Director of Public Prosecutions v Lumsden

[2023] VCC 212

IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA

AT Melbourne

CRIMINAL DIVISION

Revised
Not Restricted
Suitable for Publication

Case No. CR-21-01821

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

PETER LUMSDEN

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JUDGE:	HER HONOUR JUDGE CHAMBERS
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:	13 February 2023
DATE OF SENTENCE:	21 February 2023
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Lumsden
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2023] VCC 212

REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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Subject:Criminal law

Catchwords:              Guilty plea – sentence – sexual assault of a child aged 16 or 17 years under care, supervision or authority – rolled up charge – sexual activity with a young person outside Australia – tennis coach – incidents of sexual assaults whilst providing massage – breach of relationship of trust – no relevant priors – delay – extra curial punishment – low risk of further offending – very good prospects of rehabilitation 

Legislation Cited:      Crimes Act 1958 (Vic.); Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth); Sentencing Act 1991 (Vic.); Crimes Act 1914 (Cth); Sex Offenders Registration Act 2004 (Vic.)

Cases Cited:Worboyes v. The Queen [2021] VSCA 169; Boulton v. The Queen [2014] VSCA 342

Sentence:                  Two year, six month Community Correction Order made on each charge, to be served concurrently

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APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the DPP	Mr R Gibson KC Ms K Crennan	Office of Public Prosecutions Victoria
For the Accused	Mr B W Johnston Ms A Dixon	Tony Hargreaves and Partners

HER HONOUR:

1Peter Lumsden, you have pleaded guilty to one charge of sexual assault of a child aged 16 or 17 under your care, supervision or authority contrary to s 49E(1) of the Crimes Act 1958 (Vic.), the maximum penalty for which is five years’ imprisonment (Charge 1) and one charge of sexual activity with a young person outside Australia, contrary to s 272.13(1) of the Criminal Code Act 1995 (Cth.), the maximum penalty for which is seven years’ imprisonment (Charge 2).

2The circumstances of your offending are detailed in the Summary of Prosecution Opening for Plea dated 13 February 2023, which is the agreed basis upon which you are to be sentenced. In order to place your offending in context, it is necessary to briefly outline the background to your offending.

Background

3In 2014, you founded Discovery Tennis, together with your business partner, Peter McCraw. The business was established to provide intensive coaching to young, elite tennis athletes.  Discovery Tennis was based at Kings Park Tennis Centre in East Bentleigh.  

4You were born in May 1963 and were 51 years old when you established Discovery Tennis. You and Mr McCraw were both directors of the business.

5The victim of your offending is Ms Aliya Crowe[1] who was born in March 2001. You were her tennis coach.

[1]A pseudonym.

6When these reasons are published, the name of the victim and her family will be anonymised to prevent her identification.

7Aliya was 14 years old when she and her mother, Ms Regina Crowe[2] first met you and Mr McGraw at a tennis tournament in Canberra in October 2015. The purpose of this meeting was to discuss whether Aliya was interested in joining Discovery Tennis. You began coaching her shortly after this meeting.

[2]A pseudonym.

8Training with Discovery Tennis cost $22,000 per year, excluding private coaching sessions. Private lessons were a further $120 per session. Aliya trained intensively; up to four hours per day, Monday to Friday every week.

9During her first 18-months with Discovery Tennis, the only text messages Aliya received from you related to training times and locations. However, this changed after you travelled with her to Fiji in June 2017 for the South Pacific Junior Tennis Championships. On your return from Fiji, Aliya noticed a dramatic increase in the number of text messages she received from you. The content of the text messages also became far more personal. For instance, whilst still coaching her, you wrote:

·        ‘Spending time with you is wonderful. Thank you for being such a great person to spend my day with. It’s an honour’;

·        ‘Well, what can I say, you’re my girl!’;

