Director of Public Prosecutions v Medson
[2022] VCC 583
•25 March 2022
| IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA AT MELBOURNE CRIMINAL DIVISION | Revised Not Restricted Suitable for Publication |
CR 21-02627
CR 21-02378
| DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS |
| v |
| JACK MEDSON |
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JUDGE: | HER HONOUR JUDGE KARAPANAGIOTIDIS | |
WHERE HELD: | Melbourne | |
DATE OF HEARING: | ||
DATE OF SENTENCE: | 25 March 2022 | |
CASE MAY BE CITED AS: | DPP v Medson | |
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION: | [2022] VCC 583 | |
REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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Subject:CRIMINAL LAW – Sentencing.
Catchwords: Plea of guilty – Trafficking in methamphetamine – Possession of cannabis and alprazolam – Prohibited person possessing a firearm – Aggravated burglary – Conduct endangering life – Common law assault – Guarded prospects of rehabilitation – Mental health – COVID-19 pandemic.
Legislation Cited: Sentencing Act 1991 (Vic) ss 5, 6AAA, 40(1).
Cases Cited:Berichon v The Queen [2013] VSCA 319; DPP v Meyers [2014] VSCA 314; Hogarth v The Queen [2012] VSCA 302; Powell v The Queen [2015] VSCA 93; R v Biba [2021] VSC 327, [38]-[39]; Rossi v The Queen [2021] VSCA 296; Simpson v The Queen [2015] VSCA 210; Worboyes v The Queen [2021] VSCA 169;
Sentence: 6 years and 5 months imprisonment, non-parole period of 4 years and 3 months.
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APPEARANCES: | Counsel | Solicitors |
| For the DPP | Mr Raimondo | The Office of Public Prosecutions |
| For the Accused | Mr Andrianakis | Hannebery Law |
HER HONOUR:
1
Jack MEDSON, you have pleaded guilty to two separate indictments. The
first indictment (M10262370) relates to offending on 26 January 2021 and the following charges: Charge 1, trafficking in methylamphetamine; Charge 2, possession of cannabis and alprazolam (rolled up count); and Charge 3, prohibited person possessing a firearm. The second indictment (M10992090), relates to offending on 13 May 2021 and the following charges: Charge 1, aggravated burglary; Charges 2 and 3, conduct endangering life; Charge 4, common law assault; and Charge 5, prohibited person use a firearm.
2The charges on the first indictment carry the following maximum sentences: Charge 1, 15 years' imprisonment; Charge 2, 1 year imprisonment and Charge 3, 10 years' imprisonment. The charges on the second indictment carry the following maximum sentences: Charge 1, 25 years' imprisonment; Charge 2, 10 years' imprisonment; Charge 3, 10 years' imprisonment; Charge 4, five years' imprisonment; and Charge 5, 10 years' imprisonment.
3In addition, you consented to this court hearing and pleaded guilty to the following related summary offences, pertaining to the first indictment: possess cartridge ammunition without licence or permit (Charge 8), carrying a maximum sentence of 40 penalty units; possess prohibited weapon without exemption or approval (Charge 9), carrying a maximum sentence of two years; and deal property suspected as proceeds of crime (Charge 10), carrying a maximum sentence of two years' imprisonment.
Circumstances of the offending
4The full circumstances of your offending are set out in the summary of prosecution opening dated 10 February 2022, marked as Exhibit A on the plea.
5
In relation to the offending on 26 January 2021, you were observed by police passed out in the driver’s seat of your vehicle. Police approached to conduct a
welfare check on you and observed a clear snap lock bag in the centre console area that appeared to contain methylamphetamine. You were removed from your vehicle and arrested. Other police attended the scene and assisted in conducting a search of your vehicle where a number of items were located, as outlined in the prosecution opening. Police located a loaded home-made firearm on the driver’s seat where you had been sitting. The firearm was subsequently examined and found to be capable of discharge. Under the driver's seat a black plastic container with assorted and unused snap lock bags, cash and approximately 7.5 grams of methylamphetamine were also located. Under the driver’s seat was a green bum bag which contained electronic scales, approximately 3.1 grams of cannabis, cash and a container with
18 Alprazolam tablets. Under the foot floor mat in the driver’s side foot well, was a set of black metal knuckle dusters. On the rear seat of the vehicle, there was a black Sony Handyman case which contained a spare round of ammunition, similar to the ammunition found in the loaded firearm. Also, in total police seized
$315.55 and suspected this was the proceeds of crime
6You were conveyed to the police station, interviewed and then released on bail.
