Director of Public Prosecutions v Valos
[2018] VCC 305
•19 March 2018
| IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA AT MELBOURNE | Revised Not Restricted Suitable for Publication |
Case No. CR-17-01756
CR-17-02208
| DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS |
| v |
| JIM VALOS YANNI VALOS |
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JUDGE: | RIDDELL | |
WHERE HELD: | Melbourne | |
DATE OF HEARING: | ||
DATE OF SENTENCE: | 19 March 2018 | |
CASE MAY BE CITED AS: | DPP v Valos & Anor | |
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION: | [2018] VCC 305 | |
REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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APPEARANCES: | Counsel | Solicitors |
| For the Director of Public Prosecutions | Mr B. Nibbs | |
| For Accused Jim Valos | Mr P. Bloemen | |
| For Accused Yanni Valos | Ms M. Tittensor |
HER HONOUR:
1Demetrious "Jim" Valos and Yanni Valos, you are father and son respectively. You are seated together in the dock, having pleaded guilty to charges of arson and criminal damage.
2Specifically, Jim Valos, you have pleaded guilty to one charge of arson, committed on 12 March 2017, and to an associated uplifted summary charge of trespass.
3Yanni Valos, you have pleaded guilty to two charges of arson, one committed with your father on 12 March 2017, and one committed on 5 July 2017, and one charge of criminal damage committed on 7 July 2017.
4During the course of your plea, Jim Valos, I became aware that your son had also been charged with the March arson, and would be pleading guilty. Given the family circumstances were precipitous to those events, it made no sense to me to have the matters dealt with separately. I therefore adjourned the plea so the two could be dealt with together.
5The circumstances of both of your offending are outlined in the summaries of prosecution openings, which were tendered on the pleas. The apparent catalyst of the offending was the breakdown of the martial relationship between Jim and Angela Valos, and a growing tension in family relations, and so I will outline your backgrounds before coming to the commission of the offences.
6
Jim Valos, you are a 51-year-old man. Your father John is an 81-year-old retired produce merchant. Your mother Katarina is a 78-year-old undertaking home duties and caring for her husband. You have one sibling, a sister,
Niah Kirinakis, who is a 47-year-old school teacher.
7You completed your schooling at Moonee Ponds Central School from Prep until Year 8. You then moved to Buckley Park High for Years 9 and 10, and Essendon Grammar for Year 11 and 12, where you completed your Victorian Certificate of Education in 1983. In 1984, you commenced work as a used car salesman. In 1986, you obtained your truck licence and commenced working in the transport industry for three years, undertaking local and interstate truck driving.
8You met your wife, Angela, and were married in December 1989. Angela is now 51 years of age. She is a secondary school teacher. Together you have three children, your son Yanni born in 1995, and your daughters Katerina, born in 1998, and Peta in 2001. Katarina is now 20 years old and works as a tennis coach, and is studying criminal justice at RMIT, and Peta, who is 17 years of age, is just entering university to also study criminal justice.
9In 1991 you, Jim, had started your own business as a produce merchant, namely Valos Trading. You operated this business successfully for 15 to 20 years as a wholesaler of produce from farms, mainly vegetables, in particular potatoes and onions. However, you encountered difficulties as demand reduced around the time of the GFC. Because of this, in 2010 you started a property development company. This company completed two projects, however warehouse developments in Flemington failed and you lost significant money as it fell behind schedule and accrued bank and penalty rates.
10In 2012 or 2013, you therefore went back to truck driving as a local and interstate driver. In 2016, you suffered a further financial setback as a development that you thought had property secured with a caveat, ended up losing up to $400,000, as no caveat had been lodged. Whilst you were able to recover some monies in proceedings against your lawyers for that failure, much of your own monies recovered were consumed by resulting legal fees.
11No doubt these events placed considerable financial and emotional pressure on you and on your marriage over those years. According to you, Yanni Valos, your mother, that is Jim's former wife, was also a person struggling with depression and with alcohol and prescription drug dependency over the years, at times requiring hospitalisation.
12It is clear that the marriage between Angela and Jim Valos became untenable to a point of violence. Two family violence intervention orders were taken out against you, Jim Valos, for the protection of your now ex-wife. You have two prior criminal convictions, both for the unlawful assault of your ex-wife, committed in 2013 and 2014. I will return to these in due course. Angela eventually left the family home sometime in 2012 to 2013.
13I turn now to the circumstances of the offending before me. Firstly in relation to Jim Valos. At the time of this offending in March 2017, you and Angela had been separated for approximately four years. The victim of this offence is Mr Adam Adamidis. He was born on 20 January 1966. You and he had been friends for 35 years, and he is the godfather to you, Yanni Valos.
14You, Jim Valos, became suspicious that your estranged wife and Mr Adamidis were involved in an intimate relationship. Leading up to this offence in March 2017, you had levelled this allegation against them. Neither would confirm nor deny it, and you clearly became increasingly frustrated and angry.
15In early March 2017, you happened to ring and speak with one of your daughters. On enquiring about Angela's whereabouts, your daughter told you that she was collecting a television from the home of Mr Adamidis. This of course piqued your interest in what was happening with them by way of a relationship.
16
You, Jim, then enlisted the help of your son Yanni, requesting him to drive past Mr Adamidis' address to establish if Angela's vehicle was there. You and
Mr Adamidis had not spoken for the previous six months leading up to these events, until a recent phone call from you on 9 March 2017 at 12.07 pm. You called Mr Adamidis from another person's mobile phone number, as he had not been responding to your calls.
