Director of Public Prosecutions v Snyder

[2018] VCC 2112

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

AT MELBOURNE
CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

CR 18-01152

THE QUEEN

v

JASON SNYDER (a pseudonym)

---

JUDGE:	HER HONOUR JUDGE HANNAN
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:	11 October 2018
DATE OF SENTENCE:	11 December 2018
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Snyder
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2018] VCC 2112

REASONS FOR SENTENCE
---

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

---

APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the Commonwealth	Mr T Crouch	Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions
For the Accused	Ms E Millar	Victoria Legal Aid

HER HONOUR:

1Jason Snyder[1], you have pleaded guilty to one charge of possessing child abuse material contrary to s.51(G) of the Crimes Act.  The maximum penalty for that offence is ten years' imprisonment.

[1] Jason Snyder is a pseudonym.

2Further, you have pleaded guilty to one charge of using a carriage service to cause child pornography to be transmitted, contrary to s.474.19 of the Criminal Code (Cwlth.). The maximum penalty for that offence is 15 years' imprisonment.

3Further, you have pleaded guilty to one charge of using a carriage service to transmit child pornography contrary to s.474.19 of the Criminal Code (Cwlth).  The maximum penalty for that offence is also 15 years' imprisonment.

4Further, you have pleaded guilty to one charge of producing child pornography material for use through a carriage service, contrary to s.474.20(1) of the Criminal Code (Cwlth.)  The maximum penalty for that offence is 15 years' imprisonment.

5Further, you have pleaded guilty to two charges of sexual assault of a child under 16.  The maximum penalty for each offence is ten years' imprisonment.

6Further, you have pleaded guilty to four charges of sexual penetration of a child under the age of 12.  The maximum penalty for each offence is 25 years' imprisonment.

7Finally, you have pleaded guilty to two charges of bestiality, contrary to s.54A(1) of the Crimes Act.  The maximum penalty for each offence is five years' imprisonment.

8The facts which found your offending are set out in the prosecution opening tendered upon your plea.  You were, at all relevant times, aged 18 years. 
On 6 August 2017, you commenced a conversation with a person you believed to be an adult female with the username "Jessica" on Kik Messenger. 
The reality was that person was another adult male, using various aliases.

9Initially, the contact was in relation to consensual activity between you, but progressed into a discussion of a sexual nature about underage family members.  As part of this ongoing interaction, you sent videos of yourself engaging in sexualised conduct.  Jessica then sent you a child pornography image, asking "Do you like young boys?". You responded, saying, "Yeah, apparently so."

10There was then ongoing discussion in relation to child pornography and Jessica sent you other child pornography images.  There was discussion as to what you would provide in exchange.  You responded with adult pornography, to which Jessica responded by sending you 13 further child pornography files.

11During the conversation, she asked you about young boys in your family or extended family.  You claimed to be sexually attracted to little boys and there was discussion between you and Jessica about having children together and sexually abusing them.  You at one stage said:

"I will swallow all our kids' cum if we have kids, babe."

12A few days later, on 11 August, Jessica sent you a message requesting child pornography.  You initially, it seems, resisted, saying, "M'mm, I'd rather not.  Sorry."  The following day, Jessica again sent you a child pornography image and a series of messages expressing anger that you were not willing to provide her with photos.  You responded, sending a picture of your fully-clothed niece who was then almost two years old.

13At this stage, Jessica offered to trade child pornography for images depicting the child and her "pussy" and “her hand around your cock”.  You expressed hesitation, but after discussion, during which Jessica expressed further anger at you and offered to let you back into her "good books" if you agreed to take photos, you sent a photo which depicts you holding your erect penis beside the victim, who was fully clothed.

14After further discussion, you sent a photo which depicts you holding your erect penis near the face of the victim.  Later that night, you told Jessica that “she” - referring to your niece:

"had her hand on it before, and it got hard."

15Between 15 August and 22 August 2017, you continued to send messages to Jessica but received no substantive replies.

16On 23 September, you sent a message saying:

"I'm at my niece's house."

17Jessica responded, effectively saying that she would go back to ignoring you if you did not take pictures of your niece.  You asked her what sort of pictures, to which she responded:

"Your dick in her face and stuff."

