at home accompanied by physical behaviour such as punching walls, although I note you deny any violence towards your mother. You report growing increasingly anxious, and serious anxiety is a common theme in the documentation.

41When you were 14 your mother became unable to care for you and it appears she asked you to leave.  You were placed into DHHS care, and by about 15 you were placed into Secure Welfare although the precise circumstances of that placement are unclear.  It seems at one stage you were placed into foster care.

42You report being prescribed antidepressants when you were in secure welfare as well as a range of other drugs. 

43You have a history of self-harming behaviour, in particular there are consistent reports of an overdose at age 17 after a relationship breakdown, and again in your mid-20s.  Other reports include burning and slashing yourself.

44You have a long history of substance misuse which you recognise was variously an attempt at self-medication. 

45Contemporaneous records from 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2013 and 2014 outlined your engagement with various mental health services, your repeated attendance at emergency departments and a long-term engagement with Orygen Youth Health.  You began your engagement with Inner-West Area Mental Health Service (Waratah Clinic) after a referral from St Vincent's Hospital in 2014.

46You have variously been diagnosed with chronic depression, borderline personality traits or disorder, anxiety, and at various times have been observed to have symptoms of psychotic disorders including schizophrenia.  In 2008 at the Alfred Hospital, you were diagnosed with prodromal (or emerging) schizophrenia.

47You have been medicated on a wide range of antidepressants, antipsychotics and this has at times been problematic in that you have abused a number of those drugs.  In combination, you have had a long-standing problem with serious alcohol abuse and in addition have used heroin, amphetamines and more recently methylamphetamine.

48You have a short but relevant prior criminal history.  Most notably you were sentenced to 2 years in youth training detention in 2006 for an offence of recklessly causing serious injury.  You report that period of detention essentially followed from your time in DHHS care.  Upon your release your public housing in Warrnambool had been burnt down in a revenge attack and you moved to Melbourne.

49Once in Melbourne at age 19 you were the victim of a serious assault where you were stabbed to the chest and to your right eye.  You suffer from chronic pain in your right forehead due to a crushed facial nerve, and chronic pain in your chest. You also suffer from a loss of vision in your right eye and sometimes double vision as a result of this assault.

50You were hospitalised for 6 days in June 2008 and there were queries about your mental health.  On discharge you were referred to Orygen Youth Health which I understand is when that relationship began.

51Your engagement with Orygen is reflected in the dispositions recorded on your prior criminal record, many of which mandated your ongoing compliance with their treatment.

52Your prior criminal history is limited.  The most serious matter is the violence matter for which you received Youth Detention. You have never been imprisoned in an adult prison until your remand this year, and you have never served a community correction order. There has been a 12-year gap between any past offending (theft of a motor vehicle in 2011, possession of a weapon and some driving matters in 2009) and the current charges.  This offence before me reflects a serious escalation of offending but I agree it has some bizarre characteristics.

53You reported to Dr Zimmerman that you failed to be compliant with your medication and treatment in the lead up to this offending, although you have no specific recollection of your offending or what prompted it.  You say that you were either alcohol affected or psychotic – the latter because you are shocked by your behaviour.  It is a distinct possibility that you were using methylamphetamine at the relevant time also.

54You were remanded and spent 32 days in custody.  Although I note you do have past reports which reflect paranoia and auditory hallucinations, it seems that during your remand those features emerged in a stronger way than previously observed.  You were prescribed quetiapine in increasing doses.

55After your release you presented to the emergency department of Royal Melbourne Hospital the following day and on another later occasion and reported hearing voices.  You were locked out of your accommodation which had been boarded up.

56You returned to the care of Waratah Clinic and your general practitioner and you are currently prescribed methadone, Effexor (antidepressant), Olanzapine and Seroquel (atypical antipsychotic medication), diazepam (anti-anxiety) and metformin (in relation to blood sugar and weight loss).

57Dr Zimmerman notes there is a concerning reliance on pharmaceutical therapy, and in particular notes the anxiety when you withdraw from prescription medication.  She opines that you really need to be engaged in psychological therapy and drug and alcohol treatment for your underlying issues.  To that end there are some positives.

58First, you report being abstinent from illicit drugs during and since your time in custody.  You report also being able to abstain from alcohol for periods and a significant reduction in any alcohol use.

59Second, you have engaged very well with the CISP program on bail.  The reports all talk in positive terms over the period of months since you have been bailed.

60Third, and in particular having completed 4 sessions of psychological counselling via CISP, you then requested more counselling engagement.  That appears to be a new and different level of motivation for you.

61Fourth, you saw your mother for the first time since 2022 recently and report that as a positive, despite the fact you experience significant anxiety in open spaces and crowds and struggle to visit her if using public transport.