7
The offending on 13 May 2021 involved you attending at an address on
Blackburn Road, Glen Waverley, where Dawn Foster resided, along with her partner Shane Nunn. They were both present on this day, along with
Foster’s son, Ethan Le Chaminant and four of his friends.
8You attended the address at approximately 11.15 pm, opened the front gate and entered the front yard. Upon hearing some noise Ms Foster went to investigate and upon opening the sliding door to the house she was met by you. You were known to her at the time. You were shouting ‘Where’s Jake, where’s Scooter’s stuff.’ You believed that property belonging to associates of yours had been stolen by the residents of this address. At the time you were holding a homemade firearm and pointed it at Ms Foster from about a metre away. She began walking back into the house and you followed her, shouting ‘Where’s Scooter’s stuff?’ Three of Le Chaminant’s female friends were at the doorway watching you follow Ms Foster. They went into Mr Le Chaminant’s room, where he was at the time, with another friend.
9You entered the house and went into the kitchen where Ms Foster, Mr Nunn and Mr Le Chaminant were now standing. You walked through the kitchen, into a hallway and walked straight to Le Chaminant’s room screaming ‘Jake, I know you’re here, where are you?’ Ms Foster and Mr Le Chaminant were screaming that Jake wasn’t there. You tried forcing entry into Mr Le Chaminant's room where his friends were. You fired a shot at the door causing a loud bang and sparks to come off the door.
10You went back into the kitchen and Ms Foster and Mr Le Chaminant walked into the hallway. You turned towards Ms Foster and pointed the firearm at her and said ‘Where the fuck is he bitch, hurry up and tell me where he is, otherwise I’m going to shoot you, you slut.’ Ms Foster replied that Jake wasn’t there. You then produced a taser and tasered her on the right side of her chest, causing her to drop to the floor in pain. You then pointed the homemade gun at her. You also pointed the firearm at Mr Nunn whilst yelling about Scooter’s stuff.
11
You left the house through the back door and out the front gate, while saying
‘My boys will be here in five.’
12
Shortly after, most of the residents got into the car of one of
Mr Le Chaminant's friends and they reversed onto Blackburn Road. You were driving a Mitsubishi Magna white sedan at the time. You accelerated your vehicle and collided with the rear right passenger side of their vehicle. They were able to drive off and you got out, followed them on foot, pointing the homemade firearm at them. Later examination of the firearm found it was a single shot pistol measuring 24.4cm in total length and capable of firing a
.22 calibre cartridge. It did not have a trigger, but rather a cocking handle.
13You returned to your vehicle and drove off, before stopping near a street sign near the intersection of Highbury Road. You ran off, running through nearby streets and along the way discarding the taser, homemade firearm, clothing and other property. Police later located most of this property, including the firearm. You were observed loitering in the nearby area and were arrested and taken to the Box Hill Police Station for questioning.
14You were interviewed, denied the offending, charged and then remanded in custody, where you have remained since.
Nature and gravity of the offending
15
In respect of the first indictment, the trafficking charge involves
7.5 grams of methylamphetamine. You also had scales and $315 cash suspected of being proceeds of crime. I accept, as was agreed between the parties, that you were a heavy drug user at the time and you were trafficking to support your own addiction. Your offending is at the lower end of this type of offending and I note that the police commenced this prosecution in the summary stream of the Magistrates' Court. While you did not use or threaten to use your firearm, in all the circumstances, I do regard your possession of a loaded
home-made firearm as serious. It is also of real concern, particularly given your status as a prohibited person, your relevant prior criminal history and the fact that you armed yourself again for the subsequent offending.
16In relation to the second indictment, there can be no dispute that your offending on the 13 May 2021 was serious.