17Not recognising the number, Mr Adamidis answered the phone. You raised your voice during that phone call and told him "I am coming over shortly" prior to ending the conversation. Mr Adamidis states he was unaware why you were angry at him.
18Following that phone call with Mr Adamidis, you sent the following text message to Angela Valos at 12.23 am. It stated "You and Adam, wow. You keep hitting the lows. He just blatantly lied to me".
19On Sunday 12 March 2017, after your conversation concerning the television, you sent numerous text messages from your mobile phone to Angela Valos. You made the following references to Mr Adamidis.
i.At 10.23 am, "You're doing okay Ange, you've bought a house, got Adam, life is bliss. Your son has his own opinions and he does what he pleases, what can I do?".
ii.At 10.41 am "How's Adam?".
iii.At 10.46 am "Guilty as sin Angie".
iv.At 10.50 am "You better get yourself checked up, because Adam has been to every brothel in Australia. I've seen him fuck Aboriginies, and let's not forget his exploits in Thailand".
v.At 10.51 am "We are over Angie, that was the" -
vi.At 10.52 am "The final betrayal. Hand that phone back, it's not yours".
vii.At 11.00 am "Wake up Angie".
viii.At 11.02 am "You don't even deny it Angie".
ix.At 11.38 am "Guilty as sin Angie".
x.At 11.46 am "As I thought".
xi.And then at 3.15 pm "Adam always excels with drunks".
20That same afternoon, you attended the Brunswick Private Hospital to visit your father in the company of your mother and your son Yanni. You all travelled together in the 1985 silver Mercedes 280E registration 1JG 4TK. You dropped your mother home from the hospital between 5-6 pm, and then attended Barclay Square, Brunswick with your son Yanni. You both attended 12 Fergusson Street, Ascot Vale, to visit your cousin at approximately 7 pm. You watched the television show Married at First Sight, and left that address just prior to it finishing at 9 pm. At some point during the evening, you were both drinking. In particular, Yanni reports he was consuming bourbon.
21On the way home from the Ascot Vale address, your silver Mercedes with a distinctive stripe along the side was observed travelling east along Wilson Street, Moonee Ponds at about 9 pm. By virtue of CCTV footage in the area, it was possible for police to later identify your vehicle drive around the entire block where Mr Adamidis' unit is located. At various times you travelled at a slow pace, with brake lights illuminating numerous times. It was conceded by counsel that you were both in the vehicle during this period.
22At 9.05 pm, you both returned to Jim Valos' parents' home at 17 Fanny Street, Moonee Ponds. It was clearly at this point that you obtained accelerants, namely petrol and firelighters.
23Your vehicle was then observed travelling along Fanny Street at about 9.27 pm. At some time between 9.27 pm and 9.44 pm, you returned to the home address of Mr Adamidis at 1/288 Hope Street, Brunswick West. These premises are a single-storey dwelling facing Hope Street. They are a unit. It was a Sunday night.
24Mr Adamidis was inside the unit, watching television in the lounge room, which is situated at the rear of the unit. The light in the hallway was on, and a light in either the kitchen or lounge room was switched on. The television was on and the volume was up. Despite these matters, the prosecution do not allege that you were aware that Mr Adamidis was at home. I must, and do treat you therefore, as being unaware of that fact.
25While Mr Adamidis watched television, he heard the sound of breaking glass coming from his bedroom, which is situated at the front of the unit on the west side. He immediately rushed to his bedroom and observed the broken glass window. The bedroom window is made up of small glass panes, and several of them had been smashed. The flyscreen had been pushed in. This is the summary charge of trespass.
26Mr Adamidis walked over to the bedroom window and stood right up against the curtains. He observed you, Jim Valos, standing outside the window on the front lawn. You did not have your face covered. You were wearing a dark coloured polo top and a pair of jeans. He describes you as appearing ‘cool, calm and collected’.
27Mr Adamidis then lost sight of you as you stepped away from the window. He then heard glass smashing in the bedroom that is on the east side of the premises. He entered that room and observed the smashing of the glass window. He retreated from the room, returning to the main bedroom in an attempt to locate his mobile phone to contact police. He there observed you pouring a clear liquid substance inside the main bedroom. He could smell what was described as gasoline.
28Mr Adamidis moved further away from the window, and observed you place your hand inside the room. He was unable to see what you were holding, however the curtains immediately caught fire. The fire spread quickly from the curtains onto the floor, and over to the bed. Mr Adamidis was then in the hallway when he observed the curtains in the second bedroom go up in flames. This is the charge of arson.
29At this point, Mr Adamidis panicked as both rooms were on fire. He dropped his mobile phone as the house quickly filled with thick, black smoke. He searched for the phone but decided to leave, as he could not locate it. He left the premises via the kitchen and through the rear door. He attempted to open the garage roller door, however due to power loss caused by the fire, it was no longer operating. As a result, he was forced to climb over two fences which joined the two units together, and he exited through a shared garage of Units 3 and 4.
30At 9.44 pm, a neighbour observed the fire and contacted 000. She obtained a photograph of the fire, which depicts the flames in the front bedroom. A figure is seen on CCTV footage walking west along Hope Street as the fire engulfed the house.