62Fifth, you have stable public housing which you have had for 8 years.  You are currently awaiting a move into a new housing complex.

63It is apparent from that summary that yours is a very complex intellectual and mental health profile.   Dr Zimmerman describes it as such.  It appears to me that her conclusions about appropriate diagnoses are somewhat affected by the gaps in the history and collateral information.

64Nonetheless she diagnoses you formally as having traits of a Bipolar Personality Disorder as well as antisocial behaviours, traits of Borderline Personality Disorder, a long history of anxiety, Major Depression meeting diagnostic criteria and Incipient Schizophreniform disorder. The diagnosis of an unspecified schizophrenic spectrum disorder reflects your experience of distressing psychotic symptoms at times although at this point, she could not confirm diagnosis of an enduring psychotic illness.  The unspecified diagnosis also seems to reflect a lack of detail, for example in the reports from Waratah clinic at various times when you have reported voices and paranoia. 

65Dr Zimmerman also recognised that although she does not diagnose you with PTSD, you have suffered some significant traumas since your teenage years.

66Neuropsychologist Ms Lofthouse, after psychometric testing, concludes you  possess Low Average intellectual functioning (IQ). There is a query over a suspected acquired brain injury (ABI); however, it is apparent that is difficult to determine given long-term substance use and your past history of assault. At this point that diagnosis is excluded.

67Your level of depression is in the extremely severe range and level of anxiety is in the extremely severe range and beyond that which she would expect.

68Fortunately, the pharmacological and other treatments have been positive.  You report your psychotic symptoms are resolved.  Neither assessor observed you to be experiencing those at the time of their assessments.  That is in keeping with what Dr Zimmerman observed that although you will have a lifelong vulnerability 'to experiencing heightened paranoia and potentially hallucinations at times of extreme stress, appropriate and judicious use of antipsychotic medication and psychosocial input will reduce the frequency and intensity of any such episodes.’

R v Verdins

69The expert reports, drawn as they are from contemporaneous records, demonstrate that you have a range of longstanding mental health disorders.  Those have been overlaid by alcohol and drug use, but nonetheless remain. 

70Although Counsel properly conceded that on the basis of the expert reports and the limitations on those assessors, she could not submit that limbs 1-4 of Verdins[1] are enlivened, I must take into account your longstanding mental health history. 

[1] R v Verdins [2007] VSCA 102

71I do note the comments of Dr Zimmerman that your personality structure is of course enduring and as such would have been present at the time of the offending, and the comments of Ms Lofthouse, namely,  –

'His intellectual deficits were present at the time of the criminal offending that led to his current charges and will continue to impact on his function into the future.

On testing Mr Giddings demonstrates mild impairment for both verbal and nonverbal
abstract reasoning and planning coupled with memory and attention deficits and slow
mentation. Taken together these intellectual deficits may cause him to engage in poor problem solving and he may experience some confusion and related frustration. It is possible that intellectual impairment has contributed to, but cannot fully explain, the behaviour that resulted in his current charges.'

72She also notes the likely contribution of alcohol and possibility illicit drugs.  She says:

'Considering the pattern of Mr Giddings’ long-standing psychiatric issues it is more than likely that they were present at the time of the criminal offending that resulted in his current charges and would have placed him at risk of mood instability, distress, impulsive behaviour and poor problem solving. In this way Mr Giddings’ psychological issues would have contributed to the criminal offending that resulted in his current charges.'

73It is correct that neither assessor can determine whether your mental impairment played a part in your offending given your lack of memory and given your concession that you were likely alcohol affected.  However, it seems to me that there must be some relationship to your diagnosed disorders.  Whether that reaches a level to enliven Verdins I cannot say.  However, I take into account your chronic and serious mental health conditions as a backdrop to the offending.

74Ms Swiney submitted that in a different way your background enlivens the principles of Bugmy v The Queen[2] in that your life changed once your mental health issues started to emerge in your early teens.  It was those issues which led to your placement in DHHS care and in turn to Youth Justice. 

[2] [2013] HCA 37

75Ms Addams disputes that those principles are applicable, while conceding that of course your background is relevant to my assessment.

76The Bugmy principles are broad in their application.  Regardless of whether they are enlivened here, I take into account the course of your life in particular since your early teens.  It has clearly been a struggle. You have been the victim of various traumas. You have been in State care and experienced juvenile detention and homelessness. Your relationship with your mother has been dislocated at times. Your education is incomplete.  Your alcohol and drug addiction have been a means of self-medication.  Your anxiety and depression have been ongoing.  All of those matters have played a part in your development and in where you are now.   