17
By way of background, I was told that you previously served the entire
3 year and 2 month sentence that was imposed on you by this court on
13 July 2018. Notwithstanding that you were eligible for parole after 20 months, for some reason, suggested by your counsel to be inexplicable, you were never granted parole. You were therefore released from custody on 28 October 2020, after having served a significant sentence with an entrenched history of
drug addiction and compromised mental health, without any parole period, supervision or mandated treatment. You reported to Ms Cidoni that upon your release from custody you struggled and experienced intense anxiety and panic attacks. You said that your GP prescribed you Xanax upon the approval of your psychiatrist and that you were taking Xanax in copious amounts, along with methylamphetamine. The earlier seizure of 18 Alprazolam tablets from you appears to be consistent with this account. In her report, at paragraph 70,
Ms Cidoni states:
His access to this script medication, especially at the levels reported if his account is true, is concerning. Alprazolam (Xanax) is prescribed to treat anxiety and panic disorders. However, taking too much or taking other drugs (like meth) alongside Xanax results in mental confusion, irritation, rage and manic mood states. Being prescribed Alprazolam or taking it recreationally (with meth use) placed him at a greater risk for criminal engagement.
18
On the 13 May 2021 you report within this context, experiencing paranoid delusions. When police initially located you, you were squatting/kneeling on
Newhaven Road. They stopped you not because you were a suspect but because they had concerns for your welfare. You told police that you had been shot before losing consciousness. You regained consciousness after approximately one minute and according to police you ‘appeared confused and couldn’t recall why police were with you or what had happened.’
19
I accept that you were heavily under the influence of drugs at the time of your offending which likely compromised your ability to think rationally or make appropriate judgements and would have contributed to your ‘disinhibition, antisocial, disorganised and erratic behaviours.’ While this provides, Mr Medson, a context or a relevant context, it does not excuse, or in the circumstances of your case, reduce your moral culpability. Given your history of drug use and offending, you would have been familiar with the effects of drugs on you and your mental health. As was clear from the earlier report of Ms Cidoni dealing with your offending in 2018, your drug use has previously resulted in
schizoaffective symptoms that include delusions, hallucinations, depression and mania.
20The charge of aggravated burglary is an inherently serious one, as indicated by the maximum sentence of 25 years' imprisonment. The community views offending of this kind as extremely serious and expects courts to impose sentence accordingly. In assessing the objective seriousness of your offending, I have had regard to such decisions as Hogarth v The Queen and DPP v Meyers.[1] In the latter decision, the Court of Appeal referred to determining the appropriate sentence for an offence of aggravated burglary through an assessment of the seriousness of the offence and included a number of non-exhaustive considerations as being relevant to such an assessment.
[1] Hogarth v The Queen [2012] VSCA 302; DPP v Myers [2014] VSCA 314.
21
In your case, the aggravated burglary is particularised as entering with an intention to assault and at the time having with you a firearm and a taser. It is a most serious matter that you attended at this home, at 11.15 at night, with a loaded homemade firearm. While you didn’t physically force entry you did follow
Ms Foster into her home after you’d produced and brandished your firearm. There is no clear evidence to indicate what you knew or believed about who would be inside the premises at the time but you obviously followed Ms Foster into the house and you were clearly looking for ‘Jake’, who you believed had Scooter’s stuff. The prosecution submit that your criminal offending has a vigilante aspect to it and was planned. The fact that you attended armed, apparently in pursuit of somebody, suggests a degree of premeditation but I am unable to reach a concluded view as to the precise level of pre-planning involved. I note that you attended alone, without any disguise and you were not in company with others. Also, there is no evidence that you were someone whom the residents of the house were particularly frightened, that is of course, prior to the aggravated burglary. While your offending does not represent the most serious of this type of offence, I do consider this to be a serious example of an aggravated burglary and I regard your moral culpability as high.
22
Once you entered the house you engaged in serious and confrontational behaviour, which is the subject of distinct charges. As outlined in the
prosecution opening, you used the firearm by discharging it, while trying to force entry into the bedroom. Firing a shot in a home when you knew there were people present was an exceptionally dangerous thing to do. You then pointed the firearm at Ms Foster while threatening her. You also assaulted her with the taser. You then pointed the firearm at Mr Nunn, whilst yelling about Scooter’s stuff. You then left threatening that your boys would return and at least for some time, as indicated in the opening, you tried to pursue the fleeing vehicle.
