Director of Public Prosecutions v Jackson

[2014] VCC 1857

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

AT MELBOURNE
CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

CR 13-01402

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

THOMAS JACKSON

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JUDGE:	HER HONOUR JUDGE SEXTON
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:	11 November 2014
DATE OF SENTENCE:	11 November 2014
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v JACKSON
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2014] VCC 1857

REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the Director of Public Prosecutions	Mr J B Saunders	OPP
For the Accused	Mr A Dickenson	Melaseca Kelly & Zayler

HER HONOUR:

1Thomas Jackson, you have pleaded guilty today to one charge of being a prohibited person in possession of a firearm.  The maximum penalty at the time of the offending was 15 years imprisonment, but since Parliament has reduced that, the law requires me to take into account at the time of sentence, what the reduced penalty is, and so I take into account that it is now 10 years’ imprisonment.

2This offence took place on 7 June 2010, when you were involved in the exchange or the swapping of a firearm which had been modified to become a fully automatic machine gun, for a Beretta handgun.

3It seems that your involvement was limited at least if not specifically to that date, but to a very short period of time, and that there may well have been others more involved than you who are not before the court.

4It should be stated however that given that you had been involved in an offence involving not a gun, but a knife, which had had a significant impact on your life, that you should have realised that the consequences of being involved in something involving a more serious weapon could come home to visit you, and it has.

5As is clear, there are matters that I must take into account in your favour, and I do so.  The first of these is the fact that you have pleaded guilty, and I take that into account in your favour, even though it was only today, after we have had a number of days of pre-trial hearing on other occasions.

6The fact that you have pleaded guilty means that the community has been spared the time and cost of a trial with a jury, and of course, witnesses have not been required to give evidence.  So as a result, the sentence that you receive is going to be less than you would have received, had you been found guilty after a trial.

7Further to that of course, as you are well aware, that because I gave an indication of the sentence that I would not be likely to impose a sentence of imprisonment and you then pleaded guilty, following that indication, I am at law not able to impose a sentence of imprisonment, so that also of course is a benefit of your plea of guilty.

8You are now aged 42 years, and the offence took place four and a half years ago. 

9You have admitted to a criminal history which involves a number of court appearances between your time in the Children's Court in 1988, through to 2003.  The criminal history before me refers to an appearance on 26 August 2010. I do not take that into account as it is after the date of the offence, so it cannot therefore be a prior conviction.   

10This criminal history shows that you have been dealt with by courts mostly for dishonesty offences, and drug offences, both cannabis and heroin, and more recently, a driving offence.

11There are though, as I discussed with your counsel Mr Dickenson, two previous matters involving firearms.  But I accept that one of them was in 1988, when you were aged about 16, and I am told that involved a slug gun.  The other was in 1995, so nearly 20 years ago, involving an imitation pistol.  Those are obviously in a completely different category to the modified, fully automatic machine gun that you were in possession of on 7 June 2010.

12So it is relevant that you are not before the court as a person who has never been in trouble before.  But it is also relevant that you have not been involved with such a serious weapon before, and I then of course turn to the fact that the most recent matter that I can take into account on any basis is 2003, so more than 10 years since you were before a court and dealt with, and that was for unrelated matters.

13I have been told something of your personal circumstances, and of course I have come to know some of them as we have been meeting in court on a number of occasions, in the middle of this year when the pre-trial hearings were held.

14I have received letters from two of your doctors which reminded me of that history, and that as a result of a stabbing that you had happen to you in 1999, you have since then developed symptoms of anxiety and depression, and in fact you have been granted a disability pension on the basis of your inability to work because of anxiety, depression and a panic disorder.

15This has impacted on your life since then, and it impacted on your life in terms of coming to court.  I recognise that you suffered from a panic attack when we first were to begin this case.  You have been on medication, and you have been managed by the doctors, but you continue to have some difficulties managing this anxiety, panic attacks and neuropathic pain following the stabbing.

16The most important factor in your life it seems to me is your family, and you have, as I have been reminded, six children: two adult children who live away from home, and four children aged between 11 months and 12 years.  It seems that things happened in twos for you and your partner Ms Speedie.  You have a 20 year old and a 19 year old, a 12 year old and a 10 year old, and a two year old and a 11 month old.

17I agree with your counsel and also the evidence of the detective Mr Hammett, that your apartment, the flat in which you live is spotlessly clean, and that you have clearly been very careful and good parents throughout the time. I am sorry to hear that the children, the four youngest children, have been put into the care of the Department of Human Services only recently, as a result of Ms Speedie’s recent illness and I have no doubt that you will both be doing everything you can to have the children returned to you.