31You, Mr Yanni Valos, were with your father during the evening, including when the accelerants were obtained. You were keeping lookout for your father during the course of the commission of the arson offending on the premises of Mr Adamidis.
32At 9.49 pm, the first Metropolitan Fire Brigade unit arrived on scene. Units from Brunswick, Ascot Vale, Northcote and Pascoe Vale arrived and extinguished the fire. Extensive damage was caused to the property. The total estimated cost is $125,000. The fire destroyed the front two rooms of the dwelling, and the remainder of the property was damaged by smoke and water. The majority of Mr Adamidis' personal belongings were also destroyed during the fire. The total estimated cost of the contents, for which he was uninsured, was between $55,000-$75,000.
33Police attended the scene. They located and seized a 1L mineral KCB turpentine bottle that was located on top of a hedge underneath Mr Adamidis' bedroom window. The black lid to the bottle was located on the ground of Mr Adamidis' front lawn. Photographs were taken.
34Mr Adamidis was treated at the scene by Ambulance Victoria, and was advised to attend hospital for further examination. He later attended the Royal Melbourne Hospital and was treated for smoke inhalation. The hairs on the back of his neck were singed as a result of the fire.
35Forensic investigators attended the scene. Two separate seats of fire were identified, one in each of the bedrooms. The presence of petrol was identified, along with firelighters, which were located in the area of origin in the bedroom on the eastern side.
36The following morning, Monday 13 March 2017 at 7.32 am, you Jim Valos attended 7/11 on Melville Road in your Mercedes and filled it with petrol. At the time you were wearing a dark coloured t-shirt and light coloured shorts. At 10 am the same day, you then attended the home address of Angela Valos. You were in your Mercedes. You wound down your window and called Angela over to the vehicle.
37You accused her again of being in a relationship with Mr Adamidis, and directly asked her about her relationship with him. You did not receive a direct answer from Angela, and this is when the conversation became heated. You got out of the vehicle and threatened to serve divorce papers as you ran towards her. She retreated inside her house and you left the address.
38Following the conversation with her, Angela Valos received a picture message from your mobile phone at 10.47 am. The message contained an old photograph of the two of you with the caption "What was".
39On 13 March 2017, detectives from Geelong CIU attended your address at Indented Head, and you were arrested. A search warrant was executed, and numerous items were seized, which included a bottle of KCB mineral turpentine, this being the same older type of KCB turpentine that was located at the scene, fire logs and clothing items, including a black t-shirt, blue coloured Adidas t-shirt and two pairs of jeans.
40
In your interview, you made admissions to contacting Mr Adamidis via a friend's mobile phone, as Mr Adamidis was not responding to your calls. You stated however that on 12 March you returned home to your parents' address at
17 Fanny Street Moonee Ponds with your son after visiting your cousins' house, and returned at approximately 10 pm. You said you did not leave Fanny Street again that night. You denied any allegation regarding the arson.
41
You made admissions to attending the home address of Angela Valos the following morning, and to speaking with her about her relationship with
Mr Adamidis. You stated that you asked Angela about Adam, and said she would usually fire back with ammunition, and on this occasion she did not, so you took this as though she had nothing to say about it.
42
On Tuesday 14 March 2017, police executed a search warrant at
17 Fanny Street, Moonee Ponds, and located inside the bedroom that you were staying in, a dark coloured polo top. Inside the garage, police located and seized a single packet of Lucifer firelighters on top of a workbench, with only three remaining in the packet.
43You, Jim Valos, were charged with these offences on 14 March 2017, and were remanded. On 28 March 2017 you were granted bail on conditions prohibiting contact with your ex-wife and children. On 13 April 2017, bail was varied to allow you contact with your children.
44On 3 May 2017, you breached bail and your bail was revoked, and you returned to custody. The circumstances of that breach were not elaborated on, however on my enquiry your counsel confirmed that the breach related to the condition prohibiting contact with your ex-wife.
45I turn now to the personal circumstances of you, Yanni Valos, and to events surrounding your additional offending.
46I was told of your history by your counsel, and I have received a psychological report from Consulting Clinical and Forensic Psychologist Mr Jeffrey Cummins, dated 15 February 2018 and tendered on the plea, and later a transition/discharge summary report from Orygen Youth Health, dated 6 June 2017.
47Yanni Valos, you are a 22-year-old man born to Angela and Jim Valos, growing up in the inner north-western suburbs of Melbourne. You attended Essendon Grammar until Year 8, at which time you transferred on a soccer scholarship to Maribyrnong Secondary College, where you remained until the start of Year 12.
48As a child, you suffered from asthma, and at age 13 or 14, you had ACL surgery on your right knee for a soccer-related injury. Whilst on the soccer scholarship, you were also playing soccer for local club, Essendon. You ceased your involvement with that club around the time you stopped attending school.
49You started drinking alcohol at age 13 or 14, and thereafter you were often a heavy binge drinker or alcohol. You started smoking cannabis at age 14, and have subsequently intermittently smoked cannabis since. You started smoking amphetamines at age 17 or 18, and continued thereafter through to your arrest in August 2017.
50By the time you left Maribyrnong Secondary College, you stated you were ‘using drugs … lost interest in soccer, and needed to be working to purchase drugs’. I am told that your preference was for amphetamines, although for 18 months prior to your arrest you were typically a daily smoker of methamphetamine, smoking up to half a gram every two days. I am told approximately 18 months ago you injected heroin on one occasion. You have never injected amphetamines or methamphetamine. When dependent on amphetamines and methamphetamine you would often play the pokies in the early hours of the morning.