18The next day, 24 September 2017, you sent a message to Jessica asking if you could "do it tonight", saying that your niece would be with you at your house.  On 26 September 2017, you again sent a clothed picture of your niece to Jessica.  She complained, saying:

"You're not naked with her and she's not naked."

19Jessica continued to demand that you do "niece pics."

20On 30 September 2017, you sent a message saying:

"I'm alone with my niece."

21You then sent a series of two images and three videos which depict an image of the face of the victim with you holding up her T-shirt to expose her chest area, an image of you holding your erect penis in the face of the victim, a video of the victim sitting on the couch eating potato chips, playing with your erect penis, a video of the victim sitting on the couch and you requesting she kiss your penis, and her placing her lips and nose on your erect penis, and a video of the victim sitting on the couch, eating chips, and playing with your erect penis.

22Jessica responded with "Wow" and an emoji of a smiley face.

23The next day, being 1 October 2017, Jessica again asked if you could see your niece that day and suggested that you take "nudes" outside.  You then sent photos of yourself naked and Jessica responded by sending you child pornography images.  There was then discussion between you about sexual fantasies connected to the images.

24The following day, on 2 October, you messaged Jessica, saying:

"How can I earn some pics?"

25She responded:

"Do more things with your niece."

26There was no response from Jessica to your further messages until 19 October, when you sent a message saying:

"Hey, my niece is here."

27To which Jessica responded:

"Take pics."

28You again expressed some reluctance and you did not send images on that occasion.

29On 27 October 2017, you sent two further clothed pictures of your niece to Jessica, saying:

"My niece is here and she's sitting on my cock."

30Jessica again suggested taking "dirty pics" with her, to which you responded:

"I don't want to, because she's related to me."

31Jessica responded:

"But it gets me horny, which you like."

32You said:

"I want to get you horny in other ways."

33And Jessica responded with a sad face.  You did not send any further images on that occasion.

34On 30 October 2017, you initiated a conversation with Jessica, sending her three pictures depicting:  the victim lying on her back with her legs apart, with the focus on her exposed vagina, the victim laying on her back with you penetrating the victim's vagina with your index finger - the focus is on your finger in her vagina, and the victim naked from the waist down, sitting on your scrotum.  The focus is again on the victim's vagina.

35After receiving the above images, Jessica asked you to "lick her pussy", and sent a video which she described as "a girl licking me out."  Jessica was continuing to ask you to take further pictures of your niece.

36On 1 November 2017, Jessica contacted you, asking if you could "do stuff with her", referring to your niece, today.  You replied:  "No."

37On 5 November 2017, you initiated a conversation by saying:

"I'm at the house alone with my niece."

38The next day, being 6 November 2017, you sent a series of images to Jessica which included:  the victim clothed in your bedroom, the victim using her hand to touch your erect penis, and your erect penis next to the victim's face.  Jessica responded by sending you adult pornography images.

39On 7 November 2017, you sent a message saying:

"I'll do anything by myself to earn pics and vids from you, so what do you want me to do?"

40Jessica asked you if you had a dog, and you responded that you would do stuff alone or with animals.  Later in that conversation, Jessica asked you to "wank in your niece's face", and you said you would do it when you were next alone with her.

41On 11 November 2017, you messaged Jessica, saying that you were alone with your niece and you sent two files.  Firstly, a video of you penetrating the victim's vagina with your tongue - the focus is on your face and the victim's vagina, and secondly, a video of the victim wearing a dress, sucking on a dummy, naked from the waist down, laying on her back and playing with your erect penis. 
You then sent a message to Jessica, saying:

"That's the last thing I'm going to do with her, okay?  No more."

42On 12 November 2017, Jessica responded, saying:

"Why didn't you do a long video of you licking her out?"

43You responded, saying that you were limited on time.  There was then further discussion. 

44On 17 November 2017, there was further discussion in relation to exchanging pictures, then in discussion in relation to other forms of child sexual abuse. 
Part of this conversation involves you and Jessica discussing a sexual fantasy about having a “home pregnancy baby” and sexually abusing the baby.

45On 21 November 2017, there was discussion in which you again expressed reluctance to engage in further offending as it related to your niece.

