Director of Public Prosecutions v Hoggard

[2021] VCC 429

IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA

Revised

Not Restricted

Suitable for Publication

AT MELBOURNE

CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

CR 20-01303

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

KATIE-LEA HOGGARD

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JUDGE:	HIS HONOUR JUDGE SMALLWOOD
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:
DATE OF SENTENCE:	15 April 2021
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Hoggard
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2021] VCC 429

REASONS FOR SENTENCE

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Subject:

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Legislation Cited:

Cases Cited:

Sentence:

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APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the Director of Public Prosecutions	Mr D. Gray	Office of Public Prosecutions
For the Accused	Mr. J. Lavery

HIS HONOUR: 

1Katie-Lea Hoggard, you have pleaded guilty to one charge of theft, one charge of negligently dealing with the proceeds of crime, and two charges of possession of a drug of dependence.  In these circumstances, they carry maximum penalties of ten years, five years, and one year respectively.  I am advised and accept from the Bar table, that so far as this offending is concerned, you have 315 days of pre-sentence detention. 

2The situation is that you are now 31 years of age.  You pleaded guilty to a settled indictment and I regard that plea as having been made early as indeed an offer in these terms was made quite some time ago. 

3I accept that that plea of guilty is accompanied by a degree of remorse and you must also of course get the utilitarian benefit of that plea.  That means in simple language, that you get a discount having saved a lot of people a whole lot of trouble having to give evidence and running a trial which at the moment is a somewhat difficult process. 

4Your criminal history is indeed, is a long one.  It involves of a lot of drug use over the years.  It is important that even at 31, you are still in a situation where you can change your life around.  I am aware of the involvement that you have with CISP and I am very confident they will be able to assist you very much in that regard.

5On the other hand, any theft of a motor vehicle has to be regarded as serious, obviously of course to a certain extent for general and specific deterrence as well as appropriate punishment. 

6It seems to me in your particular situation, as long as there is a program in place for you with assistance with your personal problems, that punishment was really the only very significant sentencing factor in this sentence. 

7A very truncated summary of the matter is that, and I can relate that this summary has been tendered and is on file for anyone with a genuine interest.

8On 5 April 2020, a Volkswagen Polo GT hatch was stolen and on 6 April you were a passenger in that vehicle that - well he is now pleading to it - so that car was actually stolen by a Mr West and your involvement was no more than being in it and knowing or believing that it was stolen.

9You also, in the same situation of that car, that a vehicle had stolen registration plates and you were charged on the basis that you negligently dealt with the proceeds of crime, that being the registration plates which I am assuming have now obviously been recovered. 

10In any event, I do not have to go through all the detail of it. You were a passenger.  The vehicle was rolled at some stage, as I recall it, with Mr West driving it, although that does not matter.

11You, yourself, sustained a broken left ankle and others in the car were hurt.  You were eventually apprehended by police and were found to have in your possession, a small amount of methyl amphetamine. 

12On 10 April, some few days later, another vehicle was detected and you again, had a small quantity of methamphetamine inside a glasses case.  They give rise to the two charges of possess drug of dependence and they are both of a relatively minor nature. 

13Insofar as the one summary offence of commit indictable offence whilst on bail, that relates to those possessions.  I am always concerned about the concept of double-punishment with these things, but in any event, I will simply, on that summary matter, I will sentence you to be imprisonment for a period of seven days and direct that it be served concurrently with the sentence I imposed on the indictment. 

14That, in very brief terms, is the summary of what occurred.  There is a victim impact statement from the lady who owned that motor vehicle.  That victim impact statement eloquently describes the severe emotional trauma and psychological damage, bearing in mind her background, that the theft of that vehicle and the destruction of it, have had upon her. 

15As I have indicated to counsel, there are matters there which are probably more directed at Mr West than against you, but I certainly take that victim impact statement into account, and have great sympathy for the lady who wrote it.

16In the overall circumstances here, gaol is the only sensible disposition.  The Crown suggested a community corrections order.  I think for reasons I will outline very briefly in a moment that that will not be necessary and I think we can simply make an end of it all.

17Tendered on your behalf was a report from CISP and they are indeed in court here today to offer you support.  You have been dealing with them now for some time, and I think it is fair to say that it can be very much summarised in a few words.  That report says,

'Ms Hoggard has consistently expressed her motivation and has demonstrated this through a practical achievement of tasks such as completing the Intensive Driver Behaviour Change program, walking to appointments independently, contacting Ms Danielle Davis.  Ms Hoggard acknowledges that she has underlying trauma and embedded grief in relation to her past lifestyle choices and subsequently her current circumstances. 

'However, Ms Hoggard feels strongly about addressing and creating a stable, external environment prior to untangling and reversing internal factors.  Ms Hoggard frequently refers to the importance of feeling independent and therefore guiding Ms Hoggard to make pro-social decisions is empowering.' 

18I am advised that:

'If Ms Hoggard's matter are in fact finalised' - and I interpolate they will be today - 'then is no longer required to engage with the CISP at the County Court of Victoria.  Her case management episode will be completed.  A warm handover will be provided to her current workers in the community to ensure that she remains well supported in the community.  If required, additional referral pathways may be explored before closure of her episode with CISP.'

19As was mentioned during the course of the plea, this is a situation where a community corrections order in different times may well have been of value, but it seems to me that what has been offered to you, and which you clearly are grasping with some effect, is a far more effective way of dealing with your problems and obviously therefore the community's, in terms of the offending you have engaged in. 

20The prospects of your rehabilitation at this present moment I think are good.  The risk of you reoffending is obviously totally dependent upon that rehabilitation. 

21I have not gone through your past history and I have not asked your counsel to do so.  He has told me from the dock that you are a Yorta Yorta person and I am very aware of the difficulties that can be involved in that. 

22I think for these circumstances I do not need to publicly air any of the personal difficulties that you have had in your life, and again, counsel has not gone there and I see absolutely no reason to do that in a public sense.  I am sure that the people at CISP are aware of what your problems are, and will do everything they can to assist you with it. 

23Accordingly, in all those circumstances, on the four charges in the indictment, you are sentenced to be  imprisoned for an aggregate period of 315 days. 

24I direct that 315 days be reckoned as having been served under this sentence.  A 6AAA is meaningless - 360 days which means I do not have to give a minimum term.  I think that is right, yes. 

25MR GRAY:  And the licence disqualification.

26HIS HONOUR:  Sorry, yes.  Any licence to drive - can I suspend it, I can suspend it?

27MR GRAY:  No, because if she has not got a licence, she would be disqualified from obtaining one, although she has not got one. 

28HIS HONOUR:  So there is nothing to suspend? 

29MR GRAY:  No, there is nothing to suspend, no.  Just disqualified for whatever period a court sees fit.

30HIS HONOUR:  All right.  In these circumstances, where she is living in the country and a motor vehicle can be crucial in terms of trying to obtain employment, in these - well I am obliged to disqualify it and I simply disqualify you from holding any licence and you are disqualified for a period of one day before becoming eligible to reapply.

31All right, thanks for that.  All right, good luck to you, okay? 

32OFFENDER:  Thank you.

33HIS HONOUR:  And as I say to you, if you want to make contact with elders down there, there are some real good people, okay, and there is no reason why if any difficulties arise in your life, lots of people could help you.  All right, so you just remember that.  Thanks gents.

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