23Overall, I regard your offending in the house, the subject of the relevant charges, as very serious. The possession and use of a shotgun by someone in your position creates the obvious risk that it will be used to cause serious injury or death. Fortunately, such a risk did not materialise here. You however endangered the lives of Ms Foster and Mr Nunn and you assaulted Ms Foster in her own home, where she was entitled to feel a sense of security.
Victim Impact
24I have not received a victim impact statement but I accept that this was a significant intrusion into the home of Ms Foster and her family and that your actions would have been frightening and distressing for those present at the time.
Plea of guilty and remorse
25You entered a plea at a committal case conference on 8 November 2021. This is an early plea of guilty for which you’ll receive the full benefit. No witnesses have been cross-examined and they have been spared the distress and ordeal of further delays in this matter and of having to give evidence in front of a jury. I also accept Mr Medson, that your plea of guilty is indicative of remorse, consistent with your expressions of remorse to Ms Cidoni during her recent assessment of you. Your plea also demonstrates that you are accepting responsibility for your actions.
26
Your plea is particularly valuable in circumstances where there is a large backlog of cases in the court and I recognise it’s utilitarian value. As the Court of Appeal has stated in the case of Worboyes,[2] referred to by your counsel,
Mr Andrianakis, a plea of guilty during the pandemic should result in a
'perceptible amelioration of sentence'.[3] More recently the Court of Appeal has stated that 'at the present time jury trials are only now starting to resume, after having been suspended for many months. It is no exaggeration to say that backlogs in criminal lists are enormous and will take years to clear'.[4]
[2] Worboyes v The Queen [2021] VSCA 169.
[3] Ibid [39].
[4] Rossi v The Queen [2021] VSCA 296 at [13].
Personal circumstances
27
In terms of your personal circumstances they were canvassed in detail by your counsel and in the two psychological reports of Ms Cidoni, dated
18 May 2018 and 1 March 2022.
28You were born in December 1990 and you are presently 31 years of age. You were born in Box Hill, raised by your parents in Iluka, New South Wales and you have one younger sister, now aged approximately 26.
29When you were 10 years of age your family moved back to Melbourne. Approximately 4 years later, when you were still only quite young, your mother was diagnosed with lung cancer which spread throughout her body.
30
She was very ill for a protracted period of time and died of cancer when you were about 15 years of age. You experienced the immeasurable trauma of watching your mother go through chemotherapy and radiation therapy and her body and mind suffer the aggressive effects of her illness. You have experienced profound and long lasting grief as a result of losing your mother at such a
young age.
31
Upon the loss of your mother, your father suddenly found himself as a
single parent of two young children, grieving and yet still having to work full time to pay the bills. At the time he turned to alcohol for relief and I was told your father now laments the fact that he could not be there for his children at the time and give you the attention and support that you needed. He apparently stopped drinking when you were about 17 years of age but by that stage you had already suffered a lot of damage. You had started using cannabis daily. You were
binge drinking. You started using ecstasy and methylamphetamines from when you were 15 following your mothers cancer diagnosis and decline. In 2018 you started using half a gram of ice. You had also used Xanax in excessive quantities over time and from the age of 25 years you also used heroin.
32Your drug use stems from when you were a young boy struggling to deal with the illness that claimed your mother and the breakdown of your family unit and the security you once enjoyed.
33
Given this history, not surprisingly, you were displaying behavioural problems and in Year 8 you were expelled from school for lighting fireworks. In an attempt to curb this type of behaviour your father sent you to live with your aunt,
but you were too difficult to manage. He then enrolled you in the
Croydon Community School which was apparently a school for troublesome kids. There you met, and were exposed to the influence of, other young people who were struggling with their own problems, including mental health and
drug issues. You left school before completing Year 8.
34After leaving school you held a variety of jobs, including bricklaying and roadworks and you have obtained all the necessary tickets to work in these fields. Notwithstanding your serious and long-standing drug addiction you have managed over time to obtain work. Clearly though your drug use has interfered with this and you earlier reported to Ms Cidoni that you had never held a job for more than one year.
35
I was also informed that in 2017 you were involved in two motor bike accidents where you were admitted to the Royal Melbourne and Box Hill Hospitals. You had fractured vertebrae both times and you were prescribed oxy codeine and
Panadeine Forte and developed a dependency. In custody you were prescribed
Endep for your pain.