·        ‘Oooh thanks daughter #3. You mean the world to me. We must be really good friends as you are one of the few people I allow to call me Lumo and only the second student and yes Steve was the only other person so you are in good company as he was and is a star as well. Thanks for thinking of me’;

·        ‘PS. I believe in you. Not just as a tennis player, so much more than that’;

·        ‘You even came from a swim when I was floating and mediating (sic) as the sun came up. Now that was special, thanks for joining me’;

·        ‘Of course. I can drop you home every night if you want. You are my favourite passenger and local DJ’;

·        ‘I am all yours student of the week’;

·        I am of course a bit worried about you my friend. Do you want to chat about ‘stuff’ at any stage? If yes you know you have support here in Disneyland. You have an ‘open door’ anytime’[3].

[3]Summary of Prosecution Opening for Plea dated 13 February 2023 – Exhibit A at [11]

10In February 2018, Aliya attended a tennis tournament in New Zealand with Tennis Australia. Prior to attending this tournament, she had told you that her mother had engaged in instances of family violence towards her. Whilst she was in New Zealand, Aliya spoke to another tennis coach from Tennis Australia about her concerns. The allegations regarding her mother were reported to authorities and a family violence intervention order was made.

11While Aliya was at the tournament, her mother contacted Peter McCraw and asked that members of Discovery Tennis not contact her or her daughter until further notice.

12Nonetheless, you continued to have contact with Aliya following the tournament. She left her family home and moved to live with cousins. You organised for her to continue training at Discovery Tennis on a ‘compassionate scholarship’, which meant she did not have to pay any fees. This was the first and only scholarship offered by Discovery Tennis. You told Aliya’s cousin that her fees had already been discounted heavily, therefore the scholarship was not a big deal. Mr McCraw later told police it was your idea to provide the compassionate scholarship to the victim.

13Your interest and involvement in Aliya’s private and personal life extended well beyond that of a tennis coach and pupil, as demonstrated by the extensive number of text messages you exchanged with her over a two year period.

14In 2017, you began giving Aliya massages, purportedly as part of your role as her tennis coach. You did so even though Discovery Tennis employed a qualified massage therapist and conditioning coach as part of its team.

15On occasions Aliya’s boyfriend was present during a massage session, he heard her say she had ‘had enough’, to which you would respond that you ‘weren’t done’ and would continue the massage.

16On most occasions, after the massage, you would gently stroke your fingers over the areas of her body that you had massaged, saying you needed to give that part some “lovin”[4]. Aliya would often tell you she did not need a massage, even if she was feeling sore, because these massages made her feel uncomfortable. In response, you would tell her the massages were ‘better for her tennis’ and ‘made her a professional, as she was looking after her body’. You would insist on giving the massage by refusing to ‘take no for an answer’, and made Aliya feel guilty for not being committed to her tennis if she refused[5].

[4]Ibid at [18]

[5]Ibid at [19]

17It is in this context that the offending occurred.

Charge 1  -  Sexual assault of a child aged 16 or 17 under care, supervision or authority (rolled-up charge)

18On or around 12 February 2018, when the victim was still 16, she returned from a tennis tournament in New Zealand. You organised a private coaching session with her on the weekend at the Kings Park Tennis Centre. No other people would be around at that time. After finishing the session, you told the victim to go to the massage room, so you could give her a massage. After entering, you closed the door.

19You then told her to remove her clothing, which she did, except for her underwear. You placed a towel over her, but later moved the towel stating you could not get to a particular area without moving it and that with the towel, the massage would not be as effective.

20The victim was lying face down on her stomach as you massaged her legs. You then separated her legs; massaging each leg, one at a time. In a movement you repeated multiple times, you then ran your hands higher up her leg, touching her on the outer lip of her vagina with your thumb over her underwear, before running you hand back down her leg.

21The victim did not say anything to you at the time and tried to convince herself that you did not do this deliberately.

22This is the first occasion on which you sexually assaulted the victim, then 16, whilst she was under your care, supervision or authority.

