Director of Public Prosecutions v Petty (a pseudonym)

IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA

AT MELBOURNE

CRIMINAL DIVISION

Revised
Not Restricted
Suitable for Publication

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

JOSEPH PETTY (A PSEUDONYM)

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JUDGE:	RIDDELL
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:	18 June 2020 & 14 July 2020
DATE OF SENTENCE:	20 July 2020
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v PETTY (a pseudonym)
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2020] VCC 1120

REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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Subject: CRIMINAL LAW

Catchwords: Burglary – Theft – Interfere with Services – Resist Emergency Worker – State and Commonwealth Sentences – Delay – Totality
Legislation Cited: s.11 Sentencing Act1991 (Vic) – s.44 Sentencing Act1991 (Vic)
Cases Cited:R v Verdins (2007) 16 VR 269 – Re Kennedy [2020] VSC 187 – DPP v Nov [2020] VSCA 11 – DPP v Tannous [2017] VSCA 91 – Bugmy v The Queen [2013] 249 CLR – DPP v Bourke [2020] VSC 130 – Donnelly v The Queen [2020] VSCA 151
Sentence: 760 days' imprisonment plus an 18-month Community Correction Order

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APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the DPP	Mr D. Cordy	Office of Public Prosecutions
For the Accused	Ms J. Clark	Kurnai Legal

HER HONOUR:

Summary

Joseph Petty,[1] you have pleaded guilty to 10 Charges of Burglary, 9 Charges of Theft, 6 Commonwealth offences of Interference with facilities, 1 Charge of Possession of a drug of dependence, namely methylamphetamine, 1 Summary Charge of Committing an indictable offence on bail and 2 Summary Charges of Resisting emergency workers.
[1] Pseudonym used

That offending occurred in two time periods, the first between February and April 2018, and the second in July 2018.

February to April 2018 offending

The target premises of the burglaries were businesses and facilities in and around the Bendigo area. The list of the 8 premises burgled between February and April is as follows: Bendigo Golf Club, Bendigo Bearings, TJM Bendigo, Hip Pocket Work Wear, Major League Indoor Sports, Bolts and Fasteners, Benton’s Plumbtec, Burson’s AutoParts and Build Pro.

You variously cut phone and power lines to those premises, smashed security systems or CCTV cameras, disabled alarms systems and at times removed fuses and junction boxes. That behaviour in particular caused those businesses considerable loss and disruption, sometimes for several weeks without internet or phone lines. Restoration of those services cost each business between $800 and $14,000. Those acts for the basis of the Commonwealth charges.

In addition, you stole personal items such as mobile phones and tablets as well as cash from each of those premises in sums which varied from $800 to $4,600.

You were arrested in relation to the February to April burglaries. You initially denied involvement, but asked to be interviewed a second time on the same day and made full admissions. Those admissions are reflected in Charges 1 to 23 on the indictment. You were charged and bailed with stringent conditions including a curfew.

July Offending

You soon recommenced your drug use however and by July you resumed your offending, committing a similar burglary on Viatek on 14 July 2018. You returned the next day to those same premises and again entered to commit a burglary. Those are the offences committed while on bail. You were in the process of burgling Viatek the second time when you were interrupted by police.

You ran to an upstairs office where a confrontation ensued. You said to the officers "I’ve got a knife, I’ll fucking stab you… fuck off or I’ll kill you". On being grabbed you fought back aggressively, attempting to punch the officers which constitutes the charge of Resist Emergency Worker. You were subdued with OC spray.

Victim impact

A chart of businesses which you burgled, and the amount of cash stolen and cost of repairing the damage caused is annexed to these reasons. The fact that these were not homes, but commercial premises may give a different complexion to your offending, but it does not diminish the seriousness of the offending.