36You have formed some stable relationships in the past, though your drug use has also impacted these and contributed to their breakdown. You retain the support of your father, step mother and sister.
37I take into account your personal circumstances Mr Medson, and the hardship in your background in sentencing you.
Prior criminal history
38
You do present with a relevant prior criminal history. On 21 March 2011 you received a fine for possess and use cannabis and possess controlled weapon. On 14 June 2013 you were placed on a community corrections order (CCO) for
possess and use cannabis, possess methylamphetamine and deal with proceeds of crime. On 9 November 2016 you were placed on another community corrections order for charges of make threat to kill and possess controlled weapon. On 2 August 2017 you were convicted and fined for charges of intentionally damage property and unlawful assault. On 13 July 2018 you were sentenced to your first term of imprisonment by this court for the following charges: extortion with threat to kill, two counts of extortion with threat to destroy property, prohibited person possessing a firearm, criminal damage, cultivate cannabis and possess prohibited weapon. You received a total effective sentence of three years and two months' imprisonment, with a non-parole period of 20 months. A period of 273 days was reckoned as pre-sentence detention. While serving this sentence, on 19 September 2018 you were dealt with for breaching the CCO imposed in 2016 and driving related matters. You were fined for the breach and on the driving matters you were sentenced to an aggregate term of four months' imprisonment, concurrent with other sentences.
39As I have already noted you were released from the sentence imposed by this court when it lapsed, on 28 October 2020.
40
You are not to be punished for your criminal history a second time, Mr Medson, however, your prior criminal history, particularly your appearance on
13 July 2018, is clearly relevant, to an assessment of your prospects of rehabilitation and to the weight that needs to be given to specific deterrence, denunciation and community protection.
41On your behalf your counsel Mr Andriannakis, in a considered plea, relied upon a number of other factors relevant to sentence, which I will now address.
Mental health considerations
42
In around 2016/2017 you were diagnosed with ADHD and psychosis by
Dr Grocott, Psychiatrist, in Doncaster. You told Ms Cidoni that you had attended upon him 10 times and that you were prescribed dexamphetamine. You felt this condition was present, but undiagnosed, when you were a young boy as you had difficulty focusing and concentrating at school. Apparently, you continued to see
Dr Grocott over the years.
43
You reported to Ms Cidoni a history consistent with drug induced psychosis. You reported experiencing hallucinations, voices and visions and severe
paranoid ideation with ice use, as I have already referred to. You were admitted to Upton House, an adult psychiatric clinic briefly following a suicide attempt in 2018. You were previously hospitalised at Box Hill after you tried committing suicide at age 20, when your first major relationship ended.
44You have also previously been prescribed Seroquel by your general practitioner; you were apparently hearing voices at the time.
45
Ms Cidoni in her most recent assessment of you considered that you presented similarly to your first assessment back in 2018. She undertook
psychological testing and considered that you met the diagnostic criteria for the following clinical conditions:
(a) Major Depressive Disorder (MDD).
(b) Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder with anxiety and panic.
(c) Stimulant Use Disorder (in remission).
(d) Substances Induced Psychotic Disorder (in remission).
46She offers the following opinions:
[67] His drug use overlies a major depressive disorder (MDD) and a complicated grief disorder. Symptoms include self-destructive behaviours, suicidal ideation, intense sadness, anger, irritability and difficulties with acceptance. He engaged in drug use as a coping mechanism after his mother died.
[68] These underlying problems would significantly contribute to his
poor coping, disturbing thoughts, mental and physical distress, and they are impacting the way he thinks, feels and behaves. These conditions are linked to low efficacy with problem-solving and his day to day thinking and his functional struggles.
47In sentencing you I take into account Ms Cidoni’s assessment and opinions concerning your mental health. As I have already stated, given your drug use at the time and its effects on you, your mental health conditions do not invoke Verdins considerations that may have otherwise impacted on your moral culpability. Nor was there any attempt, given the state of the evidence, to advance such an argument on your behalf.