51Despite your illicit drug use, you successfully completed a four-year carpentry apprenticeship after leaving school. At the time of your arrest, you had been working as a self-employed carpenter for some time.
52In 2012 or 2013, your mother left the martial home in what seemed to you as secretive circumstances. Subsequently to this you formed the view that your mother had engaged in a relationship with your godfather, Mr Adam Adamidis. You felt personally betrayed by her behaving in this manner, a feeling that was exacerbated by what you perceived to be her unwillingness to admit the issue.
53Your father's counsel conceded at the joint plea that you became engulfed in the vortex of the strained emotional relationship breakdown of your parents' marriage and the ongoing issues between them. His counsel stated that your father very much regrets his own lack of parenting wisdom in allowing you to be so caught up in what had become the ugliness of your parents' relationship.
54You yourself have had two romantic relationships. The first lasted for approximately one and a half years. The second, more significant relationship, co-existing alongside the breakdown of your parents' marriage, was to your former partner, Stephanie De Marco. This lasted for four years, but was on and off. This relationship substantially involved the use of illicit drugs, with her major dependency being on cannabis. You have described that relationship as being very toxic. I have been told, and I accept, that you were the subject of family violence at the hand of your partner.
55After sale of your childhood home, you and Ms De Marco decided to move in together. This was destructive, as you were then both free to pursue your drug use, but now under the pressures of independent living. Your relationship with Stephanie ended in mid-May 2017, when you were stabbed by her in the hand. You underwent plastic surgery for the stab wound. She was charged in relation to that assault, and received a 12-month good behaviour bond and a $1,000 fine.
56These distressing episodes and your heavy drug dependency were continuing during the months following the March arson. You were no doubt additionally suffering because of your own knowledge of your involvement in that offending, and the secrecy surrounding that fact, as well as from seeing your father incarcerated.
57Your extreme state of distress was at its most critical when you were hospitalised at St Vincent's Hospital at the end of May 2017 for the plastic surgery to your hand as a result of the stabbing incident. During your inpatient stay, you attempted suicide by hanging yourself. Another patient intervened and was able to stop you. I am told that you said "I tried to hang myself because I was starting to come off drugs and I was feeling depressed and reality hit, and I realised my relationship with Stephanie had come to an end".
58Following discharge from St Vincent's, you admitted yourself as a voluntary inpatient at Orygen Youth Health. After being discharged from Orygen, you were having visits with a case worker for a short time only, before you succumbed to your dependency on alcohol and resumed using methamphetamine on a daily basis. You did not receive any treatment in relation to your dependency on alcohol, or your dependency on illicit drugs.
59
During your time at Orygen Youth Health, you spoke to your mother about
Mr Adamidis. This was clearly still a focus for you. You told Mr Cummins that you spoke to her about their relationship, but she avoided the topic. Despite no confirmation therefore of the relationship by your mother or Mr Adamidis, you remained convinced it was occurring.
60Unfortunately, you did not receive any counselling at that point to help you process the grief following your parents' relationship breakdown. Consequently, subsequent to your exit from Orygen you were preoccupied and obsessed with your perception of your mother's affair. You continued to medicate yourself, combining alcohol with now-prescription antidepressants.
61Mr Cummins diagnoses you in that time period as suffering a Persistent Complex Bereavement Disorder, which is a specific example of a trauma-related disorder pursuant to the DSM-V.
62He identified that at that time, you were engaging in obsessional ruminative thinking, focused on the issue of being betrayed by your mother and your godfather, and you were simultaneously feeling hurt and of the opinion that your father had also been betrayed.
63Mr Cummins expressed the opinion that under these circumstances, your perception, judgment and reasoning ability were impaired.
64This is the context of your further offending, which is as follows.
65On 4 July 2017 at approximately 1.30 am, you rang police, posing as an anonymous caller. You stated the following: Jim Valos was in prison for the arson which occurred on 12 March 2017; Yanni Valos assisted his father Jim in committing the offence; the caller was personally known to Yanni Valos, and stated that he had previously disclosed details of his offending to the caller. Those details were forwarded to Detective Senior Constable McCracken, the informant in the arson, via email.
66Later that same day, being 4 July 2017, at approximately 12.40 pm, Detective Senior Constable McCracken received a telephone call from an anonymous caller, who stated: Jim Valos was responsible for the arson; Yanni Valos and Jim walked to the scene via a footbridge on Hope Street, Brunswick; Yanni Valos' vehicle will be present on CCTV, leaving after the fire had occurred on 12 March 2017; Yanni Valos should be in gaol with his father, and will make admissions to the offending. Detective Senior Constable McCracken recognised the voice as yours. Sadly for you and for your victim, Mr Adamidis, no action was taken at that time.
67
On 5 July 2017, you tried to contact Mr Adamidis via his mobile phone, however the call was unanswered. That same night, after consuming alcohol, at approximately 8 pm you walked across the Hope Street footbridge and continued along Hope Street to Mr Adamidis address, again
Unit 1/288 Hope Street, Brunswick West. CCTV footage depicts a figure in those circumstances.
