Director of Public Prosecutions v Watson

[2018] VCC 134

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

AT MELBOURNE
CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

CR-17-01651

COMMONWEALTH DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

RONALD WATSON

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JUDGE:	HIS HONOUR JUDGE SMALLWOOD
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:
DATE OF SENTENCE:	20 February 2018
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Watson
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2018] VCC 134

REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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Subject:
Catchwords:
Legislation Cited:
Cases Cited:
Sentence:

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APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions	Ms E. Linfoot	Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions
For the Accused	Mr T. Sawyer	Valos Black & Associates

Pages 1 - 10

 

 

HIS HONOUR: 

1Ronald David Watson, you have pleaded guilty to one charge of use a carriage service to transmit child pornography, one charge of use a carriage service to solicit child pornography and one charge of knowingly possess child pornography.  Those crimes carry maximum penalties of 15 years, 15 years and ten years respectively. 

2You are now 64 years of age.  You have pleaded guilty and I obviously take that into account.  Insofar as remorse is concerned, you have persistently denied or told lies about how you came into possession of a lot of that pornography and I find it problematic.  But in any event, I will give you the benefit of the doubt on that.  You must also of course get the utilitarian benefit of that plea of guilty. 

3I have previously sentenced a person who was in effect a co-accused in relation to this matter.  But his offending was of far greater significance than yours and accordingly, parity I think plays very little if any part in this process.

4As I said, you are 64 years of age.  One of the difficulties that you face,
Mr Watson, and it is a serious one is that you have been given an active gaol sentence for child offending previously.  Back in 1998, you were given eight months' gaol for indecent assaults in the Magistrates' Court with six months to be suspended.  That was appealed to the County Court and you were received an eight months suspended gaol sentence.  You are no stranger to what the ramifications for sex offending or sex-related offending can be. 

5A summary of this matter can be done very simply.  I will be leaving the actual summary - it will remain on the court file.  I do not propose to read certain parts of it out so it will remain on the court file for anybody with a genuine interest can look at it.  This will be in very truncated form because of that.

6In May of 2017, members of the federal police executed a search warrant at your address.  Various items were examined and it was found that you and a Mr Gledhill - who I have already sentenced - had been sending to each other pornography both in a verbal form and in a pictorial form.  I am not going to go through the discussions that took place between you.  I accept that the reality is that the vast majority of it would have been total fantasy and it is a bit difficult not to be over-offended by what in fact was intended just for each other.  9.37.30

7In any event, he attended at your premises in around - as I recall - April of 2016 and it is clear on the material that he left you with quite a deal of, particularly, video pornography involving children.  When the police raided, that was hidden.  You said that you put it there and that you ordered him out of the house.  It is repeated that to the psychologist.  It is patently untrue and indeed it appears that a number of the images were accessed by you in the two days prior to the raid.  You told police when they arrived that they would not find any pornography.

8What was found in your possession were a total of 1605 child pornography images and I would accept that the odds are that some of them would have been duplicate, but also in your possession 1509 child pornography videos.  It is clear that you had watched a significant number of those and not just with
Mr Gledhill.

9The offending has to be regarded as serious.  It calls for the application of very much general deterrence.  In your situation, with the denials that took place both to the police and Mr Joblin, I think also specific deterrence, the denunciation of the community must be reflected in the sentence and there must be an appropriate punishment.  Because of your prior offending, on Charge 3 you fall to be sentenced as a serious sexual offender.  That sentence is to be cumulative unless otherwise ordered.  I am aware though community protection becomes the principal sentencing purpose.  The Crown did not seek a disproportionate sentence and I would not have given one in any event.

10Secondly, by reason of the nature of this offending, you will be placed on the sex offenders register and I advise you that the reporting period will be for life and that will be now given to you.  If you would not mind going with him,
Mr Sawyer, that is all right.

11MR SAWYER:  Yes, Your Honour.  I will go through these with him, Your Honour.  I do not think it is ‑ ‑ ‑ 

12HIS HONOUR:  Yes.  Look, I will go through it with him anyway.  I have just got to ‑ ‑ ‑ 

13MR SAWYER:  No, I just do not think it is - he should have them in his possession. 

14HIS HONOUR:  Sorry?

15MR SAWYER:  The reporting obligations I will go through at the end with him.

16HIS HONOUR:  Yes.  All right.  There are obviously no victim impact statements in this matter.  The hundreds, probably, of victims would be depicted in those videos and it defies belief almost that somebody could watch those knowing that those children have almost certainly had their lives ruined and getting sexual satisfaction from that prospect.

17Gaol in your situation is inevitable, in my view.  Your counsel has read out a letter that you have penned over the last few days while you have been in custody and that unfortunately, Mr Watson, is what happens when you offend in this way.  The sentencing aspects of all this was so many children's lives ruined.  Self-pitying missives from the accused carry very little weight.