48
What was submitted by Mr Andrianakis however, was that the existence of your impairments is generally relevant and enlivens the fifth limb of Verdins, namely that imprisonment would weigh more heavily on you than it would on a person in normal health. Ms Cidoni opines in her report that: 'There would be compounding and negative effects if [you] were imprisoned for a long term. [Your] maladjustment may worsen … [Your] MDD heightens [your] risk of
self-harm.’ I accept that the fifth limb of Verdins has application in your case and I have regard to this in sentencing you. I also note that the prosecution did not challenge Ms Cidoni’s diagnosis, nor that there was sufficient evidence to enliven limb 5 of Verdins.
Conditions and circumstances in custody
49On your behalf it was submitted that your time on remand in custody has been particularly onerous in the following ways:
(a) Specifically, you have spent some 58 days in lockdown;
(b) You have had to quarantine for 12 days on intake;
(c) No courses have been available to you; and
(d) Any visits have been limited to phone and video calls.
50I accept, and take into account as a factor giving rise to a reduced sentence, that the effect of the COVID-19 restrictions, operating for the entire period you have been on remand, has caused you to suffer additional hardship.[5]
[5] R v Biba [2021] VSC 327, [38]-[39].
Prospects of rehabilitation
51I accept the prosecution submission that your prospects of rehabilitation are guarded and dependant on you remaining drug free in the future. Having said that, I do consider that you present with some prospects. First, as I have already mentioned, you have assumed responsibility for your offending.
52
You have the benefit of continuing family support. Your stepmother,
Michelle Budge, provided a letter to the court, where she describes your
mental health struggles and the concerns of your family. She also indicates that on your last release you were wanting to change but without any supports or supervision in place you struggled and relapsed.
53
Your stepmother also describes you as a hard worker, with a strong work ethic. To your credit, on your release you managed to obtain work almost immediately. You worked as a contractor through the Yarra Ranges Council clearing trees and bush areas, as part of a fire prevention strategy. I was told that you were working six days a week, on average 6.30 am to 6.30 pm. Cleary however you relapsed into drug use and this contributed to your offending in January 2021. Although you were immediately released on bail your employer became aware of the offending and was unable to continue your employment. Again, to your credit, very quickly soon after you obtained a new job through a
labour hire company working on union sites. This was obtained approximately
two weeks prior to your arrest in May of 2021.
54
Mr Medson, you clearly have the initiative and the ability to work but your
drug addiction, and consequent offending, has ultimately sabotaged these opportunities.
55Your drug addiction is long standing and complex. It needs serious attention, treatment and continuing motivation and commitment on your part. You acknowledged to Ms Cidoni that upon release from custody on the last occasion you were poorly equipped to handle yourself in the community and you relapsed on methamphetamine very soon after your release.
56You are currently at the Metropolitan Remand Centre where you are employed as an essential worker in the kitchen. I am told this is a trusted position and it includes you serving custodial staff, officers and clinicians their food.
57You have not used illicit drugs in custody and you have undertaken some limited counselling, as it is made available to you, given the restrictions. You currently present as motivated to remain drug free and have expressed a desire, if possible, to enter a residential program.
58Ms Cidoni recommends appropriate psychological interventions, psychiatric treatment and regular monitoring, and treatment for substance abuse, to help you maintain abstinence and assist with relapse prevention.
59I consider it necessary that the sentence I impose allows for a substantial period in the community where you are supervised, monitored and treated. I consider that this will best treat and promote your rehabilitation and in turn better ensure the community’s protection in the long term. Both parties were in agreement that you would clearly benefit from the availability of support services upon your release from custody.
Sentencing principles
60The sentencing principles of general and specific deterrence, denunciation and
community protection have a very important role to play in your case, given the nature and gravity of your offending, which I have already addressed. I also agree with the prosecution that your propensity to possess and use firearms is a serious and concerning feature of both lots of offending. In addition, I am required to consider and balance your personal circumstances, the factors put in mitigation on your behalf and the need and desirability in your case of promoting and facilitating your rehabilitation.
61
I take into account the sentencing guidelines referred to in s 5 of the
Sentencing Act
1991 where relevant to your case. I also have regard to the current sentencing practices for the offences to which you have pleaded guilty. I have also had regard to the authorities of Meyer, Hogarth, and other cases and also cases relevant to the prohibited person charges.[6] No case is precisely like yours but I sentence you in that general landscape.
[6] Berichon v The Queen [2013] VSCA 319; Powell v The Queen [2015] VSCA 93; Simpson v The Queen [2015] VSCA 210.