23The other two occasions occurred in July and August 2018, when the victim was 17 years old. These instances of sexual assault both occurred in a similar fashion.

24On these occasions, after finishing private lessons with the victim at the Kings Park Tennis Centre, again on the weekend, you told her you would give her a massage. She said she did not want one, but you insisted, telling her it was best for her tennis. You again told her that it made her a professional.

25You directed her to the massage room and told her to remove her top and shorts. You closed the door and she laid on the massage table, face down. The victim was only wearing her underwear as you massaged her back.

26You then massaged down to her buttocks, working your hands into her muscles and rubbing in a circular motion across both buttocks. You then lifted her underwear and, putting your hands under her underwear, massaged close to the lower part of her buttock, nearly touching her vagina.

27You then began to massage her legs, and after separating them, used one hand to massage her leg, one at a time. You began to massage higher up her leg, and in a movement you repeated multiple times, you touched the victim on the outer lip of her vagina over the top of her underwear. 

28The victim did not say anything to you on either occasion, as she wanted to appear she was professional with her tennis.

29These further two instances of sexual assault when the victim was 17, also occurred whilst she was under your care, supervision or authority. The three instances are each reflected in Charge 1, which is a rolled-up charge.

Charge 2: Sexual activity with a Young Person outside Australia

30The second charge relates to an incident in August 2018 when you and the victim attended Fiji for the Oceania Closed Junior Tennis Championships.

31After arriving in Fiji for the tournament, you gave the victim daily massages in secluded areas of the hotel.

32On one day of the tournament, you told the victim to come into your hotel room for a massage. You did so despite the rules of the tournament clearly stating that players and coaches were not to be in a room together. You said words to the effect that you owed the victim a ‘duty of care’, and ‘so you were allowed to ask.’[6]

[6]Ibid at [28]

33When the victim entered your hotel room she saw that you had placed a towel on the double bed. She was wearing bathers and thin sports clothing over the top. You began to massage her on the bed, beginning with her back and buttocks. You told the victim to turn over so you could massage her pectorals. You started to do so, before moving your right hand across her breasts, underneath her bathers top, touching both of her breasts, including her nipples.

34This is the conduct that gives rise to Charge 2 – sexual activity with a young person outside Australia.

Complaint and investigation

35In July 2018, the victim’s mother met with a member of the Integrity and Compliance Unit of Tennis Australia, Mr Rhys Harrison and provided him with copies of text messages she had discovered passing between you and her daughter. Her mother also contacted the police.

36On 18 October 2018, Mr Harrison interviewed the victim regarding allegations you were grooming her and had sexually assaulted her. In that interview, she denied she had been sexually assaulted by you.

37However, on 8 November 2018, the victim was further interviewed by Mr Harrison during which she detailed her complaint of inappropriate sexual behaviour, which she then confirmed in a follow-up statement she made to Tennis Australia on 15 November 2018. She also disclosed the allegations to a counsellor working for Tennis Australia, Ms Pauls who informed your business partner, Mr McCraw.

38On that day the victim  also met with your wife, Ms Kristy Taylor and told her you had massaged and brushed against intimate parts of her body. The victim thought these incidents were not intentionally sexual at that time, however, she later concluded there was ‘no question they were deliberate acts’.[7] In response to the victim’s complaint, your wife told her she had misinterpreted the situation.

[7]Ibid at [32]

39The victim made her first statement to police on 27 March 2019.

Arrest and interview

40On 24 July 2019, a search warrant was executed at your home address in Eaglemont and you were arrested. When interviewed by police you denied the allegations, stating your conduct had been misinterpreted and that you were ‘naïve, not a criminal’.[8]

[8]Ibid at [42]

41Amongst other things, you told the police:

·        That you gave the victim massages because in your role as a high-performance coach, you were “a physio, masseuse, nutritionist, and dietitian”;

·        That you gave the victim shoulder, back and foot massages but denied ever massaging her upper thigh area, or sexually touching her; and

·        Denied being fixated on her, but rather you were worried about her, and wanted her to achieve her dreams. You said the messages were ‘enthusiastic and encouraging messages’, intended to support her.[9]

[9]Ibid at [43] & [44]

42In your interview, you denied sexually assaulting the victim in your hotel room in Fiji, stating the only time she was in your room was during a Skype session scheduled with the counsellor.

