Director of Public Prosecutions v Wilson

[2016] VCC 2059

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

AT MELBOURNE
CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

CR -16-00174

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

CRAIG WILSON

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JUDGE:	HIS HONOUR JUDGE SMALLWOOD
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:
DATE OF SENTENCE:	22 December 2016
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Wilson
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2016] VCC 2059

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

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APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the Director of Public Prosecutions	Mr J. McWilliams
For the Accused	Mr I. Crisp

Pages 1 - 7

 

 

HIS HONOUR: 

1Craig Ian Wilson, you have pleaded guilty to one charge of dangerous driving causing death.  That crime carries a maximum penalty of ten years' imprisonment.  You are now 25 years of age and were approximately 23 years of age at the time of the offending.  You were and fall to be sentenced, if not at law, in reality as a young person.  You pleaded guilty to a settled indictment and I understand the reasons why there may have been some delay there, you get the benefit of that as an early plea in my view.

2I accept that your plea of guilty is accompanied by appropriate remorse and you must also of course get the utilitarian benefit of that plea of guilty.

3During the course of submissions, it became clear that you may have had an arguable defence to this charge and I take that into account.  Upon examining the material, it is a little difficult to see how a jury could have found or made such a finding, but the fact of the matter remains that you have pleaded guilty in the face of what would have been somewhat of a reconstruction, but nevertheless a potential defence.

4You have no prior convictions as such, but it became clear during the plea that you have had a number of infringement notices for your driving.  I take all those matters into account on your behalf.

5Firstly, pursuant to s.464ZF of the Crimes Act, I make an order that you provide a saliva sample for DNA purposes.  That order having been made, I must advise you that should you not provide such a sample when requested, police may use reasonable force to take one from you, that is saliva only and no blood.

6A summary of the offending is that on 19 January 2015, at approximately 5.50 am, you were driving a white Ford ute north in Dorset Road in Bayswater.  You approached the intersection with Canterbury Road in the left hand lane.  That intersection is controlled by traffic lights.  The traffic light applicable to you was red as you approached the intersection.  As I now understand it, there were stationary cars at that red light.  That light had been red for in the order of 18 seconds prior to you impacting with the other vehicle.

7As I have indicated, you drove into the intersection, you collided with a number of motor vehicles, including a utility driven by Mr Christopher Bullen.  Mr Bullen suffered multiple injuries as a result of the collision and died at the scene.  He was 60 years old at the time of his death and his family had suffered the loss of his daughter in a motor vehicle collision some 15 years prior.

8You were trapped in your ute and received treatment from MICA paramedics.  While being treated at the scene, a paramedic observed insulin medication in your ute.  He performed a blood glucose level examination at the scene.  That examination revealed that your blood glucose level was within the "normal" range.  Once freed, you were taken by ambulance to the Alfred Hospital where you received treatment for a facial laceration and a head injury.

9As I have indicated, the 18 seconds of the red light comes from CCTV footage from a service station.  The scene was examined by a reconstruction expert and it was determined that you were travelling at approximately 84 kilometres per hours and the deceased was travelling at approximately 34 kilometres per hour.  It is an 80 kilometre zone, but I do not regard you as having been travelling at excess speed to the necessary standard in this particular exercise.  There was no evidence that you braked prior to the collision.  The weather was fine, the roads were dry, the visibility was good.

10When first spoken to by police, you said that the traffic applicable to you at the intersection was green and as time went by, it became clear that your memory of what had occurred was dim if not non-existent.  The basis of the Crown case is that you failed to keep a proper lookout and observed the red light over what can only be described as a considerable period of time.  It could not be said in my view that this could be described is a momentary loss of concentration.  Whatever you were doing took an extended period of time.  There was a suggestion later that there could have been, as you had diabetes, that that could have been a factor in the collision and there is significant material about that.

11However, the fact of the matter is, as I have indicated clearly before indeed you were arraigned that you are to be sentenced on the basis that what you were doing was a conscious, voluntary and deliberate act and resulted from an extended period of inattention.  I do not propose to go through all the evidence in relation to the diabetes, suffice to say that it is a matter that I take into account in the sentencing process in terms of you being incarcerated.  There is nothing to suggest that it cannot be treated in gaol and it would appear that you now have a better control over your illness.  You have had it since you were a young person.