10. These are in the main businesses belonging to individuals working hard to succeed and to serve the community in rural areas. Their losses and the inconvenience they experience are real. I received a victim impact statement to that effect from Trevor Lee, the owner of Burson’s Auto Parts. Mr Lee describes the disruption with his second in charge woken in the middle of the night and having to leave family to drive to work. He describes the negative impact on that worker who had to then return to work the following morning. Mr Lee says your offending has also negatively impacted him. He has experienced shock and then anger, knowing that the loss of phone lines also meant a loss of business for him. He had to rearrange plans and commitments in order to sort through the mess you left him with. He says he has ongoing worry and stress, fearing that he may again be the target of a burglary either in his work place or at home, and that he has struggled to protect his family from those feelings. I have no doubt the experiences of the owners and workers of the other establishments has been similar.

Sentencing Principles

11. These were pre-meditated and planned burglaries. There was an element of sophistication to them, demonstrated by your knowledge of where to find and how to cut power, phone lines and alarms. That is a skill you say you learnt from a friend in the army. In assessing their objective seriousness, they are moderately serious examples of this kind of burglary of business premises.

12. Despite being arrested and bailed, that did not deter you from committing further offences. That is an aggravating feature of the July offending.

13. Once police arrived instead of going peacefully, you resisted and were aggressive to them. Although there is some dispute about the words said, there is no dispute that you resisted them and you have admitted that conduct by your plea. They were officers carrying out their lawful duties which you made more difficult for them. I pause to note these are not charges which carry a mandatory jail term but rather 60 penalty units or a 6-month maximum.

The maximum penalty for Burglary and for Theft is 10 years' imprisonment, for interference with services 2 years' imprisonment, and for possession of methylamphetamine, not for a purpose related to trafficking, 30 penalty units or 3 months' imprisonment and I should say for committing an indictable offence on bail, 30 penalty units or 3 months' imprisonment.

15. General deterrence and denunciation are considerations at the forefront of sentencing in matters such as this. Community protection, both of the individuals running businesses and of police carrying out their duty must also be a prominent consideration.

16. You were a 42-year-old man, now 44. You are an Aboriginal man. You have a reasonably long history of offending, in particular for burglaries. You have served several terms of imprisonment. Specific deterrence is therefore also a consideration which has a significant role to play in sentencing you.

17. Ordinarily with that history, your offending would be met by longer and longer terms of imprisonment. The prosecution submit that you should be sentenced to a term of imprisonment with a non-parole term. You have already served 2 years in custody for this offending. That is in fact the longest time you have ever been in custody.

18. Your Counsel properly conceded that this offending must be met by a term of imprisonment. However, she raised issues on your plea which warrant serious consideration in mitigation of your penalty. That is not only for your benefit, but for the benefit of the community whose best interests must be in seeing you punished but also in seeing you rehabilitated.

19. In short, when you were remanded in July 2018 you experienced what you describe as a ‘major nervous breakdown’. You made an attempt on your life and were hospitalised. For the first time, you disclosed that you had been the victim of sexual offending against you as a child, and further, that it was the perpetrator of that abuse who introduced you into drug use when you were a 10-year-old.

20. You have never previously been willing to confront those matters. The psychological reports I have received on your plea, as well as a bundle of material demonstrating how you have been using your time on remand, suggest that this is a major psychological shift for you and may be a turning point for your life.

Personal History

21. Before I turn to those matters in more detail I will outline your personal history. It is detailed in a psychological report from Ms Carla Lechner and a report from neuropsychologist Dr Evrim March as well as in comprehensive written submissions provided by your Counsel Ms Clark.

22. You are the younger of two sons. Your father is an Aboriginal man. Your parents separated when you were about 5 years old. There was domestic violence between your parents, though never directed at you. You then moved between them, initially with your mother in Melbourne then between your parents who were then both living in Queensland. When you mother returned to Victoria you remained living with your father in Queensland until you were 14.

23. At that time your mother started a relationship with another man. You got on well with him and returned to Victoria to live with them as a 14-year-old.

24. Your schooling was done in Melbourne and then Queensland. Material from your early school days suggests you developed and integrated reasonably well from a social perspective, responding well to guidance and support.

