Director of Public Prosecutions v Parker
[2023] VCC 491
•1 March 2023
| IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA | Revised Not Restricted Suitable for Publication |
AT BENDIGO
CRIMINAL JURISDICTION
CR 21-00633
| DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS |
| v |
| JESSICA PARKER |
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JUDGE: | HER HONOUR JUDGE QUIN |
WHERE HELD: | Bendigo |
DATE OF HEARING: | 28 February 2023 |
DATE OF SENTENCE: | 1 March 2023 |
CASE MAY BE CITED AS: | DPP v Parker |
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION: | [2023] VCC 491 |
REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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Subject: Home invasion and common law assault.
Catchwords:
Legislation Cited:
Cases Cited:
Sentence:
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APPEARANCES: | Counsel | Solicitors |
| For the Director of Public Prosecutions | Mr D. Cordy | Office of Public Prosecutions |
For the Accused | Mr M. Kozlowski | Emma Turnbull Lawyers |
HER HONOUR:
1Jessica Parker, you have pleaded guilty to one charge of home invasion and one charge of common law assault. The maximum penalties for these offences are 25 years and five years' imprisonment respectively.
2Additionally, home invasion is a category 2 offence under the Sentencing Act 1991 (the Act) whereby the Court must impose a custodial order unless an exception applies. In your case, the prosecution conceded an exception pursuant to s5(2H)(a) applied, as you have assisted or given an undertaking to assist law enforcement authorities in the investigation or prosecution of an offence.
3The circumstances of your offending are set out in the summary of prosecution for plea dated 25 February 2022 (Exhibit A) and can be summarised as follows.
4At the time of the offending, you were aged 20 and in a relationship with the co-accused, Madison Martin, aged 26. Emily Roberts was in a relationship with Adam White and was spending the majority of her time at his house in Strathfieldsaye (the Strathfieldsaye property).
5Your offending occurred in the context of a financial dispute over the purchase of a car between your co-offender and Emily Roberts. She still owed Martin $200 and was struggling to pay the balance amount, and although she had possession of the car, was unhappy with the condition of it. The dispute included your co-accused threatening Emily Roberts prior to this offence, over Facebook Messenger.
6On 23 June 2020 at about 6.20 pm, you both attended the Strathfieldsaye property. Adam White and Emily Roberts heard loud banging on the front door and a male voice yelling 'You owe me money, where's my fucken' money'.
7Shortly after, a single shot from a shotgun was discharged through the front door. Your co-accused then kicked in the front door and entered the lounge and was followed by you. (Charge 1, home invasion.)
8Your co-accused was holding a double-barrelled sawn-off shotgun when you both entered the house. You both yelled at Emily Roberts as Adam White had gone into a bedroom. You started going through things that were lying on the lounge room floor. You encouraged your co-accused to assault Emily Roberts, telling him to 'smack her in the mouth' and to 'shoot her foot off'.
9Your co-accused demanded the rest of the money and raised the gun and pointed it into Emily Roberts' eyes and then at her feet. (Charge 2, common assault.)
10Emily Roberts saw a further person standing at the door whilst this was happening, though that person has not been identified.
11Emily Roberts received a phone call from her mother whilst you were at the Strathfieldsaye property. Her mother could hear a male and female voice yelling and Emily Roberts told her mother she could not talk because she had a gun to her head.
12Your co-accused demanded the phone but Emily Roberts refused to provide it.
13Shortly after you both left the Strathfieldsaye property with your co-accused threatening Emily Roberts that you would be back. Soon thereafter Triple 0 were called.
14In the early hours of the next day, you and your co-accused were arrested at his home in Eaglehawk. A search warrant was executed and police located various items including a sawn-off shotgun with black tape on the handle, shotgun ammunition and a CCTV hard drive.
15CCTV footage taken from your co-accused's home revealed you both getting in a car at approximately 5.46 pm the day before, consistent with you commencing your trip to the Strathfieldsaye property.
16In your record of interview you denied knowledge of the incident and of Emily Roberts or Adam White. You did not think you had ever been to the Strathfieldsaye property, and you said that 12 hours earlier you would have been having dinner.