18It should therefore be apparent to you Mr Jackson, that staying out of trouble, and staying out of gaol is the most important thing you can do to make sure you get your children back, and continue to have them living with you.  So I am sure that will provide the incentive for you to remain out of trouble.

19It is usual in a matter involving a possession of a serious firearm that the court takes into account what it calls general deterrence, that is, that by my sentence, I need to deter other people from being involved in the possession of serious weapons.  But it has been put to me by your counsel that because of your mental health situation with your anxiety and depression and panic disorder, that the need for my sentence to deter others, is not as significant in this case because of your situation.

20So whilst it would normally be of considerable importance, I do accept that it does, what we say is “moderate”, that is reduce somewhat the need for my sentence to deter others.  I also accept by the same reasoning, that deterring you, whilst still of some importance, is of reduced importance because of your mental health issues.  That does not make it less important for you to stay out of trouble though when I say that.

21Considering your history, and the fact that this matter occurred in 2010, I consider that the likelihood of your re-offending is reasonably low and I do hope that you satisfy my confidence in you that that is the case.

22So turning then to the last matter which is also of importance, to be taken into account in your favour, is the fact that it is nearly five years, four and a half years since the offence occurred, and you have not it seems been in trouble since then, because no material has been put before me to indicate that.

23So I take that into account, that the matter has been hanging over your head in that time, and the uncertainty of that, and that in your particular mental health situation it has been difficult for you, and therefore it being a matter that is taken into account in your favour, it also affects the sentence that is to be imposed.

24I have decided that this is an offence which is serious enough, and because of your criminal history overall, is one that does involve me having no alternative to imposing a sentence of imprisonment, but because of your particular circumstances and the other things I have taken into account in your favour, and of course because I am not able at law to now impose a sentence of imprisonment to be served, but mainly because of the factors in your favour, I have decided that a wholly suspended sentence is an appropriate penalty in this case.

25I am going to convict you and sentence you to four months imprisonment, and I am going to wholly suspend that for 12 months.  I am satisfied that that sentence adequately manifests the denunciation by the court of your actions on 7 June 2010, does provide such deterrence as is required in the circumstances of this case, and adequately reflects the gravity of your part in the offence.

26I think there is only a low risk of you committing an offence punishable by imprisonment during that 12 months.  The purpose of imposing a sentence of imprisonment is to show how serious the offence is, but the purpose in suspending is to allow you to demonstrate your commitment to staying out of trouble.

27Now during the next 12 months, you must not commit another offence punishable by imprisonment, and that is any sort of offence.  It does not have to be the same sort of offence, but any sort of offence that is punishable by imprisonment will mean that you are in breach of the suspended sentence.  That will resolve in a charge of breaching the sentence, but you will also be brought back before me in order to be re-sentenced on this charge.  So do you understand Mr Jackson what would happen if you got into trouble during the next 12 months?

28OFFENDER:  Yes, Your Honour.

29HER HONOUR:  All right.  So the sentence as I have said is a sentence of four months imprisonment, wholly suspended for 12 months.  If you had not pleaded guilty, but had been found guilty after a trial, the term of imprisonment I would have imposed would have been 12 months, to serve six.  All right, do you have any questions Mr Jackson?

30OFFENDER:  No, Your Honour.

31HER HONOUR:  All right.  Well I do hope that I do not see you or Ms Speedie again in court.

32OFFENDER:  No, you won't see me again, Your Worship.

33HER HONOUR:  And that if I do see you, that it is just out in the street.

34OFFENDER:  Yes, I'd like that.

35HER HONOUR:  All right.  No further orders required?

36MR DICKENSON:  No, Your Honour.

37MR SAUNDERS:  No, orders required.

38HER HONOUR:  All right.  Well Mr Jackson, you can be released from the dock.

39OFFENDER:  Beauty.

40HER HONOUR:  There is no paperwork involved in this.  You just need to know you need to stay out of trouble for the next 12 months.  Yes, well I thank counsel for their assistance in this matter, and those others who have been involved in it of course. 

41Mr Dickenson, I thank you, stepping into the matter only recently.

42MR DICKENSON:  Thank you, Your Honour.

43HER HONOUR:  Mr Saunders, I thank you for your assistance throughout.

44MR SAUNDERS:  Thank you.

45HER HONOUR:  We'll adjourn then until 10.30 tomorrow.

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