18I then look to matters personal to you.  There are two reports from Mr Joblin that I have already indicated.  You endeavoured to evade responsibility for the possession when you were speaking to him.  I accept a number of things about you.  I accept that you have a good work record.  I accept that being incarcerated may well cost you dearly.  You have had plenty of time to organise your affairs prior to today and accordingly, that is your problem.

19I accept that you probably are a poor historian.  I am not going to go through the conversations that were on Skype in relation to you and Mr Gledhill, other than to repeat what I have already said that they indicate clearly that you did not throw him out of the house and that he was a welcome visitor and you wanted him back. 

20Insofar as health is concerned, I accept that you suffer from anxiety and depression.  You will almost certainly be housed - for want of a better term - at Ararat which unfortunately in this day and age is a gaol well-experienced in catering for men of your age and disposition. 

21You were married for ten years.  You have two girls with whom you have little contact.  I accept there were no physical victims in this manner and I accept that other than for the possession charge which obviously stands by itself, the only other person that you were communicating with is before me was in fact Mr Gledhill.  I accept that you will have no visitors in gaol.  I accept that you have no support and that you have been and will continue to be a very lonely man. 

22You will be in protection.  You may consider that what has occurred over the last few days on your say so in the normal prison system is unlikely to occur in Ararat. 

23You currently have employment which you will obviously lose.  You were working for an undertaker and prior to that you had flown hot air balloons.  As I think I have already indicated, I accept that you have a good work record. 

24The prospects of your rehabilitation are up to you.  The risk of you reoffending where you have denied the responsibility for it to Joblin, in my view, has to be regarded as at least significant. 

25There is little else in my view that can be said for people in your situation.  The crimes of which you stand convicted are, to any reasonable member of the community, vile ones and must carry a sentence which tells others who are of like mind that the consequences of being apprehended doing it are significant indeed.

26I take very much into account the fact that you are 64 years of age and that has reduced the sentence that I otherwise impose.  I also take into account your plea of guilty. 

27Taking all those matters into account, on the two Commonwealth charges - I have discussed this with counsel that the simplest way of doing this is because there is the danger of double up in terms of the materials, is that on each of those, if you agree, you will be placed upon a five-year - this is longer than I would normally give - recognizance with conviction.  The only condition being to be of good behaviour and the recognizance will be in the sum of $500.

28I could have imposed a short sentence on each of those but it seemed to me that there is no point in doing that.  On the State charge of possess child pornography, in all these circumstances and to that level, you are sentenced to be imprisoned for a period of 12 months.  I direct that five days be reckoned as having been served under this sentence and whilst - I think in this situation 6AAA does not apply.  I do not think it can.  It can only apply with a sentence or combination sentence.  Yes, it does not apply - which had you not pleaded guilty would have received significantly more.  I will tell you that much.

29All right.  So if those recognizance can be prepared please.

30MS LINFOOT:  Yes, Your Honour.

31MR SAWYER:  As Your Honour pleases.

32MS LINFOOT:  Your Honour, on Charges 1 and 2, the period of good behaviour is five years, is that correct?

33HIS HONOUR:  Yes.

34MS LINFOOT:  But what about the period of imprisonment?

35HIS HONOUR:  I am not putting one.

36MS LINFOOT:  I understand that he will be released forthwith ‑ ‑ ‑ 

37HIS HONOUR:  They will say released forthwith but he will then be held on the State one.  So as soon as the State sentence expires, he will be released. 

38MS LINFOOT:  The issue though is that with the recognizance, if it is breached for example ‑ ‑ ‑ 

39HIS HONOUR:  Yes.

40MS LINFOOT:  ‑ ‑ ‑ there is no consequence if there is no period of imprisonment outstanding.  So ordinarily, a release forthwith would be ‑ ‑ ‑ 

41HIS HONOUR:  My understanding was that if the recognizance is breached, I can sentence ab initio. 

42MS LINFOOT:  I do not think that is the case, Your Honour.  Usually there is a period of imprisonment that is outstanding and if it is a released forthwith, then it is the whole period. 

43HIS HONOUR:  No, I understand that.  But my ‑ ‑ ‑ 

44MS LINFOOT:  Yes.

45HIS HONOUR:  And if I have got this wrong, my understanding is that if he is brought back on a breach, I can sentence him for those two charges ab initio. 

46MS LINFOOT:  I believe, Your Honour, can sentence to either the full amount outstanding or can deal with it in another way but not by way of a different period of imprisonment.  I can check the Crimes Act now but I am fairly certain that that is the case.

47HIS HONOUR:  Do it very quickly.  Yes.

48MS LINFOOT:  Yes.

49HIS HONOUR:  The concern I have got with this is that each of those charges in isolation may not have attracted an active custodial sentence as the 1600 videos are the real concern.  So I do not want to be creating a false sentence which of course is trouble later.

50MS LINFOOT:  So if he fails to comply, this is s.20A(5)(c) ‑ ‑ ‑ 

51HIS HONOUR:  Yes, do not worry about that.  Just read it.