17DNA samples were taken from the shotgun. From the trigger, inside of the trigger guard of the shotgun, and from the stock grip of the shotgun, both your co-accused and your own DNA were linked to the gun.
18On 24 February 2022 you indicated you would plead guilty to the offences on the plea indictment. You also made a statement as to the circumstances of the offending. (See Exhibit B.)
19I received victim impact statements from both Adam White and Emily Roberts (Exhibit C and D) the latter of which was read by the learned prosecutor. Clearly both of them were subjected to a terrifying ordeal. Adam White has had nightmares and had to move out of his home, as a consequence of this event, conscious that you knew where he lived. Emily Roberts speaks of this incident as causing her great stress and concern about being home alone. She says:
I tried to get over it but for so long I just found everything I did was so hard, because all I could think of was I couldn't even buy a car without something horrible happening. Socially everything's harder. The anxiety and panic holds me back. I'm too scared and paranoid to socialise with people. I can't trust people anymore. The constant fear, even in my own home, knowing that it didn't even happen in my home, but always feeling unsafe.
20This ordeal has had a particularly significant impact on Emily Roberts, all over a considerably small amount of money.
21I received a report from Dr Matt Treeby, neuropsychologist, dated 6 December 2020 which fully sets out your personal circumstances and results of relevant testing that was conducted. Additionally, I was provided with the CISP report dated 23 November 2020, prepared when you completed the program. I take all that material into account.
22You are currently aged 22 and you have been on bail for these matters since July 2020 and live with your parents in the Bendigo region. You have two older sisters.
23You have had limited schooling, failing to engage during Year 8 and not continuing any further at that time. When aged 16 you worked cash job waitressing for two months but have not had any other employment.
24You have a child with the co-accused, Hailey, now aged three and receive parenting payments. You have another child aged three months with your current partner.
25You have a significant history of drug use commencing with cannabis and methamphetamine when you were about 11 or 12 years, gaining access to drugs through older male friends of one of your sisters. You have tried multiple substances as set out in Dr Treeby's report.
26You increasingly gravitated towards older men who would provide you access to various substances, though you often found yourself sexually vulnerable and exploited. It was in this kind of circumstance you began a relationship with the co-accused. I am informed this relationship was marred by family violence including coercive control and physical assaults. As indicated, you have a child, Hailey, with the co-accused, who is now aged three. I understand you now have an intervention order against the co-accused.
27You have a history of mental health issues, having initial treatment when you were an adolescent. Your sister has significant mental health problems that have impacted on you and her conduct towards you. You continue to experience issues with low mood, stress and anxiety.
28Dr Treeby opined that you have experienced complex trauma with both familial and partner violence through your adolescent development years, and that as a consequence you meet the criteria for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Further, he was of the view that given your level of substance abuse, you have related use disorders relating to cannabis and amphetamine-type drugs. You are otherwise in good physical health.
29You have no prior convictions and at the time of this offending you were a young offender.
30You were remanded in custody in June 2020 for a period of 30 days. That was a sobering experience for you, particularly since it was your first encounter with the criminal justice system. When you were bailed you successfully completed the CISP program and were assisted with drug and alcohol treatment and counselling, mental health treatment and in obtaining an intervention order against the co-accused.
31I take into account your plea of guilty. Although your plea was only forthcoming at a late stage in these proceedings, there is the utilitarian benefit in the plea. This is particularly so given the Covid situation and the impact that has had on the Court and the administration of justice in this State.
32Your plea has facilitated the course of justice and is illustrative of your acceptance of responsibility for this offending. Your plea has meant that witnesses have not been required to relive this traumatic incident, and no witnesses were required to give evidence.
33Further, the learned prosecutor conceded that your plea and the material in your statement, was particularly valuable or instrumental in the trial of your co-accused, resolving to a plea of guilty.
34I accept your plea is consistent with remorse.
35You have reasonable rehabilitation prospects depending on you engaging in and accepting help with and treatment particularly for your substance use. I note Dr Treeby's view that should your substance misuse and mental health difficulties be appropriately treated, his impression is that your risk of any further contact with the criminal justice system would be greatly reduced.