25. At Merrimack High School on the Gold Coast you were diagnosed with dyslexia. This was significant as you had previously been treated as if you were ‘dumb’. Your mother says when you returned to Victoria, your learning disability was not supported and you were viewed as lazy. You left school at Year 10 level.

26. After leaving school you worked for 5 years as a factory hand. You have had
short-term jobs in hospitality and retail.

27. You have had several long term relationships. You have a 22-year-old daughter with whom you have a positive relationship. It was not confirmed that you were her father until she was 15 which was a source of angst to you. You have a 12-year-old son whom you have never met. You are not currently in a relationship.

28. Your drug use commenced when you were 10 years old and has persisted throughout your life. You have variously been addicted to cannabis, amphetamines, heroin and in the last decade methylamphetamine.

29. That drug addiction is reflected in your criminal history where your offending has been for matters of dishonesty, largely to support your addiction and to provide for friends.

30. Most relevant are the 22 prior offences of burglary alongside numerous other dishonesty offences. Your criminal history must be read with care as there are a number of duplications. There are also some gaps in your history where you managed to remain offence free, for example there is no appearance between 1999 and 2003, or between 2003 and 2011 or between 2015 and 2017.

31. You have not received any community based dispositions since a community corrections order in 2011. That did not have any therapeutic conditions attached but rather was a 6-month order with 100 hours unpaid community work. At the same time you were to complete a 4-month Intensive Correction Order which had core conditions only. The CCO was breached however there is no breach for the ICO.

32. Other terms of imprisonment have seen you in custody for between 6-9 months. You told Dr March that when you were previously imprisoned you adapted and got out, returning to the community with little structure or support. This term of imprisonment has been more difficult for you.

33. You were remanded in July 2018. You suffered a breakdown in the period following your remand, leading to a suicide attempt in September 2018. You were hospitalised at Royal Melbourne Hospital. It was through that period that you made your disclosure of child sexual abuse.

34. You were abused between the ages of 10 and 12 by a family friend of your mother in Queensland. The abuse stopped when the perpetrator was killed in a car accident. As a 12-year-old you somehow held yourself accountable for his death. Your mother who is supporting you describes a number of aspects of your history and behaviours such as putting a chair in front of your bedroom door at night, and being reluctant to undress, now make sense with this disclosure.

35. The perpetrator of that abuse introduced you to drugs and to committing acts of theft.

Psychological material

36. Dr March provides evidence as to the particular vulnerabilities suffered by child victims of sexual abuse, and the way in which that experience makes a victim psychologically fragile.

37. Dr March states ‘being subject to routine sexual abuse at a young age renders one highly vulnerable to mental health issues, personality issues and prolonged trauma and distress. Irrespective of any drug use history, Mr Petty’s childhood sexual abuse history places him at high risk for developing mental health issues in adulthood.’

38. He notes you report ongoing drug use as a means to dampen your distress caused by those issues. He says, "In this context, Mr Petty’s mental health vulnerabilities following sexual abuse is a perpetuating/maintaining factor for drug use."

39. In turn, chronic extensive drug use increases the risk of new mental health issues and more severe mental illness, is a barrier to seeking help and an exacerbation of mental health difficulties.

40. Dr March who assessed you on 27 May 2020 opines that you are presently experiencing significant distress in relation to those matters. He diagnosed you with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder as a result of that childhood sexual abuse.

41. You are also diagnosed by both experts with Major Depressive Disorder. That is apparently well documented in your prison file.

42. You have been well supported in custody, originally being seen by the Mobile Forensic Mental Health Intervention Team, and then with fortnightly psychiatric review and psychological support at Ravenhall including weekly psychological counselling. You are now medicated on both antidepressant and anti-anxiety medication.

43. Although your mental state has improved, Dr March described your depressed mood as ‘still remarkable’. You are still reporting suicidal ideation however have made a promise to your mother not to act on those thoughts.