68You smashed one of the windows to the front of the premises. You attempted to set fire to a packet of cigarettes, however after this failed, you took off your black t-shirt and set it on fire. You threw the burning t-shirt inside the broken window, and it landed on paint tins that were inside. The t-shirt self-extinguished, however it caused extensive smoke damage throughout the entire property, which was in the throes of being repaired after the March events.
69Mr Adamidis was not living at the premises at that time. The matter was reported to police. Unfortunately, no action was taken at that time.
70On 7 July at approximately 4.10 am, you re-attended the victim's property. You had again been drinking. CCTV footage depicts a figure walking east along Hope Street carrying a white fence paling. You smashed all the front external windows of Mr Adamidis' unit, and you then walked back over the Hope Street footbridge.
71Call charge records obtained by investigators show that the mobile phone number used by you was in the vicinity of Hope Street, West Brunswick, at the time of the offending on the 5th and 7 July 2017.
72On 22 August 2017, you were arrested and conveyed to Fawkner Police Station, where you were interviewed. You initially denied any involvement in the arson on 12 March 2017, however as the interview continued you made full confessions to police, detailing your involvement in the offending. You stated that you were involved on 12 March in the Hope Street fire incident, and in July you said "I've done that as well".
73In relation to March, you said that you were both angry at Adam that night; you both decided to go and set his house on fire, so you went there; you stood across the road and kept an eye out; you did not know anyone was at home though; it was both your idea; you took petrol and firelighters from your grandmother's house; you drove to the bridge in the car, parked there, grabbed the stuff and walked over the bridge.
74You stated you went and checked out the house. You had an argument with your father, who told you to stand across the road and keep an eye out. You stated you had looked inside the house and could not see anyone. All the blinds were down. You stated there were no lights on. You stated you did not see your father light the fire as you were keeping a look out and watching away from him, but you heard the windows smash and saw the flames go up.
75You stated after your father was arrested, you were freaking out. You went back in July as everything got to you one day, and you said "Fuck him, I'm going to go fucking burn his house down again". You had been drinking and smashed the window and poured the petrol in and tried to light a packet of cigarettes, but it didn't catch. You took the top off you were wearing, and lit that. When you went back on 7 July, you said you were blind drunk. You found a paling on the side of the road. You confirmed going to the victim's house and smashing the windows.
76You stated your thoughts after this were you were not satisfied, you were not happy. You were asked what you thought the next day when you woke up, and you answered "Nothing, really". You were upset when you were informed by police during your interview that Mr Adamidis was inside the premises during the March blaze.
77You were remanded on 22 August 2017 and have been in custody since that date.
78I have read a victim impact statement from Mr Adamidis, predominantly prepared in relation to Jim Valos' matter. I was told that he declined to make a further victim impact statement in relation to Yanni's further offending. One can only imagine his distress at the repeated and serious offences committed on him by you, Yanni Valos.
79Mr Adamidis states that he experienced a lot of anxiety, depression, grief and hurt. He feels detached and isolated, like no one understands what he has been through. He says he does not trust people. He has an overriding sense of grief and loss, and a lost sense of security, as well as the loss of his memories of his home and possessions. He does not believe he can remain living in his home.
80He has poor sleep, with regular nightmares of horrific scenes involving fire, smoke and breaking glass, and of himself getting burnt in the fire and dying. He has similar flashbacks. His work has been impacted, as he cannot concentrate. He has been smoking more, his blood pressure has increased, he has ongoing cramping and deteriorating eyesight. His eczema has increased.
81Two weeks after the first arson, he developed an infection and required hospitalisation and antibiotics. He has been told this may be related to his severe stress. He has had some psychological counselling, which has been beneficial, but he sees this need as a long-term one.
82He has of course suffered financial loss in relation to his home and possessions, but also from needing to take time away from work when he was hospitalised, and to attend psychologists, doctors and lawyers.
83He says:
"Essentially I do not feel safe anywhere. My future feels uncertain. I feel I will continue to have a feeling of grief and insecurity because of what happened".
84I turn to consider the actual offending and the sentencing principles. Arson is a significantly serious offence. The maximum penalty in this case is 15 years. The essence of the offence lies in the physical damage caused, however sentencing will also take into account the circumstances in which that damage occurred, and the state of mind of the arsonist. Arson has the capacity to severely impact upon the sense of security of the immediate victim, and also upon those indirectly affected. Principles of denunciation, just punishment and deterrence must loom large in the sentencing synthesis.
85In assessing the objective gravity of the March offending committed by both of you, I note several factors. Firstly, there was clearly a degree of planning; driving around the unit together in the car, then returning to Jim Valos' parents' premises for the purpose of obtaining petrol and firelighters. The use of accelerants itself is conceded as part of the objective seriousness.
86The return, with one offender keeping a lookout while the other smashed windows and poured in petrol, not once, but starting two seats of fire in bedrooms, is very serious. The potential for a fire lit in Mr Adamidis' unit in the area of Hope Street, West Brunswick, to spread very rapidly to adjoining units and to adjoining housing, was real. Those premises were clearly known to the offenders.
87
The fact that the fire engulfed the bedrooms in the March blaze extremely quickly, and to a point that power was lost at the garage door where
Mr Adamidis was trying to escape, demonstrates the furious nature of the blaze. Your counsel conceded, Mr Jim Valos, that the risk to Mr Adamidis adds to the objective gravity here.
88I view this as a serious example of an arson offence, committed on a person's home and causing significant damage to those premises and its contents. The potential risk to other residential premises and their occupants on a Sunday night was also serious. Several fire crews were required to contain it, and there are of course risks to firefighters.