46However, on 28 November, you initiated a conversation with Jessica.  There was discussion about you missing her, during which Jessica asked you to send a 20-second video of you "licking out" your niece.  In exchange, she said that she will talk to you for a further two months.

47The next day, Jessica continued to ask you to produce the videos.

48On 1 December 2017, you asked:

"Wanna see a dog lick my dick?"

49The next day, you said:

"Wanna see me lick a dog's dick?"

50Jessica initially asked that you "do stuff" with your sibling, but then asked:

"Can you do stuff with your dog right now?"

51You said that you had already done so, and saved the videos.  You then sent two videos: the first, depicting you masturbating a male dog, and the second video depicting you performing oral sex on the same male dog.  Jessica again sent you adult pornography images in return.  There was further discussion and you sent two further videos:  a video depicting you masturbating the dog while licking its anus and a video depicting you penetrating a female dog's vagina with your finger.  You received no replies in relation to these videos.

52On 17 January 2018, you again messaged Jessica, saying that you had "vids" of your niece if she wanted them.  There was no reply for a few days. 
You followed up, saying:

"Do you want them or not?"

53To which Jessica responded:

"Yeah, send them."

54On 19 January 2018, you sent the following videos: one video depicting the victim sitting on the couch next to you, using her hand to play with your erect penis and kissing your penis, and another video depicting you standing naked with the victim, holding your penis in her hand, close to her face.  After receiving these files, Jessica asked for more.

55On 22 January 2018, you sent the following files:  an image of the victim laying naked on her back with the focus on her nipples and bellybutton, an image depicting the victim laying on her back with you using your thumb and forefinger to open her vagina, a video of you performing oral sex on the victim, who is naked, a video of the victim naked with you holding your erect penis on her labia, a video depicting both you and the victim naked on your bed - your penis is erect, and the victim places her tongue on your penis and then pulls away.  You pushed your penis towards her mouth.  Your penis enters her mouth, and she again pulls away.

56Jessica responded to these videos, saying:

"Omg.  I love you."

57And she then sent you a series of adult pornography videos.

58On 28 January 2018, you again asked Jessica to send videos of her and young boys or girls, and to:

"Just keep sending them."

59Jessica responded, sending several adult pornography videos and four child pornography videos.

60On 31 January, and until 18 February 2018, there were sexualised discussions but no further files were exchanged.

61On 14 February that year, the AFP received a referral, and as a result, executed a search warrant at your home on 18 February 2018.  You were arrested and conveyed to the Echuca police station, where you were interviewed.

62You confirmed your use of the phone and email address.  You said you could not remember child pornography images being sent between you and "young possum."  You admitted that you had received child pornography images.

63You said you did not ask for it to be sent.  You said that after receiving it, you got rid of it, either by deleting or not saving it.  You claimed you did not want to see child pornography material.  You said Jessica started pushing you about being interested in child pornography.  You said you might have sent images to Jessica.

64You eventually, however, admitted to sexually abusing your niece, and you said that it started not long ago.  You said you felt pressured.  You agreed that you may have put your penis in her mouth.  You denied various other acts. 
You said you felt disgusted in yourself, and you denied being sexually aroused.

65Your electronic devices were subsequently analysed.  You admitted that you were aware that there was child pornography material.  A total of 34 child pornography pictures and 15 videos were discovered, details as to classification are set out in the table produced by the prosecution and contained in the opening.

66As a result of the location of this material, you were further interviewed.  During the course of that interview, you admitted performing oral sex on your niece.  You said you threw up after the first time because you were disgusted in yourself.  You again denied being sexually aroused by children.  You estimated your put your penis near your niece's face less than ten times.  You made admissions as regards bestiality and other sexual acts with the dogs.  You were arrested and remanded overnight.

67In relation to this matter, you entered a plea of guilty at committal.  The matter proceeded by way of straight hand-up brief.  It was then listed for plea in this court.

68For completeness, I direct that annexure 3 to the prosecution opening, which is the agreed factual basis upon which you have pleaded, be annexed to these reasons for sentence.  I do not propose to recite the full context of that annexure now.

69As regards offence seriousness, the charges which bring you before this court could not be described other than as serious in nature.  The offence of sexual penetration of a child under 12 carries a maximum penalty of 25 years' imprisonment.  What is disclosed in this case are multiple acts of offending against a child under two years of age.  Your offending spans a number of months.