44. You are also struggling with a range of cognitive difficulties. Even with improved mood Dr March estimates your intellect would still be in the borderline range, well below the average of your peers. However, he does opine that you maintain ability to engage and be responsive.

45. Importantly, you are described by both experts as having now developed insight into how your early life experiences have impacted you. You said to Ms Lechner that it ‘moulded my whole life’.

46. You are keen for treatment. Dr March describes the current imprisonment as a window of opportunity for such treatment given your recent disclosures. He says this is a period where you are expressing your life long struggle with the sexual abuse history, and at the same time, seeking help.

47. That commitment to treatment has already been demonstrated by your engagement in counselling as I have described. You are also engaging with the Aboriginal Program Unit at Ravenhall. Your key worker, Ms Kylah Barnes, has provided a letter to that effect. She says you have consented to receiving ongoing Post Release Support. That is available on a voluntary basis for up to 2 years post release from custody and Ms Barnes would be your Post Release Support worker. That service would play a case management role, organising referrals to a range of service providers and community engagement. Contact has already been made with the Bendigo Community Health Service.

48. You have also remained drug free in custody. You have provided regular urine screens between October 2018 and May 2020. All have been clean.

49. You are keen to engage in inpatient rehabilitation for the first time and, to that end, sought a bed at Odyssey House. You could not take up that opportunity as bail was refused. The place remains available to you apparently and I discussed with Counsel the option of deferring completion of this matter while bailing you to Odyssey House. However, in circumstances where Odyssey is not taking new inpatients due to
COVID-19 that is not possible.

Time in Custody

50.Your time in custody has been challenging for the reasons I have outlined.

51. It has become even more onerous since March this year due to the impact of
COVID-19. You have been unable to have any visitors where previously your mother and stepfather were regularly attending.

52. Psychological support has been conducted by phone or otherwise remotely. Courses are suspended and work is limited. Lockdowns are increasing. In fact as at the present time, there are known positive cases within the prison system and I was informed that Ravenhall prison is in lockdown. It is a more anxious time for the community generally and for those in custody who cannot exercise their own choices, no less so.

53. In your case you have pre-existing conditions which exacerbate that situation. Firstly, your already parlous mental health state, demonstrated by your history and by those events which occurred when you were first remanded. According to Dr March that condition is likely to deteriorate in custody. It was not disputed that this enlivens limbs 5 and 6 of R v Verdins (2007) 16 VR 269.

54. Secondly, you have a number of physical health conditions which are well-documented. You were hit by a car as a pedestrian in 2012 and admitted to the Northern Hospital. Your injuries resulted in persistent numbness in your hands and lower legs as well as what is now chronic back pain. You underwent a CT scan of your spine in custody, prompted by that condition.

55. You are also an asthmatic and suffer gastro-intestinal reflux, hepatitis and anaphylaxis. You have osteoporosis. In addition to the anti-anxiety and antidepressant medication you have medication for nausea, migraines, reflux, nerve pain and Ventolin for asthma.

56. In addition, I am mindful of the comments of Kaye JA in Re Kennedy [2020] VSC 187 at paragraph 4(b) regarding the impact of COVID-19 on Aboriginal persons in custody.

57. I take those all of those matters into account.

Sentencing Submissions

58. You have served just over 2 years' imprisonment. Mr Cordy on behalf of the prosecution submitted that a sentence with a non-parole period is appropriate. Ms Clark submitted that I should impose a sentence which reflects the time you have served, but sees you released immediately onto a Community Correction Order.

59. Submissions on behalf of the Prosecution referred me to s.11 of the Sentencing Act 1991. Relevantly s.11 is in these terms;

(1) If a court sentences an offender to be imprisoned in respect of an offence for—
(a) …
(b) a term of 2 years or more—
the court must, as part of the sentence, fix a period during which the offender is not eligible to be released on parole unless it considers that the nature of the offence or the past history of the offender make the fixing of such a period inappropriate.