89The case of DPP v Ralph[1] involved the offender in that case setting alight to his wife's house in circumstances of an untenable and violent relationship in the throes of breaking down. In increasing the sentence imposed by the learned sentencing judge, His Honour Winneke P noted the immediate impact to the victim, the destructive impact on those indirectly affected - in that case neighbours in adjoining properties, and said:
"This crime was, I think, a serious example of its type. The crime was committed for no better reason than to exact revenge."
[1]DPP v Ralph [2004] VSCA 158
90Similarly, the offending in the case before me, particularly in relation to you, Jim Valos, was committed out of anger and a brewing hatred. In relation to you, Jim Valos, in assessing the objective gravity I also add the following. There is no dispute that you were the main player in the March arson. The issues which prompted that offending were yours.
91At some point in the not too distant past, offending such as this may have been called a crime of passion. Nowadays we know better. There is nothing romantic about it, there is no passion. Although high emotion often accompanies a difficult marital breakdown, your offending was a demonstration of your attempts to exercise control and power over your ex-wife by attacking the person you perceived as the object of her affection. In this regard, it is telling that the text messages you sent on that day were not to Mr Adamidis, but to Angela.
92Similarly, your angry remonstration the following morning was with your ex-wife. Clearly you were having difficulty accepting the end of your marriage, despite the effluxion of time, and with disregard for your victim, your one-time best friend.
93To understand fully the nature of your behaviour towards your wife, one must turn to your prior criminal history. Your first entry to the criminal justice system was as a man in your late 40s. It related to an unlawful assault on your wife, committed in September 2013 and dealt with in the Magistrates' Court in November 2014. You received a sentence of one month imprisonment, wholly suspended for nine months, and therefore finishing in June 2014. As discussed during the course of the plea, that was a reasonably spectacular first entry into the criminal justice system for a man in his late 40s.
94Within one month of completion of the operational period of that sentence, you committed a subsequent unlawful assault on your wife in July 2014. That was dealt with in December 2015. A Magistrate gave you the benefit of the opportunity to undertake a community corrections order with specific provision for a Men's Behavioural Change program. Apparently you completed 12 group sessions of that program.
95The fact that you then committed this offence before me just over three months after completing that community corrections order, is significant.
96You instructed your counsel that both of your prior matters involved verbal assaults only. I requested the summaries of those matters. They in fact involve grabbing your wife by the hair, pouring a can of Coke over her, striking her to the chest, grabbing her head in both hands and shaking her head violently before threatening her with a chair.
97I do not take your instructions as any aggravation, but they do demonstrate, along with your breach of bail, a lack of insight, and that you have some way to go in accepting your behaviour towards your ex-wife and in rehabilitating yourself.
98I note both of your prior offences were accompanied by charges of failing to answer bail.
99You receive the benefit of your plea of guilty in this matter, and of the very early resolution of this matter in mid last year. Your plea has a utilitarian benefit, as well as saving your ex-wife and Mr Adamidis from giving evidence. It is also considered as being a sign you are taking responsibility and expressing remorse.
100I confess I do not see a great deal of other evidence of remorse on your part, although I note that your regret is recorded in a number of testimonials tendered on your behalf. Your expressions of genuine sorrow with regard to the involvement of your son in these events are in contrast to a lack of similar expressions towards your wife, or the risk you posed to your former best friend.
101Your prior matters and your breach of bail are relevant to your prospects of rehabilitation. I do take into account the testimonials provided on your behalf, and of the support from those who have been present in court throughout these proceedings, along with your elderly parents and your sister.
102In contrast to the events before me, your supporters describe you as being a respectful, trustworthy, decent and honest man, a committed friend. You have been a valued member of your extended family and friendship network. You have clearly been a hard worker and provider for your family.
103You are described by solicitor, Liza Pearce, who has known you for some years, after the breakdown of your marriage as "lost, shocked, and completely devastated", and I accept that. She says your offending has left those around you shocked. The other testimonials too report that this offending, even in the context of your stress and emotional state, is out of character.
104I do note the comment made by Chris Maragos, your family friend for other 30 years, that you described your thoughtless actions as "a moment of madness", and he says "I know he feels for the friend, even though events relating to his marriage breakdown put a strain on that friendship".
105You are described as a devoted father, and very involved in the lives of your children. I accept that. Your children have been great athletes, and you have taken a keen interest in this, among other things.
106A matter of importance for you is the relationship that you have with your two daughters. They have been present throughout these proceedings. They have apparently managed to walk a neutral path in the breakdown of your marriage. They clearly love you, and indeed provided a moving letter, describing you as kind-hearted, optimistic, and a loving person, adventurous and fun.
107They say:
"Dad has always shown us that he loves us, and we have always enjoyed being in his company, and sharing and creating memories with him. We both have a very strong bond with our dad, and therefore this period of time in which he has been incarcerated has affected us both, not only emotionally but mentally and physically".
108Intelligent young ladies, they say:
"Our dad's act of violence cannot be condoned, and we are disappointed and let down by these actions, as we have always been raised in an atmosphere of love and respect for those around us. However, our hope is that he will redeem himself and show remorsefulness, and continue to be the loving father we know him to be. We are here to support and guide him to that end, and hope that you may be compassionate in your judgment of him".
109I am told and accept that you see your daughters weekly in custody, and speak with them twice a week.