52MS LINFOOT:  In the case of a person who has been released by an order made under paragraph 21B which is an RRO order
‑ ‑ ‑ 

53HIS HONOUR:  Yes.

54MS LINFOOT:  ‑ ‑ ‑ your options are to impose a monetary penalty, to amend the order so as to extend the period for which he will be of good behaviour, to revoke the order and make an order under s.20A(b) which I think is the section that allows you to make a CCO or you can revoke the order and deal with the person for the offence or offences in respect of which the order was made by ordering that the person be imprisoned for that part of each sentence of imprisonment fixed under paragraph 21B that the person had not served at the time of his/her release or take no action.

55So Your Honour, if he was to come back for a breach and Your Honour wanted to impose imprisonment, it could only be the portion outstanding that you order today.

56HIS HONOUR:  Yes, but the difficulty with that is that 12 months is what I am giving him, if you understand what I am saying.  Now, if that is the scenario, right, insofar as each of those is concerned, what I will do is this - subject to
Mr Sawyer raising argument if he wants to.

57I will make it - I will give him six months on each and I will make it to be released immediately.

58MS LINFOOT:  Is that six months on each of the Commonwealth charges?

59HIS HONOUR:  Yes.  But having done that, with that being the finalised sentence, I will reduce the length of it to four years.  So that means ‑ ‑ ‑ 

60MR SAWYER:  I have no issue.

61HIS HONOUR:  Sorry.  No, no, this is not an order yet, that is why we are - I am just trying to think about it out loud before you say anything.  Yes.  Do you want to say anything, Mr Sawyer?

62MR SAWYER:  I agree with Your Honour.

63HIS HONOUR:  Yes, I think that is the way to do it.

64MS LINFOOT:  Yes.  And can I just clarify the two sentences are concurrent so the total effective sentence ‑ ‑ ‑ 

65HIS HONOUR:  Yes.

66MS LINFOOT:  ‑ ‑ ‑ is six months on the Commonwealth charges but released forthwith.

67HIS HONOUR:  Yes, yes.  And released forthwith which means that there will be no staying date so it will not be running concurrent with the State sentence.  And he will owe the six months if he breaches.  You do not need any forfeiture orders or anything?  There is no orders or otherwise?

68MS LINFOOT:  It was by consent, Your Honour. 

69MR SAWYER:  There is no issues with any of the forfeitures, Your Honour.

70HIS HONOUR:  Yes.  All right.  You can go down with my associate to get it signed. 

71MR SAWYER:  Absolutely.

72HIS HONOUR:  Before you sign, I will just indicate to you.  You have just heard the conversation, Mr Watson.  If you offend again in any way, shape or form, you will get another six months off me.  It is as simple as that plus whatever you are offending.

73MR SAWYER:  Thank you, Your Honour. 

74HIS HONOUR:  Thanks, Mr Sawyer.

75MR SAWYER:  Sorry, can I just - so we are crystal clear, he is now on a four-year ‑ ‑ ‑ 

76HIS HONOUR:  Four years.

77MR SAWYER:  Yes.

78HIS HONOUR:  Yes. 

79MR SAWYER:  There is no $500 anymore?

80HIS HONOUR:  No, the $500 has to be there, does it not?  No matter what I do.  Well, if it is gone, it is gone.

81MR SAWYER:  I am not taking any issue with it, I just want to make sure that ‑ ‑ ‑ 

82HIS HONOUR:  No, no.  Is it just only - all right, yes.

83MR SAWYER:  Yes.  So he has got six months on Charge 1 and Charge 2 ‑ ‑ ‑ 

84HIS HONOUR:  Six months on Charge 1 and Charge 2 with no order as to commencement date.

85MR SAWYER:  Yes.

86HIS HONOUR:  But the intention is - and I will say this for the transcript - that if it were breached, I will be regarding it as concurrent.

87MR SAWYER:  Always a problem with the Commonwealth, is it not, Your Honour?

88HIS HONOUR:  Well, I do not know why - we went through this the other day.  I do not know why they always ‑ ‑ ‑ 

89MR SAWYER:  We are not being critical by that.  I just ‑ ‑ ‑ 

90HIS HONOUR:  No, I know.  It is just that ‑ ‑ ‑ 

91MR SAWYER:  User-friendly.

92HIS HONOUR:  Well, they have two on the one indictment is always - there is a Court of Appeal decision now that says that a judge can postdate the State sentence. 

93MR SAWYER:  There you go.

94HIS HONOUR:  I want to see what the High Court says about that lest I understand ‑ ‑ ‑ 

95MR SAWYER:  Probably right too.

96HIS HONOUR:  No, the $500 is still there.  Yes.

97MR SAWYER:  Yes.

98HIS HONOUR:  All right.  You can remove the prisoner.  Thanks.  Yes.  Thanks, Mr Sawyer.  Thanks, Ms Linfoot.

99MR SAWYER:  Thank you, Your Honour. 

‑ ‑ ‑