60. The Prosecution relied upon the Court of Appeal decision in DPP v Tannous [2017] VSCA 91. That is, if I impose a term of imprisonment of over 2 years I must fix a
non-parole period. If I take that course, then it was submitted on the basis of Tannous, I am precluded from imposing a CCO as the sentence would be unlawful. I accept I am bound by those principles.

61. I heard submissions from Ms Clark as to the availability of a combination sentence in circumstances where you have already served 2 years on remand. She relied on s.44 of the Sentencing Act and the decision of the Court of Appeal in DPP v Nov [2020] VSCA 11 at paragraphs 2 and 3 and submitted that it is open to me to impose a sentence which sees you serve up to 12 months from today, after declaring

pre-sentence detention, plus a CCO. Mr Cordy ultimately accepted that proposition.

62. I have considered those matters.

63. There is nothing about the nature of this offending which would enliven the exceptions in s.11.

64. It is the matters I have outlined which pertain to your past history, and in particular how that past history has affected you which have led me to a view that you should be released from custody in the very near future onto a community correction order.

65. To elaborate, the prosecution conceded that Bugmy v The Queen [2013] 249 CLR 571 and R v Verdins principles are enlivened to an extent in your case given that history. I agree. Your history is characterised by instability in your home life, your education and the history of childhood sexual abuse. In particular I take into account the fact that you were introduced to drug use and theft by the perpetrator of sexual abuse when you were a 10-year-old.

66. I do also agree with the Prosecution submission that disentangling those factors from each other, and from the overlay of longstanding drug addiction is not possible. Therefore those considerations and their application to your moral culpability must be moderated by your chronic drug use and your repeated offending.

67. However, your past history in my view does permit an exception to the usual course in s.11. Specifically, I take these matters into account –

a.    Your past history of child sexual abuse.
b.    Your early introduction into drug use and theft as a 10-year-old by the perpetrator of that abuse.
c.    The consequent impact on your mental state, and the perpetuating impact of drug addiction on you including what Ms Lechner describes as early drug use which blocked your neurocognitive, social and emotional development.
d.    Your diagnoses of post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of that abuse, and your history of major depression.
e.    Your recent past history during this period of remand where you have attempted suicide, been hospitalised and for the first time disclosed your abuse.
f.     In addition, the delay in resolving this matter despite your offer to plead guilty to these charges in 2019, means any parole period I would have considered appropriate has already been served or nearly so.

68. For those reasons I will not impose a sentence with a non-parole period.

Plea of Guilty

69. I take into account in sentencing you, that you have pleaded guilty. You made admissions to are what now Charges 1-23 when first interviewed in April 2018. After a committal in July 2019, you made the offer to plead guilty in August 2019. That offer was declined and the matter was listed for trial in the first quarter of 2020.

70. The prosecution re-visited your offer in 2020 and it was accepted. It is not a plea at the earliest opportunity, however it is appropriate to treat this as a reasonably early plea of guilty. Had the offer been accepted earlier, these are matters which could have been dealt with in the Magistrates’ Court. Taken with your admissions in your record of interview I accept it is some demonstration of remorse on your part.

71. There is a utilitarian benefit in a plea of guilty which avoids the time and expense of a trial and the potential impact on witnesses. In addition I take into account the comments of HH Justice Dixon in DPP v Bourke [2020] VSC 130 in considering the value of a plea of guilty in the current environment where the COVID-19 pandemic has caused considerable delay of all trials.

72. In addition you receive the benefit of delay as properly conceded by the prosecution. In that time you have been able to engage with services in custody as I have described, and to remain abstinent from drug use. Both of those matters are positives towards your rehabilitation.

73. You have the ongoing support of your mother and step father with whom you will reside in the Bendigo area. That is another protective factor.

74. In my view the appropriate sentence here is one which approximates the time you have served and sees you released onto a community correction order so that you can fully engage in therapeutic treatment in the community.

Pre-Sentence Assessment Reports

75. I adjourned the matter to obtain pre-sentence reports including an assessment for a community correction order. That assessment is suitable. You gave to the assessors a history entirely consistent with that given to Ms Lechner and Dr March. You expressed your keenness to engage and in particular to engage in inpatient rehabilitation.