110You have some health issues. In particular, I have been told that you were diagnosed with pulmonary embolism about three years ago, where you were taken by ambulance to hospital in Goulburn, New South Wales. You were suffering unbearable pain while driving, and the pain was in your chest and back. It was discovered that you had blood clots in your lungs. You stayed in hospital for two weeks before being discharged. You were medicated with blood thinners, and every six months had to take blood tests. I am told that you are now off Warfarin, and no longer require that medication, but you do take small dose aspirin daily. This clearly will be a medical situation which needs ongoing monitoring.
111The health and status of your elderly parents and your isolation from them is clearly of great concern to you, and I take that into account to the extent that I am able. You plan to live with your parents when you are released. You have the ongoing support of your parents, your sister and your children.
112You have positive prospects of employment in truck driving, given your history in that field. In custody, you have been given trusted positions in employment.
113Your counsel submitted that I should impose a combined sentence of imprisonment and a community corrections order. In rarer cases will an arson such as this receive such a sentence, although I accept what the court said in Boulton[2], namely that a community corrections order may be imposed for serious offences which were previously thought to be beyond the reach of such disposition.
[2]Boulton v The Queen [2014] VSCA 342
114In my view, in your case the offending and circumstances I have outlined are too serious to warrant such a disposition. It must be said your prospects for full rehabilitation are guarded. Specific deterrence is real here, where you and your ex-wife are forever bound by the existence of your shared children. Perhaps there will be no greater specific deterrence than having your son seated beside you in a court dock in circumstances where you have conceded a lack of parental guidance of him.
115There are few real therapeutic factors warranting a community corrections order, and in circumstances where the objective gravity of your offending is relatively high, your moral culpability is also relatively high, and in circumstances where you have already been given such opportunity, with specific programs to address your behaviour towards your ex-wife, in my view, the appropriate sentence is one of imprisonment with a non-parole period.
116If you could stand please, Mr Jim Valos.
117In relation to the offence of arson, you are convicted and sentenced to four years' imprisonment. That is the base sentence.
118In relation to the summary charge of trespass, you are convicted and sentenced to three months' imprisonment concurrent.
119The total effective sentence in relation to you is four years' imprisonment, and I order that a non-parole period of 26 months imprisonment be served before you are eligible for release.
120I declare that a term of 335 days pre-sentence detention has already been served.
121But for your plea of guilty in relation to these offences, the sentence I would have imposed would have been six years' imprisonment with a non-parole period of four years' imprisonment. You can be seated, Mr Valos.
122Turning to you, Yanni Valos. Yours is a complicated sentencing task, both of itself, given your additional offences against the same victim, and giving consideration to issues of parity in relation to the March offence. Of course, parity is not simply related to roles in offending, but takes into account matters personal to the offender. There are a raft of matters personal to you, which take your case to a different disposition than that of your father.
123Firstly, your age. You are still only 22 years old. Although you are not a youthful offender in the true sense, you are not far past that age bracket. You have no prior convictions. In these circumstances, rehabilitation must play a bigger part in the sentencing synthesis, while deterrence may be moderated.
124Your counsel submitted that given the diagnoses of your mental health state by both Orygen Youth Health and Jeff Cummins, and clearly present at the time of the offending, at least the first four limbs of Verdins apply to you. I understood the prosecutor to accept this, or at least accept that there could be sensible moderation of the principle of deterrence as a result of your mental state during your offending.
125I accept that your moral culpability in both the March and July offences was reduced, and that this thereby has a bearing on issues of denunciation and on the kind of sentence warranted as just punishment.
126Further, I accept that both general and specific deterrence should be moderated, given your state of mental health.
127I have outlined the circumstances of your involvement in the March arson, and your ongoing spiral to despair during the months following that offence, which support such a conclusion.
128As stated, I have received the discharge summary from Orygen Youth Health dated 6 June 2017. Mr Cummins was also in receipt of this document at the time of assessing you and writing his report. Your diagnosis in June 2017 was Major Depressive Episode with Borderline Personality traits, with the additional diagnosis of brief psychotic symptoms, as well as Drug Use Disorder. Your suicidal ideation and recent attempt in St Vincent's Hospital are therein documented. Your recurrent suicidal thoughts are said to have been ongoing for a number of months.
129The June 2017 summary notes that your suicidal thoughts, sense of hopelessness and guilt over three to four months prior to June 2017 were said to be in the context of you becoming involved in some of your father's concerns. The report notes you became preoccupied with those issues and negative thoughts about your godfather and your mother.
"He had become estranged from his mother during the period he was spending time with his father, and was distressed about this, namely that he has all of a sudden supported his father's actions and beliefs and had shunned his mother, despite his mother supporting him through his life.".
130It goes on:
"He feels he has taken on his father's opinions and feelings too much."
131I note those difficulties, and your other difficulties including your domestic relationship. Your drug use was noted, and was noted to be extensive. The report of Mr Cummins confirms that after leaving Orygen there was some follow-up, but no real engagement with counselling until your drug and alcohol addictions took over again.
132Mr Cummins' preferred diagnosis is the more complex diagnosis of Chronic Adjustment Disorder, and as I have already stated, the Persistent Complex Bereavement Disorder. That state was clearly ongoing at the time of your July offending, and was compounded by your descent back to drugs and alcohol. I agree with your counsel's submission that your telephone calls to police on 4 July were a call for help.