77Those matters to my mind do reduce your moral culpability to some extent.  That is, your subjective culpability cannot be equated with a person who committed the same offences but had the advantage of a normal, stable and regular home environment, or who is without complex mental health history and ongoing diagnosis.  That is a reflection of the principle of equal justice.  Though like must be treated as like, where there are differences they should be recognised.[3]

[3] DPP v Hermann [2021] VSCA 160

78There was no dispute that limbs 5 and 6 of Verdins are enlivened, namely that you will experience custody in a way which is more onerous than for a person without your mental impairment profile, and that your mental health is likely to decline in custody.  I will return to this in a moment.

Plea of Guilty

79You have pleaded guilty to this offending and you indicated your plea at a very early stage, namely in May of this year, some months after the offences.  You receive the benefit of your plea.  It saves the court and the community the cost and time of a criminal trial.  Importantly it saves the victims reliving what was a traumatic event.

80Your plea was entered at a time when the court backlog entitles you to an additional and palpable discount.[4]

[4] Worboyes v The Queen [2021] VSCA 169

81In my view your plea is also a reflection of some remorse for your offending behaviour. That is apparent through the expert reports and CISP reports.  You expressed distress and concern at the seriousness of your behaviour.

Prospects of Rehabilitation

82In terms of your prospects of rehabilitation, I take into account the fact you have not reoffended since your release from custody, and also that there was that significant period without offending prior to this incident.

83I take into account the contents of the CISP reports, in particular the client progress report authored by Forensic Alcohol and Drug Clinician, Mr Arthur Tsonis, from the Australian Community Support Organisation. Mr Tsonis writes that you demonstrate an understanding of the impact of problematic alcohol use on your offending behaviour, and that you have identified triggers and risk factors. He reports that you have made other positive steps in your life aside from your alcohol treatment, including developing pro-social relationships, and that you have a number of other protective factors in place, including stable housing, abstinence from drugs, engagement with mental health services, and a willingness to engage with community services.  As Ms Swiney stated, if you can demonstrate that positive engagement under the anxiety of these proceedings pending, that bodes well for your rehabilitation.

84If you can remain engaged with those supports, your prospects of rehabilitation are reasonably positive.  Equally in my view, if you can pursue your application for a support package under the NDIS that could also provide you with an additional raft of supports.

85Both Counsel rightly highlighted the competing considerations in sentencing you.  It is a difficult task given the serious offences committed. 

Current Sentencing Practices

86I have taken into account the maximum penalties for each offence and the current sentencing practices for offences such as these.  There is no doubt that but for your longstanding mental health issues and the additional mitigating features, which I will return to, a further term of imprisonment would be warranted.  However, all cases turn on the offending and the offender. There are always similarities and differences. Ultimately, I must impose a just sentence in all the circumstances before me and that is what I have endeavoured to do.

87In my view the community is best served by your full rehabilitation.  Community protection is achieved by you being monitored for compliance with mental health treatment and monitored for any substance abuse.  It is best served by engaging you in psychological counselling. 

88There is a real and serious risk that your mental health will deteriorate in custody, as it did in February this year.  To return you to that setting in my view would seriously jeopardise the gains already made and may risk destabilising your mental health and increasing your risk of further offending, either through conflict in the prison setting, or on your release.

89I note the comments of Dr Zimmerman in that regard, in particular your recognition that a number of your symptoms were precipitated by or exacerbated by your experience in custody, and your inability to cope with high stress situations given your anxiety.  She states -

'I believe that Mr Giddings will experience the highly charged and stressful environment of a prison as a threatening and hostile place and there is a risk of impulsive behaviours being triggered that may place him in conflict with other prisoners.'

Conclusion as to appropriate Sentence

90So while I take into account the particular impact on the victims here, I have concluded that putting you back into the custodial setting for up to 12 months is not the appropriate sentence in all the circumstances.  Those include the strong mitigatory features including your plea of guilty, your lack of significant criminal history, your positive performance on bail, your chronic mental impairment and the proven and likely deterioration in custody, along with the availability of a range of ongoing supports to ensure your continued rehabilitation.  In that sense community protection for any other innocent people will be enhanced.

91I have received a Community Correction assessment report attesting to your suitability.  Critically, the CCO assessment and accompanying mental health screening take into account the recommendations of Dr Zimmerman regarding the appropriate programs and therapies given your complex presentation.

92Specifically, if I attach an Alcohol and Drug treatment condition, a referral will be made to ACSO who will undertake a comprehensive assessment to determine the appropriate standard or complex counselling program to target and control your alcohol and drug use, such as the HiRoads program or its equivalent.

93Inclusion of an offending behaviour program condition will ensure that you are assessed by Forensic Intervention Services to determine the appropriate program to address and reduce re-offending such as an anger management program.