76. You were assessed as a high risk of drug relapse and as such the Corrections assessor sensibly suggested a referral for a RAPIDS assessment.

77. RAPIDS is the acronym for Responsive Assessment Planning Intervention Diversion Service. RAPIDS conducts drug and alcohol assessment for persons who are currently or will be placed on a community correction order. It provides an immediate link between Corrections and the Alcohol & Other Drugs (AOD) treatment sector, to ensure immediate bridging support and intervention during transition for the highest risk forensic clients. That program engages in brokering treatment programs for such individuals.

78. They have approved an episode of Complex Counselling, and Care and Recovery work for you directed to preparation and understanding harm minimisation, psycho education, relapse prevention, learning about emotional regulation skills and coping mechanisms.

79. That service is said to be an effective tool to support you in preparation for residential rehabilitation.

80. You will also undergo a mental health review to determine appropriate psychological counselling support. To that end, contact has been made with Bendigo Community Health Service.

81. It will not be easy for you. You are assessed as high risk of substance abuse. You will need to be on your guard against old friends or habits which risk you getting back into drug use.

82. You will have to fully engage with the services provided to you through the CCO and RAPIDS program, and through the Aboriginal Post Release Support Program.

83. This is a real opportunity for you to choose how the second half of your life looks. Your prospects of rehabilitation must be guarded, and are largely dependent on your ability to withstand drug use, although I note the gaps in your offending history and the preparation work you have done during your time on remand.

84. The CCO will be crafted in such a way that when an inpatient residential bed becomes available Corrections Victoria will have capacity to direct you to attend and reside there. In my view they should take that option regardless of how well you appear to be performing. In my view, you should take whatever bed is made available to you regardless of whether it is in the Bendigo area or somewhere else.

Commonwealth Charges

85. Before I proceed finally to sentence, I will indicate that delay has brought an added complication to this sentence given the Commonwealth charges and the amount of pre-sentence detention you have already served.

86. Where there are Commonwealth charges, they must be ordered to start today. I accepted the Prosecution submission that the circumstances of the Commonwealth offences make them somewhat separate from the burglaries and thefts and deserving of separate punishment. Ordinarily I would have imposed cumulation.

87. However, in my view the overall criminality of your offending as I have stated means the just and appropriate sentence should see you released very soon to commence a CCO. That conclusion takes into account the principle of totality.[2] And the comments of the Court of Appeal reiterated about that principle recently in Donnelly v The Queen [2020] VSCA 151, to the effect that totality may at times result in a downward adjustment of a sentence in line with what is just and appropriate in the circumstances of a particular case. As a result of the delay and my conclusions regarding what is just and appropriate in your case, it is not appropriate to order cumulation now on the Commonwealth charges.

[2] See Donnelly v The Queen [2020] VSCA 151 at 66-67

88. The other alternative would have been to impose a very short sentence on those charges to commence today. That is inappropriate for two reasons – one, that offending warrants more than a short sentence, and two, it would not reflect the fact that you have already served over 2 years on remand in part for that offending. Counsel agreed with those two limitations.

89. For those reasons I will impose a sentence on the Commonwealth charges which will run concurrently with the State sentence.

Sentence

90. In relation to the burglaries and thefts, there was no issue taken by the prosecution with the defence submission that those matters ought to be entirely or significantly concurrent with each other.

91. In my view, it is appropriate to deal with the Burglary and theft charges in two sets, reflective of the time frames and circumstances in which they were committed. That is, I intend to impose an aggregate sentence for the February to April burglaries and thefts. They are a series of similar events, committed in a close time frame.

92. In relation to the July burglaries and theft, I propose also to impose an aggregate sentence for those offences. That offending, as I have said, is aggravated by the fact that you were on bail for the earlier offending. Therefore I propose to order some cumulation on the earlier offending. In addition, and as a reflection of your relapse into drug use prior to those July offences, I propose to make the term of imprisonment for the July offences to be one which is in combination with a CCO.