70The victim was clearly vulnerable.  She was a child of tender years.  While she may not at this time appreciate the significance of the acts and the offending against her, that is not to say that there will not be a psychological sequela into the future.

71You grossly abused the trust of your niece, and the trust that your brother and sister-in-law were entitled to have in you.  You had a duty to your niece and you grossly and repeatedly breached that at times when your niece was in your care.

72This type of offending is abhorrent to anyone who has any shred of decency or any moral compass.  Not only did you sexually offend physically with your niece, but you transmitted images of that abuse.  The reality is that those images have now been transmitted and will unfortunately remain in cyberspace for viewing and transmission by other offenders.  Your acts with the dogs simply disclose depravity.

73As regards the child pornography material, as is often repeated in these courts, this is not a victimless crime.  In your case, the victim was indeed your niece on many occasions.  But on other occasions, your participation fuels a trade, a market, for offenders, and fuels the misery of the world's children.

74That being said, the charge of possession is in relation to a limited number of images.  It is not sophisticated offending.  You used your own web address.  There was no elaborate trail to frustrate authorities.  The charges of transmission are serious.  Your acts were deliberate and ongoing. 

75I accept that you were being goaded, and it seems, probably manipulated by the offender calling himself Jessica.  But that is not to say that you did not make choices.  At times, you initiated contact, and you were actively engaged in this depravity.  There is, of course, in relation to this matter, no suggestion of profit or wider distribution.

76I have received a victim impact statement from the child's mother. 
She understandably feels betrayed and confused by what you have done to her child.  As a parent, she feels guilty that she could not protect her child. 
She reports nightmares and hypervigilance related to her child's safety. 
She also expresses her distress as regards the abuse of her dogs.

77She may well have more to deal with over the years as her child grows up and asks questions.  The result of your offending would or should have been clear to you at the time that you committed these horrendous acts.

78For the purposes of sentencing, it is relevant to note that you have no prior convictions or appearances and nothing subsequent.  You are to be sentenced on the basis that you are, apart from this matter, a man of good character. 

79As already noted, you were 18 at the date of this offending.  You are now aged 19 and still at the lower end of the range of young offenders.  You were born in Echuca and you live there to this day.  Your parents separated in 2010 but it was amicable.

80You have regular contact with both your parents, who attend court in support of you.  You have two older brothers and an older sister, none of whom have ever been in any trouble with the law.  You have no history of drug or alcohol abuse, and there are no issues of that nature within your family.

81Your family are of course aware of the offending which brings you before this court, and I am told they nevertheless remain supportive of you.  You even maintain a relationship with your brother, whose daughter is the subject of this offending.

82You attended St Joseph's College in Echuca until the end of Year 11.  You are described as not academically orientated, which resulted in poor school performance and lack of motivation.  You have not had any real employment since finishing school, other than a few short term unskilled periods of employment.  You are now in receipt of a Newstart allowance.

83Your only ongoing activity seems to be volunteering at Southern 80 with your aunt.  You report that you have had relationships with females in the past and that you wish to do so in the future.  You do not currently have a partner and you do not have any children.  I note for completeness that you have had not any issues nor treatment in relation to drug addiction, nor in relation to alcohol.

84I received correspondence from your mother indicating the family's ongoing support of you and a letter from your aunt in relation to your volunteer work in your community.  Both, it seems, are shocked as regards this offending.

85I also received correspondence from the president of your football club, and while not indicating that he is aware of the specifics of your offending, he expresses surprise that you would be involved in criminal offending as he says in the last nine years that he has known you, he would describe you as decent and trustworthy.

86I received a report dated 18 July 2018 from Mr Ian Joblin, a forensic psychologist.  You saw Mr Joblin for the purposes of assessment and report on 17 July of this year.  Mr Joblin found no evidence that you have ever had any serious mental illness.  He was of the view that you are of at least average intelligence and that your level of intelligence played no role in your offending.

87Mr Joblin expresses the opinion that the offences in total represent contextual factors that were occurring in your life at the time of the onset of the offences.  He says that you felt that you were directionless, that you lacked motivation, and that as a result of that, in his opinion, you had little stability and limited psychological strength.