94The inclusion of a mental health condition will ensure that an appropriate referral for Dialectical Behavioural Therapy and/or Cognitive Analytical Therapy where deemed appropriate by Forensic Intervention Service and mental health services will be pursued.

95I commend the recommendations of Dr Zimmerman to those managing your order. And also, the recommendations of Ms Lofthouse particularly with regard to the preference for individual rather than group treatment.  I am making the Order anticipating that those recommendations will be taken up.

96There was a query regarding your ability to undertake unpaid community work in light of your extreme anxiety in particular in any group setting and when using public transport.  Ultimately, I have concluded that there should be a small number of hours attached to this order, moderated by virtue of those features.

Sentence

97In all of those circumstances, the sentence I Impose Mr Giddings is as follows.

98Firstly, I note that I will impose an aggregate sentence on Charges 1 and 2, given they are part of the one episode, close in time and closely connected. 

99On those charges, Charge 1 of Attempted Armed Robbery and Charge 2 of common law assault you are convicted and sentenced to 32 days' imprisonment, plus a Community Correction Order which will be of 2 years 2 months and 5 days' duration.

100I have chosen that specific time period deliberately.  Your Community Correction Order will expire on Christmas Eve in 2025 which will give you a very identifiable and hopefully motivating date by which to finish your order.

101The conditions of the Order will be as follows:

·You will be subject to supervision.

·You are to undertake 60 hours of unpaid community work.  I take up the recommendation of the Corrections assessor, and order that all of those hours may be offset against any treatment hours undertaken.

·In addition, you are to undertake treatment and rehabilitation for drug addiction.

·You are to undertake treatment and rehabilitation for alcohol addiction.

·You are to undertake treatment and rehabilitation in relation to your mental health.

·You are to undertake treatment and rehabilitation by way of programs to reduce your offending.

102In addition, I agree with Ms Swiney that judicial monitoring, that is having you come back so that I can have a report about how you are going, may be motivating.  I propose to bring you back before the end of this year so that I can hear how you are progressing, Mr Giddings.  So the date that I am looking at is Wednesday 20 December at 10.00 am, and that will be a hearing like this one, online, so that you will not have to come to the court building.

103Before I can impose that community corrections order Mr Giddings, I need your consent that you agree to undertake that order.  Do you agree to undertake that Order I have outlined?

104OFFENDER:  Yes, Your Honour.

105HER HONOUR:  Do you understand that if you were to breach that Order either by committing another offence or by not doing the treatment or the unpaid community work as you are directed, that you would be brought back to me and I would then need to deal with you for the breach, and possibly re-sentence you for this offending, that is the attempted armed robbery.  Do you understand that?

106OFFENDER:  Yes, Your Honour.

107HER HONOUR:  All right.  On the summary charges, Summary Charge 4 and Summary Charge 5, you are convicted and fined $250.

108I declare that you have already served 32 days' imprisonment and that that period should be reckoned as having been served under this sentence.

S 6AAA

109In addition, but for your plea of guilty, so if you had not pleaded guilty, the sentence I would have imposed would have been one of 2 years 3 months' imprisonment with 12 months non-parole period.

Ancillary Orders

110In addition I propose to make the disposal order in the terms as it has been filed. 

111Mr Giddings, I just want to run through those conditions again with you for the Community Correction Order.

112So the sentence I have imposed on the attempted armed robbery and the common law assault, the sentence is the 32 days which you have already served.  Plus a Community Correction Order of 2 years 2 months and 5 days, so that will take you through to Christmas Even 2025.

·You are to be under supervision.

·You are to do 60 hours of unpaid community work. 

·In addition, you are to undertake treatment and rehabilitation for drug addiction.

·You are to undertake treatment for drug and alcohol addiction.

·Treatment for your mental health.

·You are to undertake any program to reduce your offending.  You will be given information I am sure about that.

·And I am going to bring you back in December on the 20th at 10 am, so that I can hear how you are going in the early stage of your Order.

113Are there any matters to raise, counsel?

114MS SWINEY:  No, Your Honour.

115MS ADDAMS:  No, Your Honour.

116HER HONOUR:  All right, thanks very much for your assistance counsel.  I will ask my staff, Ms Swiney, to leave you on the link with Mr Giddings, if you would like to talk with him.  I don't know whether you're - - -

117MS SWINEY:  He's just in the next room.

118HER HONOUR:  All right, I wasn't (indistinct words).

119MS SWINEY:  I think that the Corrections Order can be emailed to my instructor who is with Mr Giddings, and then it can be signed and forwarded back to Your Honour.

120HER HONOUR:  Thanks very much, all right.  Thank you, we will now adjourn.

121COUNSEL:  As the court pleases.

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