93. Ultimately, Mr Petty, I propose to sentence you as follows:

94. On the first 8 Burglary and Theft charges (that is Charges 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 15, 16, 18, 19, 21 and 22) you are convicted and sentenced to an aggregate sentence of 720 days (24 months) imprisonment. That is the base sentence.

95. On Charges 24, 25 and 26 you are convicted and sentenced to an aggregate sentence of 660 days (22 months) imprisonment plus a Community Correction Order for 18 months. 40 days of that aggregate sentence will be cumulative on the base sentence.

96.On the 6 Commonwealth charges (that is Charges 3, 6, 11, 14, 17 and 20) you are convicted and sentenced to an aggregate sentence of 180 days (6 months) imprisonment. That sentence is to commence today.
97.On Charge 23 Possess methylamphetamine you are convicted and fined $150.
98.On the two summary offences of resisting emergency workers on duty, you are convicted and sentenced to an aggregate term of 7 days' imprisonment.
99.On the summary offence of committing an offence on bail you are convicted and sentenced to 30 days' imprisonment.

The total effective sentence is 760 days' imprisonment, plus on Charges 24, 25 and 26 an 18-month Community Correction Order.
In relation to all sentences I declare pre-sentence detention of 744 days imprisonment be reckoned as having been served under this sentence.
The conditions of the community correction order will be as follows in addition to the core conditions. You will be under supervision. You are to undergo assessment and treatment including testing for drug and alcohol addiction. That will include complying with the directions of Corrections Victoria to attend inpatient drug rehabilitation. You are to undergo assessment and treatment for mental health issues. You are to undergo medical assessment and treatment as directed. You are to undertake programs aimed at cultural and occupational issues as directed by Corrections Victoria.
In relation to s.6AAA – but for plea of guilty the total effective sentence I would have imposed would have been one of 3 years and 10 months' imprisonment with a non-parole period of 2 years 8 months' imprisonment.
Finally, I note that there were forfeiture and disposal orders sought. I do not believe they were opposed, Ms Clark. I do not believe they were opposed.
MS CLARK: No, Your Honour. Not opposed.
HER HONOUR: I propose to make those in the terms sought.
MR CORDY: As Your Honour pleases.
HER HONOUR: Mr Petty, before I can impose a community correction order, you need to agree to undertake that order in the terms that I have outlined.
OFFENDER: Yes.
HER HONOUR: Do you agree to undertake that community correction order?
OFFENDER: 100 per cent.
HER HONOUR: And you understand, Mr Petty, that if you reoffend in any way, that would be a breach of that order. Do you understand that?
OFFENDER: Yes, I do.
HER HONOUR: And do you also understand that if you fail to comply with the directions of Corrections Victoria, that is to do those conditions as I have outlined, that would also be a breach of the order?
OFFENDER: Yes, I - yes, I do.
HER HONOUR: And do you understand that in either of those cases, whether you reoffend or you fail to perform, you will be brought back to me and I would need to resentence you on those charges?
OFFENDER: Yes, I do.
HER HONOUR: And you understand the likely sentence if you do not perform will be one of imprisonment.
OFFENDER: Yes, I do.
HER HONOUR: All right. And you understand also that part of the conditions means that Corrections will have the capacity to direct you to go to an inpatient residential facility?
OFFENDER: Yes, I do.
HER HONOUR: And that if they do that, you must go.
OFFENDER: Yes.
HER HONOUR: All right.
What happens now, Ms Clark and Mr Cordy, is that my associate will prepare the corrections order. I will sign it and it will be forwarded to the prison for Mr Petty to sign today and then the prison sends it back before the end of the day so that I have that consent.
