Director of Public Prosecutions v Puoch

[2022] VCC 1063

IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA

Revised

Not Restricted

Suitable for Publication

AT MELBOURNE

CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

CR-21-01767

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

WARNYANG PUOCH

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JUDGE:	HIS HONOUR JUDGE MAIDMENT
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:	1 June 7 & 11 July 2022
DATE OF SENTENCE:	11 July 2022
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Puoch
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2022] VCC 1063

REASONS FOR SENTENCE

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Subject:Plea – sentencing

Catchwords:          Violent disorder

Legislation Cited: 

Cases Cited:

Sentence:18-month Community Correction Order

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APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the Director of Public Prosecutions	Ms K. Hamill	Office of Public Prosecutions
For the Accused	Mr R. Revill	Richard Revill Lawyers

HIS HONOUR:

1Warnyang Puoch, you have pleaded guilty to one charge on an indictment of violent disorder which took place on 8 March 2021.  The maximum term of imprisonment for that offence is 10 years. 

2You have no prior convictions.

3The prosecution tendered and relied upon a summary of opening on the plea dated 19 April 2022.  That is Exhibit A on the plea.  It reveals that you were in attendance at an apartment at 200 Spencer Street on the day of the offence and, along with others, participated in a brawl in and around the lift which then contained a number of young men who were described as the victim group.

4You were part of the group attacking them in the lift.  During the melee which lasted something like five minutes, you entered the lift and threw punches at the victim group.  There were knives produced by your co-offenders.  One of your number was stabbed by a member of the victim group.  He suffered some serious injuries which could have proved fatal if they had not been attended to.

5Likewise, the members of the victim group suffered knife wounds.  The offending conduct of your group towards the victim group was vicious and frightening for anybody who might have witnessed the events and for any law-abiding member of the public who heard or was unfortunate enough to witness the melee.

6The offence of violent disorder is a serious offence.  It is the more serious because it creates a mob mentality of violence.

7Turning to matters personal to you: your counsel provided me with an outline of submissions dated 8 July 2022 which shows that you come from a good family.  I have also had support for that proposition from your father who has provided a letter which shows that you have demonstrated a willingness to provide community service, as have other members of your family.

8You were 18 years of age at the time of the offending.  You are 20 years of age now.  You are still a young person.  You have been in work during the period that you have been on bail.  You also participate in sport.  I regard your prospects of rehabilitation as good.  I was given details of some other offending conduct after the events the subject of this indictment.  That was dealt with by way of a fine at the Magistrates' Court.  But despite that it seems to me that there are good signs for your future.

9The offending requires punishment.  It ordinarily requires substantial punishment to send messages to others who may be inclined to engage in similar conduct.  Some of your co-offenders have been sentenced to terms of imprisonment, others to detention in a Youth Justice Centre.  But their roles were significantly greater than yours and some of them had substantial criminal records. 

10You got caught up in this.  But it seemed to me that you engaged in the melee enthusiastically during the relatively short period you were involved in it.  It is important for me to consider sentences passed on your co-offenders.  The nearest offending conduct to your own was that of your co-offender Kor, for whom I imposed a community correction order.  His participation was for a relatively short period of time, as was yours, and neither of you used any weapon.

11Doing the best I can to impose a sentence that is on a par with your co-offenders, and Mr Kor in particular, I intend, subject to your agreement, to impose a community correction order.  I cannot do that without your consent and in order for you to determine whether you are prepared to consent I must go through the terms of the order with you. 

12The order that I have in mind is for a period of 18 months which will commence today and conclude on 10 January 2024.  You would be required to attend the Dandenong Community Correctional Services at 46-50 Walker Street, Dandenong within two clear working days of today and that would be by 4 pm on Wednesday next, 13 July 2022.

13You will be required to attend there by telephone and the order that you will be given a copy of has the telephone number of the Community Correctional Services at Dandenong on it.  That is because of the Covid pandemic and the undesirability of people unnecessarily attending the offices of Community Corrections.