88He says that under those conditions, when you were confronted by the possibility of offending, your capacity to resist the temptation was challenged. 
I note that you told Mr Joblin that in the absence of the other party requesting the videos, the offending would not have occurred.  He makes clear that you were not suggesting that there was coercion or threats to participate.

89Mr Joblin says that your expressions to him do not mean that the offending was not sexually exciting for you.  He says the offences became exciting and stimulating for you, in the absence of duress, necessity or coercion.  You did not have the psychological strength, in Mr Joblin's view, to resist the temptation of what was being offered to you.

90Mr Joblin says that there was no doubt that the offences represent a serious psychosocial disorder.  But he says they must also be placed into context, including some degree of coercion and the psychological issues impinging on you, which limited your psychological fortitude at the time of the onset and continuation of the offending.

91I note that subsequent to this offending, you have engaged in counselling with Mr Marr, a psychologist in Echuca.

92As you are aware, I have also received a report from Dr Dhaji, dated
29 November 2018.  He assesses you as being a low/moderate risk of reoffending and says that it seems relatively unlikely that you will commit any further sexual offences.  He says that you do not meet the criteria for paedophilic disorder and that it is unlikely that you have a strong or preferential sexual interest in children.

93Using the RSVP, Dr Dhaji assesses you as having a small number of relevant risk factors for further sexual offending.  This was also reflected in the Static-99 assessment, which indicated that you are less likely than the average man convicted of a sexual offence to commit a further sexual offence.

94Dr Dhaji opines that you were not vulnerable to manipulation during the period of your offending due to any mental disorder, but your personality and contextual social factors meant that you were vulnerable.

95He says that you are emotionally and interpersonally immature and naïve. 
He says that you are shy, lacking in confidence and assertiveness, and that your social isolation and lack of structure meant that you were eager to connect with Jessica and have intimacy.

96He says that your continued offending was not driven by deviant sexual interest, but rather, that you lacked the self-awareness and coping skills to disentangle yourself from something you felt you could not get out of.  Dr Dhaji says that your limited experience of sexual relationships and sexual curiosity may also have played a role in your offending.

97Since your arrest, you have described feeling depressed, anxious and, at times, suicidal.  With the support of your family and the passage of time, these feelings have to some extent ameliorated.  You have begun seeing a counsellor with help for anxiety. 

98Dr Dhaji notes that you would be very vulnerable in adult custody due to your personality, emotional immaturity and interpersonal naiveté.  Ultimately,
Dr Dhaji opines that the context played an important role in your offending and that your treatment needs primary surround addressing your shyness, difficulty coping under pressure, lack of confidence and assertiveness, and obtaining structure and direction.

99He says that you are generally pro-social and willing to work with others, but require treatment in order to approve your ability to have close and meaningful relationships with others, including intimate relationships.  Dr Dhaji says that a sex offender treatment program is unnecessary and that you do not require treatment to address sexual deviancy or any pro-offending attitudes.

100I accept in relation to this matter that you are remorseful, as is demonstrated by your admissions, plea, engagement in treatments, and apology, including a letter to this court.  You have expressed ongoing disgust as regards your offending.  I accept that you are sorry for what you have done, and not just the situation in which you now find yourself.

101I think it is difficult to assess your prospects of rehabilitation fully at this time.  The reality is that you will need to engage in substantial therapy and treatment.  The extent of your fulsome participation and acceptance of the full extent of your criminality will, I think, largely determine the progress of rehabilitation.

102At this time, however, I think that globally your prospects would have to be assessed as good, given your lack of any prior or subsequent offending and the efforts you have made as regards your own rehabilitation.

103As well as matters personal to you, including those prospects of rehabilitation, I must take into account other relevant sentencing considerations.  In the usual course, general deterrence is given considerable weight in matters such as this; that is, I must seek to deter not only you but others who would engage in like conduct. That is, of course, to note that the court and the community cannot and will not tolerate offending which so seriously damages the lives of our children

104This factor in your case, however, is to be given less weight in light of your youth and the primacy which must necessarily be given to your rehabilitation.

105Your sentence must manifest the community's denunciation of your conduct and impose just punishment.

106Specific deterrence must be given some weight in that I must seek to deter you from future offending.  But again, in my view, that can be given less weight in light of your history.