36Further, you have an average level of overall intellectual functioning and cognitive skills, such that you could apply in education or an occupational setting. That you have the capacity to benefit from intervention. Factors that auger well for your rehabilitation include your plea of guilty, that you are relatively young and have no prior convictions, your period on remand was a sobering and confronting experience.
37The CISP report reveals you are capable of engaging with services, though in my view you need to show a very strong commitment to dealing with those issues. You were able to complete a number of courses whilst in custody.
38You have the support of your parents, with whom you reside, and the support of your new partner. You have the care of your two young children.
39Specific deterrence given your age, lack of priors and rehabilitation prospects has a more limited role to play in sentencing you.
40The seriousness of this offending, particularly home invasion, is reflected by its maximum penalty of 25 years and categorisation of it as a category 2 offence under the Sentencing Act. The offending occurred in company. The use of a firearm and unprovoked entry into a private home, in the circumstances of this offending, can only be described as terrifying for the victims.
41Although you maintain that you never thought that the threats would be carried out, the victims did not know that. Community protection, general deterrence and denunciation have an important role to play in offending of this kind.
42The prosecution conceded that you played a lesser role in this offending and that you did not realise your co-accused was armed until at a late stage, or until the shots were fired. The prosecution did not dispute that your DNA was on the shotgun, as a consequence of your dealings with it when you returned to the co-accused house, consistent with your account in the statement.
43As indicated previously, the prosecution did not dispute that you qualified for an exception to the provision requiring the imposition of an immediate term of imprisonment. That you had assisted authorities in the prosecution of this offence and had indicated a preparedness to give evidence against your co-accused in the term contained in your sworn statement.
44The prosecution accepted the account that you provided, it being consistent with other evidence in the prosecution case. The learned prosecutor also made the concession that given this cooperation, your age, lack of priors and role in the offending, despite the seriousness of this offending and circumstances generally the imposition of a community correction order was within range of an appropriate sentence.
45It is important you understand, in my view that the provision of your statement and indication that you gave regarding the giving of evidence, has saved you from having to spend more time in custody.
46I had you assessed as to your suitability for a community correction order and received a favourable report. You need to understand Ms Parker, that if you breach the community corrections order that I am about to place you on, even if it relates to drug use of an insignificant amount, there is a real risk for you that the order will be breached, you will come back before me, and I will have no hesitation in imposing a sentence of imprisonment in respect of these offences, because it will be necessary for me to re-sentence you.
47Pursuant to s6AAA of the Sentencing Act if you had not pleaded guilty to this matter, I would have imposed a term of imprisonment of five years with a non-parole period of three years.
48I propose to place you on a community correction order in respect of both of the offences for a period of 18 months. You will be required to do 75 hours community work. There will be conditions regarding your treatment and assessment for drugs, for mental health assessment and treatment and there will also be a supervision order condition. Some of the hours relating to those treatments can be attributed to the community work hours.
49I also propose to have a judicial monitoring in respect of that order in a period of approximately three months. That is really for me to check that you are going alright and that you are maintaining drug abstinence.
50VOICE (from body of the court): (Indistinct words) the judicial monitoring in front of you?
51HER HONOUR: Yes, thank you. Wednesday 8 June at 9.30, it can probably be done by remote, so it is not necessary for you to come to Melbourne. We can probably do that up at the remote - you will link that up with Corrections once you have arranged who your worker effectively is, at Corrections. PSD, 30 days?
52MR CORDY: Thirty days, Your Honour.
53HER HONOUR: Yes. I declare a PSD of 30 days, even though there is no term it should just be noted that there was a 30 day period on remand. Thank you.
54MR CORDY: So clearly Your Honour's intention is that it is a stand-alone CCO, not a combination?
55HER HONOUR: Yes, that's right, yes.
56MR CORDY: Yes, thank you.
57ASSOCIATE: Is this your signature?
58OFFENDER: Yes.
59ASSOCIATE: That has been done, Your Honour.
60HER HONOUR: Thank you. I will stand down.
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