62In relation to sentencing submissions, it was conceded that your offending warrants a term of immediate imprisonment and there was no dispute that it must comprise a head sentence with a non-parole period. Given the objective seriousness of your offending, I accept that no other sentence is appropriate in your case. On your behalf it was submitted that any such term should not be a ‘crushing’ one and should also allow for a lengthy period on parole.
63In determining the sentence to be imposed in this case I must also, and I do, have regard to the principle of totality, which is important in your case. To properly reflect your overall criminality, I will moderate your sentence by making appropriate orders for cumulation and concurrency.
64I have taken into account all the matters before me and the submissions of the parties, including their written submissions.
Sentence
65Taking into account all these matters Mr Medson, you are sentenced as follows:
66On indictment M10262370 you are convicted and sentenced as follows:
67On Charge 1, trafficking methylamphetamine, 6 months' imprisonment.
68On Charge 2, possess cannabis & alprazolam, 2 months' imprisonment.
69On Charge 3, prohibited person possess firearm, 12 months' imprisonment. That's the base sentence.
70I turn to the summary charges:
71On Summary Charge 8, possess ammunition, you are convicted and fined $300.
72
On Summary Charge 9, possess prohibited weapon, you are convicted and
sentenced to 2 months' imprisonment.
73
On Summary Charge 10, proceeds of crime, you are convicted and sentenced to
1 month imprisonment.
74I direct the following in terms of cumulation and concurrency:
75Two months on Charge 1 to be cumulative on Charge 3, the base sentence.
76
On indictment M10262370, this results in a total effective sentence of
14 months' imprisonment.
77On indictment M10992090, you are convicted and sentenced as follows:
78Charge 1, aggravated burglary, 4 years and 11 months' imprisonment.
79Charge 2, conduct endangering life, 18 months' imprisonment.
80Charge 3. conduct endangering life, 18 months' imprisonment.
81Charge 4, common law assault, 10 months' imprisonment.
82Charge 5, prohibited person use a firearm, 16 months' imprisonment.
83
Turning to the orders for cumulation, I direct that 4 months on Charge 2,
4 months on Charge 3, 2 months on Charge 4 and 4 months on
Charge 5, be served cumulatively on Charge 1, the base sentence.
84
This results in a total effective sentence of six years and
one month imprisonment.
85
I direct that 4 months on indictment M10262370 be served cumulatively upon the total sentence on indictment M10992090. This results in a
total effective sentence of six years and five months' imprisonment. I set a
global non-parole period of four years and three months' imprisonment, before you are eligible for parole.
86Pursuant to s18 of the Sentencing Act I declare you have spent 315 days in custody by way of pre-sentence detention and I direct that this be entered into the records of the Court.
87
Pursuant to s6AAA of the Sentencing Act, had you pleaded not guilty to these charges, Mr Medson, and had been found guilty of them after trial, I would have sentenced you to a term of imprisonment of eight years' imprisonment, with a
non-parole period of six years.
88I make the disposal and forfeiture orders sought by the prosecution and note that they were not opposed.
89HER HONOUR: Gentlemen is there anything further that I'm required to do?
90MR RAIMONDO: Not from my aspect Your Honour.
91MR ANDRIANAKIS: No, Your Honour.
92HER HONOUR: Thank you, Mr Andrianakis.
93MR ANDRIANAKIS: Nothing further Your Honour.
94
HER HONOUR: All right. Mr Medson, just to repeat that, at the end of the day, because it's a number of sentences, you have a total effective sentence of
six years and five months' imprisonment, and you have a non-parole period, that is the minimum term of four years and three months' imprisonment before you're eligible for parole. Now I've declared the time that you've served, being the
315 days, okay?
95PRISONER: Okay, thank you, Your Honour.
96
HER HONOUR: What I'll give you is an opportunity Mr Medson to speak to
Mr Andrianakis, I think that we have the link available, we do, do we'll
adjourn - I'll adjourn the court in a moment and you'll have that opportunity.
Mr Raimondo and Mr Andrianakis can I thank you both for your assistance in this matter, and we'll adjourn the court, thank you.
97MR ANDRIANAKIS: If Your Honour pleases.
98MR RAIMONDO: Your Honour pleases.
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