14The order that I have in mind has a number of terms which apply to all community correction orders and they are as follows:

(1)that you must not commit another offence for which you could be imprisoned during the time that the order is in force;

(2)that you must comply with any obligation or requirement prescribed by Regulation 17 of the Sentencing Regulations 2011, which will be explained to you in detail when you attend by telephone in the next two days - it involves not turning up for work commitments or at the offices of Community Corrections drunk or drug affected, that kind of thing;

(3)that you must report to and receive visits from the Secretary of the Department of Community Corrections or his or her delegate;

(4)that you must report to the Community Corrections Centre within two clear working days - I have already set that out for you;

(5)that you must let a Community Corrections officer know within two clear working days of you changing your address or your job;

(6)that you must not leave Victoria without first getting permission to do so from the Secretary or his or her delegate;

(7)that you must obey all lawful instructions from and directions of the Secretary or his or her delegate.     

15In addition to those mandatory terms, I propose to order that you must perform 120 hours of unpaid community work over the period of the 18 months during which the order is in force, as directed by the regional manager.  I would order that 60 hours of treatment and rehabilitation satisfactorily undertaken are to be counted as hours of unpaid community work for the purposes of the unpaid community work condition.  If you fail to comply with this order the Secretary of the Department or his or her delegate may give you a direction to perform additional hours of unpaid community work in accordance with the Sentencing Act 1991.

16Further, you will be under the supervision of a Community Corrections officer for the period of the 18 months of the order.  You must undergo assessment and treatment, including testing, for alcohol abuse or dependency as directed by the Regional Manager.  And you must not contact or associate with any of your co-offenders charged on this indictment or with your co-offender, Mathew Akoi for the period of 18 months during which the order is in force.

17I warn you that if you fail to comply with any of the terms of the order, you are potentially in breach of the order and could be sentenced to up to three months’ imprisonment for just breaching the order.  If you commit an offence punishable by imprisonment during the period when the order is in force, you are likely to be brought back before this court, probably before me, and you could be re-sentenced for the original offence.  In other words, it would be open to me, or to another judge of this court, to discharge the community correction order and impose a custodial sentence upon you, if you fail to comply with the terms of the order by breaching the order having committed an offence punishable by imprisonment during the period of the order.

18If for one reason or another you find that you are unable to perform the terms of the order by reason of illness or an accident or something of that nature, then you should notify the Community Corrections offices and your supervisor.  You have the right to apply for a suspension of the order, or a variation of the order, or to discharge the order.  But if any of those events occur, if you do find that for one reason or another you are unable to perform a term of the order, then I would advise you to contact your solicitor and get some advice about making your application for a variation or discharge of the order.

19So it is important that you comply with the order and if you do that then you will be able to put this behind you.  No doubt it will be inconvenient at times having to do unpaid community work at the weekend or to fit it in amongst other commitments that you have, but it is necessary I think that it be brought home to you the seriousness of this offence, and for you to be punished appropriately for it.

20I have no doubt you have discussed the terms of the order with Mr Revill.  Are you willing to comply with the terms of the order?  All right. 

21And do you understand the consequences of failing to comply with the terms of the order?  Very well, all right.

22For the offence of violent disorder to which you have pleaded guilty, Warnyang Puoch, you are convicted and sentenced to a community correction order for a period of 18 months in the terms that I have just outlined to you.  I am going to ask Mr Revill to go with my associate to enable you to sign the order.  Once you have signed it, I will sign it and then the order will be formally in force.

23Are there any other matters, Ms Hamill?

24MS HAMILL:  I think the disposal order made for the knives that was made in Mr Lee's matter also needs to formally be made in Mr Puoch's matter.

25HIS HONOUR:  Yes, I see my associate nodding.  I will make that order.  I take it there is no objection to that, Mr Revill?

26MR REVILL:  No, no, Your Honour.      

27HIS HONOUR:  Thank you.  All right, well Mr Puoch, I have now signed that order and the order is now in force.  You may now leave the dock. 

28I have signed the forfeiture order as well, thank you.

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