43During the police interview, you were asked about the Tennis Australia Code of Conduct, but you denied it applied to ‘high-performance’ coaches, such as yourself, where the boundaries were more ‘flexible’.

Procedural history

44After being interviewed by police in July 2019, a further 16 months elapsed before you were charged on 6 November 2020. This delay was through no fault of yours. The prosecution fairly conceded that this delay was caused by a change in the officer in charge of the investigation and the failure of Victoria Police to prioritise the matter. 

45The case proceeded to a contested committal on 16-24 August 2021 and was ultimately listed for trial, with a trial estimate of 15 days, commencing 8 February 2023. Following discussions on that date, the matter was listed for a sentence indication hearing before me on 10 February 2023. After the sentence indication was given, the matter resolved to a guilty plea on that date.

46More than 3 ½ years have passed since you were first interviewed regarding these allegations in July 2019. I return to the significance of this delay later in my reasons.

Nature and gravity of the offending

47I turn now to discuss the nature and gravity of your offending.

48The law places an absolute prohibition on sexual activity with a child aged 16 or 17 where a relationship of care, supervision or authority exists with respect to that child. The law does so in recognition of the power imbalance that is inherent in such relationships and the corresponding vulnerability of the child where that relationship of trust is abused. The gravity of the offence is reflected in the maximum penalty of five and seven years’ imprisonment applicable to the respective State and Commonwealth offences.

49At the time of this offending, you were in your mid-50s. There was a significant disparity in age between you and the victim, then 16 and 17 years of age. You had been her tennis coach since she was 14 years old.  She was an elite athlete with a clear aspiration to become a professional tennis player. In order to achieve her goal, the victim had committed to intensive training schedules, interstate and international competitions, and distance education. In turn, her family had devoted significant financial resources to her training through Discovery Tennis. It is in this context that her relationship with you as her tennis coach assumes such significance in her life. Your sexual offending profoundly breached the obligation of trust implicit in your role. Her vulnerability was heightened at a time you were aware she was estranged from her mother.

50The voluminous text messages sent to the victim by you indicate how you allowed the boundaries that should exist between a coach and pupil to blur. Against that background, you began to provide the victim with massages and continued to do so, even though Discovery Tennis had employed a qualified massage therapist and conditioning coach for this purpose. You persisted in performing these massages despite the multiple occasions on which the victim told you she did not require one; telling her the massages were necessary for her to ‘be a professional’ or to demonstrate her commitment to her tennis.

51Having persuaded the victim that the massages were necessary, you took advantage of the opportunity that existed during those massages to sexually assault her on the three separate occasions that are encompassed by Charge 1. By pleading guilty to that charge, you accept that the touching was intentional. Although the one maximum penalty applies to this charge, it is relevant that the offence reflects the three occasions on which, whilst massaging the victim, you repeatedly massaged the outer lips of her vagina over her underwear, and on two of those occasions, over her buttocks close to her vagina. The sentence I impose for this offence must reflect the totality of your offending.

52As to the Commonwealth offence, your obligation to the victim was all the greater in circumstances where she was travelling, alone with you, outside of Australia.  In clear contravention of the tournament rules that applied in Fiji, you invited the victim into your hotel room to be massaged, during which you engaged in sexual activity with her by massaging both of her breasts, including her nipples, under her bikini top.