Unless there are any issues either of you wish to raise about that, that is what I propose will happen.
MR CORDY: No issues, Your Honour.
MS CLARK: No issue, Your Honour.
HER HONOUR: Thank you very much. All right. Did counsel have any other issue to raise before I leave the Bench then?
MR CORDY: No, Your Honour.
MS CLARK: No, Your Honour.
HER HONOUR: Thank you very much.
Mr Petty, so you heard that. You will be given the correction order - - -
OFFENDER: Yes.
HER HONOUR: - - - printout today for you to sign your agreement.
OFFENDER: Yes.
HER HONOUR: And when you do sign your agreement, that is your promise and agreement that you will complete that order.
OFFENDER: Yes.
HER HONOUR: You need to be on your guard when you are released because that is often a - - -
OFFENDER: This will be my second chance at life.
HER HONOUR: Exactly. Exactly. And my conclusion as you have heard is that you should be given this opportunity to harness your current commitment to your own rehabilitation. So I really hope that you take it - - -
OFFENDER: I will take it.
HER HONOUR: - - - and that I do not see you back here on any breach.
OFFENDER: No, you won't.
HER HONOUR: Thank you.
Mr Cordy, just before I leave, I need for the sake of the orders just to confirm; were there summary charges that were not pursued?
MR CORDY: Yes, I believe there were, Your Honour.
HER HONOUR: Thank you.
MR CORDY: I will just see if I can find those.
HER HONOUR: Sure.
And it has occurred to me too that I did not mention and I had intended to mention that these were matters which could have been dealt within the Magistrates' Court as we have discussed. When I revise the sentence, I will include that reference.
MR CORDY: Yes. Thank you, Your Honour. I am just looking for those summary charges. I may have difficulty here, Your Honour, because, as Your Honour can imagine - - -
HER HONOUR: There were a few, I imagine.
MR CORDY: Yes, and the issue is that - they should be on the notice that was filed, Your Honour.
HER HONOUR: Yes.
MR CORDY: On the notice of summary offences and I do not know that I have downloaded it.
HER HONOUR: That is all right. I will have my associate have a look for it.
MR CORDY: Yes, I have not downloaded, Your Honour, but they are all on the notice of summary offences - - -
HER HONOUR: Yes.
MR CORDY: - - - in addition to the ones that he has pleaded guilty to. So they should be marked withdrawn, Your Honour.
HER HONOUR: Thank you very much. Well, I will make sure that is reflected in the orders that I will sign and if you could just double-check those when they reach you sometime today I believe.
I have got the notice now. So they were Charges 5, 8, 9, 13, 14, 15 and 16 that were withdrawn. I should have said Charge 5 was the Informant Masson; the remainder were Informant Owens and it was Charges 10, 11 and 12 with Informant Owens that were prosecuted and subject to pleas of guilty.
MR CORDY: 10, 11 and 12, was it? Yes.
HER HONOUR: 10, 11 and 12 were proceeded with.
MR CORDY: Yes, and that is the two Resist Emergency Workers and the Commit Indictable Offence on Bail.
HER HONOUR: Correct. Yes. Correct.
MR CORDY: Yes. Thank you. Yes. Thank you.
HER HONOUR: Thank you very much.
All right. Thank you very much, counsel, for your assistance in this matter. We will now adjourn.
MS CLARK: If Your Honour pleases.
HER HONOUR: Thank you.
MR CORDY: As Your Honour pleases.
- - -

APPENDIX 1: Table - Quantum of Losses

CHARGES	THEFT	DAMAGE
1, 2, 3	$2,533.00	$10,579.55
4, 5, 6	$862.60	$4,662.23
7, 8	$3,987.85	$9,000.00 - $10,000.00
9, 10, 11	$4,699.59	$14,560.22
12, 13,14	$1,590.00	$3,364.79
15, 16, 17	$2,000.00	$14,361.95
18, 19, 20	$3,103.15	$1,314.14
21, 22	$1,000.00	$840.55
24, 25	$1,000.00	Not specified
SUBTOTAL	$20,776.19	$58683.43 - $59683.43
TOTAL LOSSES	$79459.62 - $80459.62

[2020] VCC 1120

20 July 2020