Director of Public Prosecutions v Ross

[2016] VCC 219

IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA Revised
(Not) Restricted
Suitable for Publication

AT LATROBE VALLEY
CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

CR 15-02212

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

BEAU KEITH ROSS

---

JUDGE:	HIS HONOUR JUDGE SMALLWOOD
WHERE HELD:	Latrobe Valley
DATE OF HEARING:
DATE OF SENTENCE:	4 March 2016
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Ross
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2016] VCC 219

REASONS FOR SENTENCE
---

Subject:
Catchwords:
Legislation Cited:
Cases Cited:
Sentence:

---

APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the Director of Public Prosecutions	Mr G.M. Hughan
For the Offender	Mr A Rosenhain

HIS HONOUR: 

1Beau Keith Ross, you have pleaded guilty to one charge of aggravated burglary, one charge of criminal damage and one charge of recklessly causing injury.  Those crimes carry maximum penalties of 25 years, ten years and five years respectively.

2You are still only 22 years of age and therefore a young offender.  You pleaded guilty at the earliest reasonable opportunity and, I accept, have appropriate remorse.  You must also, of course, get the utilitarian benefit of that plea of guilty.  Very importantly, in your situation, you have no prior convictions of any description, which gives me great confidence for the prospects of your rehabilitation and I assess you as being a very low risk of reoffending, having been through this experience.

3The circumstances of the offending were that you, at the time, were 22 years of age and had been in a relationship of some two years with a Ms Hughes.  That relationship, in your mind at least, was still in existence in July 2015.  It would appear that that was not what was occurring in her mind, and what had been said to you and what her attitude had been, I have no idea, but in any event, on that night you had consumed a number of beers and believed that she was your girlfriend.

4In the early hours of the morning you were informed by a friend who was drinking with you, and I accept at this stage you were intoxicated, that she had recently left that particular hotel, being the Espy in Inverloch, with another man.  You, in that situation, became angry.  You asked a Mr Baker to go with you and walked on foot to her address.  You told Mr Baker not to do anything. 

5On arriving at the address, you saw a light on in the bathroom and believed that the two of them were in the house together.  You knocked on the door and, when nobody answered, you kicked in the door, forcing it open.  You broke the latch off the door frame.  That gives rise to aggravated burglary and criminal damage.

6Ms Hughes walked out of the shower naked and saw you and Mr Baker in the lounge room.  You were screaming "Where the fuck is he?"  You pushed past her into the bathroom, where Mr Lonsdale was standing naked in the shower.  You pulled him from the shower and began punching him in the face, using clenched fists and elbows to strike him, and head-butting him.  Apparently Mr Lonsdale did not throw punches but was attempting to hold you back.  Hughes attempted to separate you and you abused her.  Mr Baker did nothing, just simply stood and watched.  Hughes, she became frightened and ran into her bedroom and shut the door.  You left the bathroom, went into the bedroom and were yelling at her, saying this like, "How could you do this to me?"  In the end of that you spat at her.  You went back to the bathroom and hit Lonsdale again. 

7Mr Lonsdale was able to open the bathroom window and jumped out, wearing only underwear, and ran to the Inverloch Police Station.  You, on realising he was gone, left the house with Mr Baker.  You then yelled at Hughes as you left, and there was some other conversation which I am not privy to.

8In any event, police located you at 10 am on 5 July.  You made a full confessional record of interview, which in this sort of scenario goes very much to your credit.

9I accept that the offending is very much out of character for you, albeit serious offending.  It happened in a given situation where you had been drinking and the effect that such a sudden discovery would have upon you is capable of being understood.  However, as I said, it is a serious matter, particularly the aggravated burglary, and calls, in the normal course of events, for the application of general and specific deterrence as well as denunciation and appropriate punishment.  The other two matters would, in the normal course of events, have been dealt with in a Magistrates' Court, but it is my understanding that aggravated burglary with intent to assault cannot be.  I think that is why it is here.  So I take all those matters into account.

10Tendered on your behalf were a number of very impressive references and testimonials.  You were sports captain at school.  You are obviously a popular young man.  I accept from all those materials that you are a very valued young member of your community down at Cape Paterson.  You have been talking to a counsellor, and I accept what has been said there. 

11This was situational, and unfortunately I think in this situation I have to impose a conviction in the disposition because of the nature of the offending, but I do so with some reluctance.  You have put a lot into your short life.  I understand that you look after your mother.  You have, as I have indicated, completed an apprenticeship and are clearly a very good worker.  You are working six days a week, and all those matters go very much to your credit.  I think the prospects of your rehabilitation are excellent and that the prospects of you reoffending are very low indeed.

12In saying that, I have taken into account the contents of the victim impact statements that were tendered in relation to the matter from Mr Lonsdale and from his mother.  I do not know how the circumstances came about where Mr Lonsdale did not know what it was all about, but I have to take it on face value that Ms Hughes had apparently not told him.  Be those things as they may.

13In this particular situation the appropriate disposition, bearing very much in mind the decision of Boulton, is that a community corrections order with conviction is what I will do.  Accordingly, it will be a with conviction CCO for three years.  The only condition will be that you perform 250 hours of unpaid community work.  Where you are working six days a week, that will be a burden upon you and, I have no doubt, will act as a specific deterrent.  It is also of sufficient gravity to indicate to others that such offending is to be regarded as serious, and had you prior convictions or anything along those lines, I would have locked you up.  All right.

14HIS HONOUR:  I will make the submissions Exhibit 2 so that people know what - I just suddenly realised that no-one will have a clue what the submissions were, so I will exhibit that.  The Crown have got a copy of that, obviously?

15MR HUGHAN:  We do, Your Honour.

#EXHIBIT 2 -    Defence submissions.

16(At this stage the court proceeded with another matter.)

17HIS HONOUR:  We will get Mr Ross on his way. 

18(Community corrections order signed and acknowledged.)

19All right, that is it.  Just stand up for a second for me, Mr Ross. 

20Look, breaking into houses and flogging people is not on.  You realise that, all right?  Now what I have done is because of all the people who have spoken on your behalf in those references and your good work record and all the things that you have done, you have certainly earned the chance that you have been given today, all right?  But, please, do not come back for anything like this again, because I will have to lock you up, I just would not have any choice, and you are outside of YTC range, so you just cannot risk it.  Get the hours done, it is all over, and you are underway.

21OFFENDER:  Yeah.

22HIS HONOUR:  All right?  I am sure you can do that, and I am sure your mum is sure you can do that too.

23OFFENDER:  Yeah.

24HIS HONOUR:  So we will see how you go, all right?

25OFFENDER:  Thank you.