53As highlighted by Counsel on your behalf, the acts constituting the various assaults could not be characterised at the upper range of seriousness for offending of this kind. The sexual assaults were not accompanied by force, threats of violence or other demeaning conduct. Rather, it is the breach of trust that founds the gravity of your offending. The law aims to protect young people against the harm implicit in sexual offending in such circumstances: a harm that is borne out by the victim impact statement of the victim in this case.

54In her victim impact statement, Aliya Crowe describes the multi-faceted impact your offending has had on her life. Emotionally, she says she suffered from crippling anxiety and panic attacks that prevented her from training. She says she now struggles with intimacy. She describes how your offending undermined her ability to trust other coaches, and ended the career she had aspired to, stating:

“Becoming a professional tennis player has been my dream since I was 12 years old. I always knew I had it in me to accomplish this achievement and I was on my way to victory until these offences were committed…[pulling] my dreams out from under me[10].”

[10]Victim Impact Statement declared by Aliya Crowe on 13 February 2023 – Exhibit B

55She ends her statement with a note of optimism:

“All being said, I am finally relieved that this case is coming to an end and I can now begin my healing process.”[11]

[11]Ibid

56Her victim impact statement also reflects on the damage done to the relationship with  her mother. In her mother’s victim impact statement, Ms Regina Crowe speaks of the division she feels you created between her and her daughter, and the emotional impact of losing contact with her child as a consequence.

57Your moral culpability for your offending conduct, in breach of the relationship of trust owed by you to the victim, is significant.

Personal circumstances

58I now turn to your personal circumstances.

59You were born in May 1963, and are now 59 years old.

60You were born in Melbourne, the youngest of four boys. Having completed Year 12 at MacLeod High School, you graduated from Latrobe University with a Bachelor of Social and Behavioural Science.

61You have a long and continuous employment history. After graduating, you worked at the Commonwealth Bank, and later as a sales manager at South Corp. However, as highlighted by your Counsel, the game of tennis has always been your life’s passion. You played tennis from an early age into secondary school, and attempted to play professionally. You then turned to coaching tennis in your 30s, coaching thousands of people of all ages from that time.

62You have also contributed to the community more broadly in undertaking various voluntary roles. Between 2010-2011, you volunteered at Lifeline after completing the 6 month accreditation course. Between 2004-2008 you assisted in coaching people with disabilities in North East Victoria for Access All Abilities, and from 2005-2012, you assisted in providing free coaching and tennis lessons for Regional Tennis.

63You met your wife, Kristy Taylor in 1996 and the two of you married in 2000. You have two daughters, one aged 19 and the other 16. The family continue to live together in Eaglemont and your wife remains supportive of you, despite being aware of these charges.

64You have never suffered from mental health difficulties or had drug or alcohol issues.

65Between 2003-2013, you lived on a farm in rural Victoria, before returning to Melbourne. In the following year you established Discovery Tennis with your business partner, Mr McCraw.

66Discovery Tennis was a successful business and at the time of these allegations in 2018, there were approximately 38 students – both full-time and part-time. The income from the business was such that you were able to draw a wage of approximately $175,000 per annum. You report being extremely proud of the business and considered its success your greatest professional achievement.

67Following these allegations, your reputation in the tennis world was besmirched and your life-long vocation lost. Once the allegations were made to Tennis Australia, your accreditation was cancelled. Parents and other students soon learnt of the allegations, leading to a dramatic loss of students. You attempted to continue with Discovery Tennis, confined to a management role, but this also failed. In 2019, your business partner, Mr McCraw decided to leave the business,  requiring you to compensate him for his loss.

68In 2020, after you were charged, the agreement between Discovery Tennis and the training venue was cancelled, and the business folded. You estimate having sustained a financial loss of around $300,000 and have not worked since.

69Given that much of your adult life has been enmeshed in the world of tennis, these allegations have also left you shunned by many former colleagues and friends. You report that your social world has shrunk to a handful of close friends.

Matters in mitigation

70On your behalf, Mr Johnston and Ms Dixon provided detailed written submissions in which they highlighted a number of significant matters that are relevant in mitigation of your sentence, which were expanded upon at your plea hearing.