107Important in sentencing you is the fact that you are still a young offender. 
You were 18 at the date of this offending.  You are 19 now.  Your rehabilitation must be given significant weight in the sentencing process.  Indeed, it should be given primacy.

108I note that I have received a report from the Department of Justice and Regulation.  It is a pre-sentence report in relation to your suitability for a Youth Justice Centre order.  In that report, it is indicated that you have taken responsibility for the offending, that you have demonstrated remorse and understanding about the impacts of your offending on your niece and your broader family relationships.

109The author notes that you expressed strong disappointment and regret for your actions, which was consistent, in the author's opinion, with Mr Joblin's psychological report suggesting that your personal emotional circumstances at the time were contributing factors in your offending.

110The author notes that this is your first involvement with the Victorian Youth Justice and criminal justice system, that you have made substantial efforts as regards your own rehabilitation, including attending counselling sessions with Mr Michael Marr, who is a mental health social worker specialising in children, youth and family counselling and support services.

111You indicated to the author of that report that the serious nature of your offences was acknowledged.  You were assessed as a low risk of further reoffending by Mr Ian Joblin.  In relation to this matter, the author refers to various opinions to which I have already referred, including that you are quite naïve, isolated, lonely, and that those matters contributed to you being easily influenced by Jessica. The report of Mr Dhaji is again referred to by the author of the Youth Justice Centre report, wherein Mr Dhaji stated that you are unlikely to be a risk to children or animals, and that on a risk/needs responsivity approach, that your offending needs could be addressed in the community and that you require support to address issues regarding confidence, assertiveness, self-awareness and appropriate relationships.  The report of Mr Dhaji is referred to in that
Mr Dhaji expressed the opinion that those matters could, if that was the only consideration, be addressed within the community.

112Important in terms of the Youth Justice assessment itself, you are noted to have presented as being shy and immature.  You are described as a young person who is remorseful for his offending.  It is noted that you are currently unemployed and in receipt of a Newstart allowance from Centrelink, and that you indicate that you had no particular ambition in the future.  You were just focused on getting your court matters dealt with.

113As regards your suitability for a Youth Justice Centre order, it is noted that you were at the lower end of the range of young offenders in the adult jurisdiction, that you have no criminal history, nor anything subsequent, that you present as taking responsibility for your offending and understanding the serious nature of your offending and its impacts. Your interactions with Youth Justice services indicate good prospects for your engagement with services to assist in your rehabilitation. You said that you believe that you deserve to be punished for your offending.

114It is noted that you have a positive family support system which will assist you into the future.  It is further noted that you have been assessed as a low risk of further sexual reoffending and that treatment could focus on building confidence and self-esteem, and it is noted that Mr Dhaji was of the view that absent other sentencing factors, this is a matter that could have been dealt with within the community.

115I turn to sentencing matters.  I have had regard to applied principles of totality and proportionality in coming to a view as to the appropriate orders in relation to concurrency and cumulation.  There has been moderation and some cumulation, so the total effective sentence reflects the totality of your criminality.

116I have no option but to impose a sentence which involves incarceration, but at the end of the day, I have determined, based upon your youth and the various assessments to which I have referred, that it is appropriate to order that you be detained in a Youth Justice Centre as follows.

117Firstly, on the State charges.

118Charge 1, possess child abuse material.  You are sentenced to be detained for six months.

119Charge 5, sexual assault of a child under 16.  You are sentenced to be detained for 12 months.

120Charge 6, sexual assault of a child under 16.  You are sentenced to be detained for 12 months.

121Charge 7, sexual penetration of a child under 12.  You are sentenced to be detained for 30 months.

122Charge 8, sexual penetration of a child under 12.  You are sentenced to be detained for 30 months.

123Charge 9, bestiality.  You are sentenced to be detained for four months.

124Charge 10, bestiality.  You are sentenced to be detained for four months.

125Charge 11, sexual penetration of a child under 12.  You are sentenced to be detained for 30 months.

126Charge 12, sexual penetration of a child under 12.  You are sentenced to be detained for 30 months.

127I direct that Charge 7 be the State base sentence, and I make the following orders for cumulation.  I direct that six months of the sentence on Charge 8, two months of the sentence on Charge 11, six months of the sentence upon Charge 12, be served cumulatively with the sentence upon Charge 7 and upon each other, making a total effective State sentence of 44 months, which is three years and eight months.