133There was no evidence of your involvement in the March arson beyond your own admissions. Similarly, beyond evidence from mobile phone data placing you in the area of Mr Adamidis' residence on the relevant dates in July, there is no evidence tying you to those offences.
134
In these circumstances, the Crown concede that your plea of guilty is a very significant one. I agree. I accept what the Court of Appeal said in
DPP v Woodford[3]in this regard.
135You have expressed remorse for your offending. You were specifically quizzed by Mr Cummins as to whether you would be likely to reoffend against either your mother or Mr Adamidis. You said you were remorseful and had learnt your lesson.
136I received two testimonials, one from a Mr Andrew Hough, who is a self-employed carpenter who has been working in the construction industry for ten years or more. He was previously your supervisor. He describes you as working under him for a considerable period of time. He says:
"Yanni was always someone who wanted to work, was punctual every day, and easily gained knowledge and skills throughout his work life. Despite having ups and downs in his late teens outside of work which consisted of being in and out of home after the separation of his parents, the constant battle with work vehicles on apprentice wages, being forced to rent as there wasn't enough room to live with his mother, as well as supporting his father Steph at times, as she was unemployed".
[3]DPP v Woodford [2017] VSCA 312
137He says:
"For as long as I've known Yanni, he has always been a polite, helpful, respectful and reasonably quiet person."
138He says:
The crimes committed by Yanni were clearly out of character, and were more in retaliation and reaction to his family issues, but a very stupid way of dealing with his own anger that a lot of people wouldn't have known about."
139He says this has been ‘a massive learning curve’ for you, and he says:
"He's informed me it will be something that he will never repeat, as he fully regrets and is completely remorseful for his actions."
140I have also received testimonial from Mr Clint Prince, also a person who is a director of a construction company and working in the construction industry for approximately 16 years. He says he is someone who has had many young people work under his guidance, one of whom was you.
141He describes you as a respectful and responsible young man, easy to teach, and someone who applied himself to his trade. He says you and he formed a great friendship over the years, and that you in fact gave him support when he suffered depression. He says:
"I find it difficult to comprehend that Yanni is incarcerated, as I feel it is so far from the person I know."
142In assessing your prospects for rehabilitation, I take those references into account. I also take into account the fact that you have now been drug-free in custody for six months. You have used your time on remand productively, as I said, not using illicit drugs, refocusing your attention back onto sporting endeavours.
143While these steps are promising, I note that Mr Cummins identifies that you may well be overly optimistic in your regard to your drug rehabilitation, and that you would benefit from ongoing drug and alcohol counselling to assist in that matter. This reflects some of the expressions that you made to those at Orygen Youth Health to the effect that you could avoid drug use without help.
144You have expressed to Mr Cummins with some apparent insight that you realise that you do need to undergo counselling regarding the issues of your family breakdown, your past relationship and your drug and alcohol use. He assesses your risk of reoffending as moderate. He states your prognosis remains guarded, and I agree.
145You will clearly need ongoing, active support. Your mother states you have her ongoing support, and her residence as a place to stay. You have indicated your willingness to engage in offence-specific treatment.
146I have been told that you enjoy the work of a carpenter, and you will resume this work upon your release from custody. You are confident that you will be able to find work in that industry, and indeed you have support from your referees in this regard. You state you are hoping that on release, you can return to a simpler, more stable life.
147In all of the circumstances relevant to you, it is my view that a combined sentence is warranted, as the court said in Boulton, a community corrections order may simultaneously punish and rehabilitate. It is in the community's interest to see you fully rehabilitated. Given there are still live issues around your feelings towards your mother and father and the breakdown of your family, as well as your recent escape from drug use, it is my view that an active period of supervision and treatment offered by a community corrections order is required here.
148If you could stand please, Yanni Valos.
149The sentence I impose is an aggregate sentence in relation to the three charges. You are convicted and sentenced to a period of 209 days' imprisonment, plus a two-year community corrections order. The conditions of that order, in addition to the core conditions, will be that you will be under supervision, you are required to complete 250 hours of unpaid community work. However, I declare that up to 100 hours can be offset by your participation in treatment.
150You are to undergo drug and alcohol treatment and testing as directed. You are to undergo mental health assessment and treatment as directed. You are to undergo offence-specific treatment as directed.
151I order in your case that there be judicial monitoring of your order, and I propose to bring you back before me on 10 December at 9.30 am.
152But for your pleas of guilty in relation to these matters, the sentence I would have imposed would have been three years' imprisonment with a non-parole period of 18 months' imprisonment.
153Mr Yanni Valos, are you prepared to undertake the community corrections order that I have outlined?
154OFFENDER Y. VALOS: Yes Your Honour.
155HER HONOUR: All right, that order will be printed out and you will sign that order. Your signature is, in effect, your promise to comply with the conditions of that order, and the core conditions of that order. So upon signing that order, I will then sign it and the order will take effect immediately, and I anticipate you will be released from custody today. Have a seat.
156MS TITTENSOR: I might have missed it, Your Honour, but I do not know that Your Honour has formally declared the presentence detention for Mr Valos.
157HER HONOUR: I think you are right, thank you. I declare in relation to Yanni Valos a period of 209 days presentence detention having been served in relation to these offences.
158MS TITTENSOR: If Your Honour pleases.
159HER HONOUR: Thank you. I will leave the Bench, thank you counsel for your assistance.
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