71First and foremost, you have pleaded guilty to the offences. Whilst yours was not an early plea, there is significant utility in your plea. In doing so, you saved the court and the community the cost and time associated with a trial, a matter of significance here given this was anticipated to be a lengthy trial, with numerous pre-trial issues yet to be determined. Your plea has facilitated the course of justice.

72In cases such as this, I attach weight to the fact that your plea saved the victim from the ordeal of giving evidence at trial. The prosecutor emphasised the relief expressed by the victim that your plea brought this matter to a conclusion. However, your only indication of remorse is that expressed through your plea.

73As the Court of Appeal has explained, an offender who pleads guilty at present is entitled to an additional sentencing discount given the lengthy delays in the justice system that continue as a result of the pandemic.[12] You are entitled to, and will receive, a significant sentencing discount by reason of your guilty plea.

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

74Delay also has a part to play in moderating the sentence to be imposed for this offending. As I have outlined, you were first interviewed regarding these allegations in July 2019 but were not charged until 16 months later. It is now over 3 ½ years since you were interviewed and 5 years since the alleged offending. This is a considerable delay that is not attributable to any fault on your part.

75Delay is relevant to your plea for two reasons. First, I accept that having these serious matters hanging over your head, uncertain as to the outcome, has been a source of stress and anxiety for you. It is this effect that warrants some moderation of the sentence I impose. In order to manage this stress, I note that you required the assistance of psychologist, Mr Matthew Barth for counselling over the duration of these proceedings.

76Secondly, delay may afford an offender an opportunity to demonstrate genuine prospects of rehabilitation.

77Since the offending in 2018, you have not offended in any way. You retain the support of your wife and family. You have lost any prospect of coaching young tennis players ever again. The prosecution accepts you are a low risk of offending into the future. I agree with this assessment, although I consider you would benefit from participation in a specialist sex offender treatment program to develop insight into your offending conduct, and its impact.

78I also have regard to the fact that up until your mid-50s, you had been a law-abiding, hard-working member of the community. You had trained thousands of tennis players, of all ages, without incident. This offending, whilst serious, appears to have been out of character. You had otherwise had an unblemished career over many years. Your only prior matter, from 1985, was a charge of wilfully damaging property for which you received a non-conviction bond. This historic matter has no relevance to the sentence I am to impose for this offending.

79Having regard to your previous good character, absence of any relevant prior criminal history, ongoing family support and lack of any subsequent offending over the last five years, I assess you to have very good prospects of rehabilitation. This finding lessens the need for the sentence I impose to operate to deter you specifically from future offending.

80On your behalf, it was also submitted that since this offending came to light, you have suffered significantly by the loss of your standing within the tennis community and the loss of your livelihood. It is submitted that this, in itself, has been a form of extra curial punishment.

81Once these allegations came to light, your accreditation was revoked by Tennis Australia. Whilst I accept that the loss of your accreditation, after so many years, was a weighty matter, I do not accept that it should be accorded significant mitigatory weight.  The loss of your accreditation as a professional tennis coach is to be expected as a natural consequence of your offending.

82However, the ramifications for you have been far broader than just the loss of your accreditation. You lost the business you had built up over many years, with a corresponding loss of income. Moreover, you have lost the reputation and standing you had established in the tennis community over a lifetime. You have lost colleagues and friends as a result. The ignominy brought about by your conduct has been significant. This, itself, has been a punishment which I have taken into account in sentencing you.

Sentencing submissions

83At the sentence indication hearing, both the prosecution and defence counsel submitted that all relevant sentencing considerations could be met by the imposition of an appropriately conditioned community correction order (“CCO”).

84In cases such as this, the sentencing considerations of general deterrence, just punishment and denunciation assume particular importance in the sentencing synthesis. Others in similar positions of authority with respect to children, such as elite sports coaches, must be deterred from offending in this way, given the harm inherent in such conduct.