128I turn to the Commonwealth charges.

129On Charge 2, using a carriage service to cause child pornography material to be transmitted to yourself, 12 months, commencing this day.  My intention is that this sentence be concurrent.

130Charge 3, use a carriage service to transmit child pornography material,
12 months, commencing two years and ten months from today.  My intention is to cumulate two months.

131Charge 4, produce child pornography material for use through a carriage service, 12 months commencing three years from today.  My intention is to cumulate two months.

132On the Commonwealth sentences, I make clear that it is my intention that four months be cumulative on the State sentence.

133That is, effectively, a sentence of detention of four years.

134I direct it be noted in the records of the court that were it not for your plea of guilty, I would have sentenced you to a term of adult custody.

135Sex offender registration is mandatory.  You have now pleaded guilty to four Class 1 offences and nine Class 2 offences.  Pursuant to s.34 of the Act, you are required to comply with reporting obligations for the remainder of your life.  In a moment, my associate will ask you to sign an acknowledgement in that regard.

136Counsel, can you check the cumulations, please?  Do you want me to repeat it?

137MS MILLAR:  Yes, if Your Honour could, yes.

138HER HONOUR:  Yes. 

139MR CROUCH:  Just dates for me on the Commonwealth Charges 2, 3 and 4,

140HER HONOUR:  All right.  Perhaps I will just run through them all, and I will not detail the charges, just the charge number.  Charge 1, six months.  Charge 5, 12 months.  Charge 6, 12 months.  Charge 7, 30 months.  Charge 8, 30 months.  Charge 9, four months.  Charge 10, four months.  Charge 11, 30 months.  Charge 12, 30 months.  Seven is the base sentence.  So that is 30 months.

141The following are the cumulation orders.  Six months on Charge 8, two months on Charge 11, six months on Charge 12.  That makes a total effective State sentence of 44 months, which is three years and eight months.

142Turning to the Commonwealth charges.  Charge 2, 12 months, commencing this day.  That is concurrent.  Charge 3, the Commonwealth charge of using a carriage service to transmit, 12 months, but that commences two years and ten months from today.  My intention is to cumulate two months onto the State sentence.  Charge 4 is produce child pornography, 12 months, commencing three years from today's date.  My intention is again to cumulate two months.

143So on the Commonwealth sentences, my overall intention is that four months be cumulative on the State charges, which would make a total sentence of detention of four years.

144MR CROUCH:  Yes, I think that's all correct.

145MS MILLAR:  Yes, Your Honour. 

146HER HONOUR:  All right.  Thank you.  I will just have the sex offender material prepared.  Thank you.  Is it right?  It is always difficult with State and Commonwealth sentencing.

147MS MILLAR:  Your Honour, my only concern was that with Charge 4 commencing in three years, if two months of that is cumulative, I am just concerned that it doesn't take us over the four years.

148HER HONOUR:  But it does not, because when it - it commences three months from today, so that is when the period of 12 months commences.  It takes us exactly to the four-year mark.  That is my intention.

149MS MILLAR:  Yes. 

150HER HONOUR:  That is how that works, as I understand it.  So complicated calculations, but that is how it works.

151MS MILLAR:  Yes, Your Honour. 

152HER HONOUR:  Can you approach your client with my associate and have the sex offender registration signed?  Something occurred to me, though, whilst
I was sentencing.  And that is:  did he do one month?  Sorry, one day?

153MS MILLAR:  Sorry, two days, Your Honour.  Sorry, yes.

154HER HONOUR:  Two days.  I will declare two days as reckoned as served.

155MS MILLAR:  Yes, thank you, Your Honour.

156HER HONOUR:  Thank you.  Ms Millar will come down and see you.  Counsel, obviously the facts of this matter are complex.  I sought to summarise them. 
Is there any factual matter that needs to be corrected?  I have clearly indicated that I have sentenced on the basis of the prosecution opening, and specifically, annexure 3 is the basis of all the charges.  Does it make it clear enough?

157COUNSEL:  Yes, Your Honour. 

158HER HONOUR:  All right.  Very well.  Yes, very well.