Director of Public Prosecutions v Ververis

[2015] VCC 496

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

AT MELBOURNE

CRIMINAL DIVISION

Case No. CR-13-01293

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

V

CHRISTOPHER VERVERIS

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JUDGE:	Her Honour Judge Patrick
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:
DATE OF SENTENCE:	11 February 2015
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Ververis
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2015] VCC 496

REASONS FOR SENTENCE

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Catchwords:

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APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the Crown	Mr M Regan
For the Accused	Mr J Desmond

HER HONOUR:

1.    Chris Ververis, you have pleaded guilty to one charge of trafficking in a drug of dependence, Charge 1; two charges of possessing a substance, material, documents or equipment for trafficking a drug of dependence, Charges 2 and 3; two charges of possessing a firearm whilst prohibited, Charges 4 and 5; one charge of possessing an explosive substance for an unlawful object, Charge 6; and two charges of handling stolen goods, Charges 7 and 8. You have also pleaded guilty to one uplifted summary charge being Summary Charge 6 of possession of cartridge ammunition.

2.    The maximum penalties in respect of Charges 1, 7 and 8 is 15 years' imprisonment, the maximum penalty in respect of Charges 2, 3, 4 and 5 is ten years' imprisonment. The maximum penalty in relation to Charge 6 is five years' imprisonment, the maximum penalty in respect of Summary Charge 6 is a fine of 40 penalty units. The prosecution sought orders for the forfeiture and disposal of certain items and making of those orders was not opposed.

3.   

The circumstances of your offending are set out in the prosecution opening which was tendered as Exhibit VA. In brief the circumstances were as follows. You manufactured methylamphetamine between 17 April and 24 July 2012, Charge 1. You did this in the garage of a house where you lived, the methylamphetamine you manufactured was distributed by Daniel Lovett.

Mr Lovett was charged on a separate indictment and is also being sentenced today.

4.    You are also charged with possessing substances being pseudoephedrine, 2,858 grams, phosphorous, 81.7 grams, iodine, 125.4 grams, and hypophosphorous acid, 3,880 millilitres, Charge 2 and material, documents and equipment Charge 3, with the intention of using those substances and material, documents, equipment in the manufacture of methyl amphetamine.

5.    Analysis of the materials which form the subject matter of Charge 2 showed that it would be reasonable to expect that the quantity of pseudoephedrine found could produce in the order of 1,326 grams to 2,144 grams of methylamphetamine depending on the production method used. The material, documents and equipment which are the subject matter of Charge 3 are listed in Schedule A to the indictment. That schedule contains a list of 100 items which could be used in the manufacture of methylamphetamine including various pieces of glass equipment, containers, materials, notes and instructions..

6.    Police executed a search warrant at your address on 24 July 2012. A number of items were seized including a pistol which is the subject matter of Charge 4, a double barrel shotgun which is the subject matter of Charge 5, and an explosive device which is the subject matter of Charge 6. The explosive device was a pipe bomb which had been packed and filled and then let off. A stolen motorbike, Charge 7, and a stolen Victoria Police cap, Charge 8, were also seized. Cartridge ammunition was also found which is the subject matter of summary Charge 6. The cartridge ammunition included .380 handgun ammunition, and 9 millimetre handgun ammunition. This was found in the bedroom on the floor of the walk-in robes.

7.   

The Ruger 9 millimetre semiautomatic handgun which is the subject of

Charge 4 was found under the pillow in a bedroom. The sawn-off 12 gauge shotgun which was dismantled and which is the subject of Charge 5 was located in the garage. Two 9 millimetre rounds on the bedside table are included in the ammunition which is the subject of summary Charge 6. The pipe bomb which is the subject of Charge 6 was located on a shelf above an en-suite toilet.

8.    You had set up the garage at the property which you leased for the manufacture of methylamphetamine. Telephone intercepts summarised in the prosecution opening show that you and Mr Lovett were in regular and frequent telephone contact during the period charged. The content of the conversations demonstrates that you were manufacturing methylamphetamine and that Mr Lovett was distributing the methylamphetamine manufactured by you on a regular basis.

9.    You have admitted a significant and relevant prior criminal history. You had previous court appearances in relation to being a prohibited person in possession of firearms and dishonesty offending. Of particular relevance is an appearance in the County Court in April 2009 on charges which included possession of material for the purposes of manufacturing a drug of dependence to traffic and possession of a drug of dependence. You were sentenced to a term of imprisonment of three years for that offence and a total effective sentence of three years and six months' imprisonment with a non-parole period of two years and three months.

10. You were on parole in respect of that sentence when the offences on the current indictment were committed. It is because of that sentence you are prohibited by the relevant legislation from possessing firearms.