85The Sentencing Act 1991 also requires the court to have regard to comparable cases. These are a guide, no more, and are not determinative.[13] Here, the prosecution accepts that a CCO has been imposed in comparable cases, whilst acknowledging the limited utility in comparing cases given this type of offending occurs in a broad range of circumstances.

[13]s5(2)(b) of the Sentencing Act 1991

86Your counsel referred me to recent sentencing statistics published by the Sentencing Advisory Council for the offences of sexual assault which reflects that non-custodial dispositions are not uncommon for offences of this nature, either in the Magistrates’ Court or in the higher courts.[14]

[14]Sentencing trends in higher courts of Victoria 2015-16 to 2019-2020 - Sexual Assault (Sentencing Snapshot No 256, Sentencing Advisory Council, August 2021)

87In your case, the prosecution accepts that a CCO would serve the sentencing considerations of general deterrence, just punishment and denunciation ‘sufficiently’.[15] As the Court of Appeal recognised in the guideline judgment in Boulton[16], a CCO “is punitive in nature, and is intended – and expected – to operate punitively for every day of its operation”. I accept that an appropriately fashioned CCO can operate to deter others, whilst acknowledging the weight that attaches to your guilty plea, your lack of any relevant prior history and the low risk you pose to the community given my positive assessment of your future prospects.

[15]Crown Plea Submissions dated 13 February 2023, at [6]

[16]Boulton v the Queen [2014] VSCA 342

88You have been assessed as suitable for such an order, and have consented to it being made. During your assessment with Corrections, you acknowledged the significant impact of your offending on the victim, given you were in a position of trust as her coach. You were assessed as a low risk of further offending.

89Accordingly, balancing each of the matters to which I have referred, whilst having regard to the maximum penalty for each offence, I sentence you as follows:

90On Charge 1 – being the rolled up charge of sexual assault of a child of 16 or 17 under care, supervision or authority, you are convicted and sentenced to a  community correction order of two years, six months duration. I order that you complete 120 unpaid hours of community work as a condition of the CCO made in respect of Charge 1.

91On Charge 2 – being the Commonwealth offence of sexual activity with a young person outside Australia, you are convicted and sentenced to a correction order of two years, six months’ duration, to operate concurrently with the order imposed on Charge 1. I order that you complete 80 hours of unpaid community work as a condition of the  to the CCO made on Charge 2.

92It is a condition of both community correction orders that you be supervised for the duration of the order, and undertake the sex offender treatment program and any other offence-specific programs for which you are found suitable.

93In addition to the conditions that I have imposed, there are standard conditions of a community correction order.  First and foremost, you must not commit any other offences punishable by imprisonment during the life of the 2 ½ year order.  You must report within two working days of today to your nearest community corrections office.  You are required to advise your supervising Corrections officer of any change to your residential or work address and you must do so within two clear working days. 

94It is a term of all community correction orders that you must submit to visits as directed, and you must obey all instructions and directions of your Corrections officer.  You are not able to leave the State of Victoria without the prior permission of your supervising Corrections officer. 

95You should be aware that the order can be breached if you do not comply with either the conditions of the order or if you offend whilst it is in place.  If you do so, you will return before me for breaching the order.  I may have to re-sentence you on these charges, and I may have to sentence you for breaching the orders. 

96Pursuant to s6AAA of the Sentencing Act 1991, I declare that but for your plea of guilty, the sentence I would otherwise have imposed is a term of 1 year, 8 months’ imprisonment, with a non-parole period of 1 year, 2 months.

97Mr Lumsden, your offending attracts the mandatory registration provisions of the Sex Offenders Registration Act 2004. Given the offending involves both a ‘Class 1 offence’ (Charge 2) and a ‘Class 2 offence’ (Charge 1), pursuant to s 34(1)(c)(ii) of that Act, the reporting period is for life.