11. In sentencing you I have taken into account your personal circumstances which were outlined by your counsel. You are now 30 years old.  You were born and raised in the Melbourne area.  Your parents separated when you were about 12 and you and your brothers were brought up by your mother. Your mother was in court to support you. You have had little or no contact with your father.  You were unsettled in secondary school and struggled with academic work. You left school in Year 10 and have since worked as a labourer and a commercial painter. You have had a significant and lengthy history with substance abuse involving the use of alcohol and different types of drugs.

12. In sentencing submissions your counsel relied on a number of matters including your plea of guilty. Your counsel referred to the sentence in 2009 and said you had substance abuse issues for most of your adolescent and adult life. Your counsel on your behalf made a public apology to the community for your offending and submitted that you should receive the full utilitarian discount for your plea of guilty. It was submitted by your counsel and not opposed by the prosecution that you had in January 2014 offered to plead guilty to charges which were in substance the same as what you have pleaded guilty to before me.

13. Your counsel submitted that there had been some delay in this matter and that the matter had been hanging over your head. Your counsel also submitted that your offending occurred over a limited period, that there was no evidence of particular enrichment, and that the quantity of drugs found was a relatively small amount of 48 grams although there was potential for large scale production.

14.

Your counsel also relied on the contents of a psychological report from

Mr Ian Mackinnon dated 20 October 2014 which was tendered as Exhibit V5. Your counsel said that he was not formally relying on the principles set out in Verdins. Mr Mackinnon says,

"In my opinion at the time of the offences Mr Ververis was probably adversely affected by a moderate mixed anxiety and depressed mood disorder that helped fuel a severe polysubstance abuse disorder, both orders having significantly degraded his ability to reason and make some sound judgment."

15. You told Mr Mackinnon that you became depressed after your release on parole and sought help from a general practitioner and psychologist. You went to 12 sessions of counselling with another psychologist but after five or six months of being drug free resumed using drugs and your drug habit became out of control.

16. Your counsel said that you were using two to three grams of ice per day at the time of this offending and also using heroin regularly. Your counsel submitted that your condition was relevant at the time of the offending and that you were compromised by drugs you had been ingesting and that this should operate in some degree of mitigation.

17.

Your counsel also relied on a report from the Raymond Hader Clinic dated

15 August 2012 and tendered as Exhibit V2 which recommended that you engage in a residential rehabilitation program as your offending was strongly related to a substance abuse dependency disorder. Also tendered on your behalf were a bundle of urine screen results, Exhibit V3, and a bundle of material in respect of programs you have completed in custody, Exhibit V4.

18. Three character references were tendered as Exhibit V6. Your mother gave evidence on your behalf. Your mother said she has been to visit while you have been on remand and you are extremely remorseful and ashamed. She says you have been extremely immature in the past but have changed somewhat of late. She says that she will continue to support you. A reference from your mother was tendered as Exhibit V7.

19. Your counsel submitted that you had strong support from your family and that you have reasonable prospects for rehabilitation if you could access residential treatment. He says that you want to turn your life around and that you need professional treatment for that. Your counsel referred to Sentencing Snapshot No.161 dated August 2014 which was tendered as Exhibit V8. The lengths of sentences in relation to trafficking in a non commercial quantity of drugs of dependence are summarised there.

20. Your counsel submitted that totality should be taken into account and that you have about 15 months of the sentence which Judge Chettle imposed to serve. At this stage it is not known whether your parole will be cancelled or not. Future executive action in respect of your parole is of course a matter which cannot be taken into account when sentencing you. Your counsel submitted that the sentence imposed in respect of these offences ought to be concurrent with the sentence imposed by Judge Chettle.

21. The prosecutor submitted that general deterrence and specific deterrence ought loom large as sentencing factors given that this offending is reflective of the offending for which you were previously sentenced by Judge Chettle. The prosecutor submitted that this sentence ought to be served cumulatively on the sentence imposed by Judge Chettle as the offending occurred whilst you were on parole.

22. The prosecutor submitted that any mitigation that could be introduced due to the contents of the psychological report was outweighed by the aggravating features of you re-offending in the way that you have whilst on parole for similar offending.

23. Mr Ververis, the offending covered by the current indictment is very serious. The courts are regularly faced with the harm caused to individuals and the community at large by the use of illegal drugs including methylamphetamine. For a period of three months you were making that drug to feed your own habit and make money. It is not possible to determine precisely how much drugs you actually manufactured but it appears that you were actively engaged over a period of that three months in making methylamphetamine.

24. Making money from illegal drugs is an evil trade which profits from the vulnerabilities of others. You had gone to considerable and very deliberate effort to set up your laboratory and the necessary equipment. A sentence must be imposed which is severe enough to cause others to think twice before getting involved in that trade. You have been sentenced before in respect of similar offending and were on parole when you committed these offences. That sentence did not serve to deter you.  A harsher sentence needs to be imposed in an effort to deter you from similar offending in the future.

25. The possession of firearms by prohibited persons is also a serious matter. This is especially so in respect of the pistol which was found in a place where you could easily reach it. You had ammunition although I am sentencing you on the basis that the gun was not loaded when it was found. There is no evidence that you had the gun for any other purpose than to deter intruders. No doubt your involvement in drug manufacturing in the garage where you were living contributed to your fear for your own safety. This is consistent with what you told Mr Mackinnon about your possession of the firearm.

26. The possession of guns and ammunition is potentially very dangerous and you were a prohibited person. The inherent risks to community safety in the possession of firearms and ammunition by criminals is obvious. You have a prior history of similar offending, this offending should also attract a significant sentence.

27. I have taken into account a number of matters in mitigation of sentence. You are entitled to a significant discount to reflect the utilitarian benefit of your plea of guilty which has saved the time and expense of a potentially lengthy trial. I accept that you are genuinely remorseful and acknowledge you made poor decisions. You are particularly sorry for the impact on your mother. That is evident from Mr Mackinnon's report.

28. I have taken into account that this matter has been hanging over your head for some time and that you genuinely wish to remain drug free. The drug screen results and certificates provided indicate that you have made efforts towards your rehabilitation whilst in custody. The written references support the conclusion that you have the capacity to be a kind and hardworking person. In view of your history your prospects of rehabilitation are guarded but I accept that you do have prospects for rehabilitation if you maintain your current attitude and if you receive appropriate support and treatment as recommended by Mr Mackinnon.

29. I have taken into account in very modest reduction of sentence that your capacity for sound judgment was impaired to a degree by your mixed anxiety and depressed mood disorder and polysubstance abuse disorder in application of Verdins' principles. I consider the following observation expressed by Mr Mackinnon to be well founded and to be relevant to the degree of mitigation. Mr Mackinnon says,

"However whilst obtaining and using methylamphetamine was probably a major factor in Mr Ververis' actions, the extent of his involvement in the enterprise, the sustained effort required and his illegal possession of a firearm suggests that he was not just hopelessly 'off his head' all day, and he appears to have been motivated by financial gain."

30. I note Mr Mackinnon's opinion that you are likely to suffer some continuing problems with anxiety and depression but that you cope quite well in custody.

31. It is clear that a significant sentence of imprisonment is warranted for the purposes of just punishment, denunciation, general deterrence, specific deterrence and community protection. I have taken into account the principles of totality and proportionality when determining the degree of concurrency between the sentences on the current indictment. There is considerable overlap between the first three charges involving the manufacturing of drugs and I have taken that into account. I have also taken into account in providing for a modest degree of cumulation that you had a considerable amount of substances available to you for the purposes of future manufacturing when you were arrested.

32. I have taken into account that you were sentenced by His Honour Judge Chettle in 2009 in respect of related offending, and I have taken the length of that sentence into account. It is an aggravating feature that you engaged in manufacturing drugs despite being on parole after serving a part of a sentence for related offending. There are no exceptional circumstances and I consider that it is entirely appropriate that this sentence be served cumulatively on any part of the remainder of the previous sentence which you are required to serve.

33. Could you please stand Mr Ververis.

34. On Charge 1 you are convicted and sentenced to four years and six months' imprisonment. On Charge 2 you are convicted and sentenced to three years' imprisonment. On Charge 3 you are convicted and sentenced to one year and six months' imprisonment. On Charge 4 you are convicted and sentenced to two years' imprisonment. On Charge 5 you are convicted and sentenced to one year's imprisonment. On Charge 6 you are convicted and sentenced to three months' imprisonment. On Charge 7 you are convicted and sentenced to six months' imprisonment. On Charge 8 you are convicted and sentenced to two months' imprisonment. On summary Charge 6 you are fined $500.

35. The sentence on Charge 1 is the base sentence. Six months of the sentence on Charge 2 , and 12 months of the sentence on Charge 4 are to be served cumulatively on each other and on the sentence on Charge 1. The total effective sentence is six years' imprisonment.

36. I fix four years as the period to be served before being eligible for release on parole.

37. I declare that you have served 932 days of this sentence by way of pre-sentence detention.

38. But for your plea of guilty I would have sentenced you to a term of imprisonment of eight years with a non-parole period of five years and six months.

39. I will be making the orders for forfeiture and disposal that have been sought.

40. Thank you, could you please take your seat Mr Ververis.

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