12This sort of offending has been regarded by the courts now for some considerable time as serious indeed.  The result of actions such as this, resulting in loss of life, has a dreadful effect on a large number of people, yourself, your family and the extended family of the deceased man.  There are a number victim impact statements that were provided.  One from his son, one from his daughter in law, one from his wife and one from a friend.  It seems to me in this situation that I need only quote to a certain degree from the victim impact statement of his wife, but I have obviously taken them all into account.

13She said, and this is very much extracts from it, "I just turned 19 when I met the man of my dreams, a man I would spend almost the next 40 years with, 36 of those years as his wife.  During this time, we were never apart for more than a few days.  He would always make me laugh, he was a true gentleman with a very caring nature and was a wonderful family man."  "I feel deep pain for my beloved son, Ben, as I know the close bond that he and Chris shared.  They had the most wonderful father and son relationship, they would call each other daily."  "Visiting both my aging mother and Chris' mother, I see immense sadness in their eyes, and I now I have to put on a brave face.  When I go to bed at night, tears flow as I long for Chris.  When sleep comes, it can be fitful.  I will often wake and have difficulty going back to sleep.  When morning comes, reality hits again as I awake to another day without him."

14"Another major impact on my life since the accident has been managing our property.  For over 20 years in our spare time, Chris and I worked tirelessly improving our five acre property with its rundown old farmhouse.  Chris was a handyman and manually made major renovations and extensions as time and finances permitted.  It was an ongoing labour of love.  We lived for the weekends when we could spend time together doing this and gardening, another passion of ours."  "I constantly think of Chris and how someone who was so fit and health conscious has suddenly been deprived of his future.  I always thought we would grow old together.  On that January day when Chris kissed me goodbye before leaving for work, I could never have envisaged to be taken so tragically from me.  I lost my soul mate, my rock, my best friend and my lover.  I miss him so much.  Never again will be greeted on a homecoming by his smile, a kiss and his hugs.  My world is shattered, leaving me with continued grief and pain that never goes away."

15In simple terms, and I know you understand this Mr Wilson, that is why people have to go to gaol for this sort of offending and have to go to gaol for an extended period of time.  This calls very much for the application of general deterrence so that any other person who is minded to drive in such a manner can be aware that the consequences will be dramatic.  There must also be an aspect of denunciation.  In your particular situation, I do not think specific deterrence are of real significance despite you at a young age having a number of traffic infringement notices.  I think the consequences of your actions have been brought home very, very powerfully to you.

16In this scenario, it seems to me to be certainly a mid to higher range in terms of moral culpability and I do not have to go into the detail of that, it has been discussed at length with both counsel at the Bar table.  A significant gaol sentence is inevitable. I am aware of a number of authorities which was referred to, particular the decision Tezak, His Honour Judge Murphy, which goes through the principles that are involved and I am well aware of the principles described in Needling and Oates and the number of decisions that deal with this very unfortunate and very sad sort of offending.

17I then turn to matters personal to you in terms of determining the length of such a sentence and in your particular situation, the time that you must serve before becoming eligible for parole.

18Tendered on your behalf were reports from Dr Ghan and Ms Telic, a psychologist, and a Lindsay Vowels, a neuropsychologist.  I note from the outset that you have very strong family support and indeed sworn evidence was given by a number of people on your behalf.  It is quite clear that upon your ultimate release, you will have employment made available to you and I am sure that during the period of your incarceration, you will receive ongoing family support.  Those matters speak well insofar as you are concerned on the prospects of your rehabilitation.

19As I said, you were approximately 23 years of age at the time of the offending.  You, at that stage and I heard evidence from her, had a girlfriend of some five to six years.  You had been employed for some five to six years.  You had a very good work record.  You had difficulties at school and you had difficulties with learning.  You had commenced an apprenticeship and you have then become a painter.  You are clearly a hardworking and otherwise responsible young man.

20There were no drugs involved, there was no alcohol involved and there is no excessive speed involved.  There is no suggestion or no evidence at least that you in any way were using a mobile phone.  It has become something of a mystery when the diabetes aspect is ruled out, as I do rule it out, as to what brought this all about and I am not about to speculate.

21The consequences of what you did, as I have indicated through the victim impact statement, are dreadful.  I accept that because of your diabetes and for other matters I will refer to in a moment, that a custodial sentence will be harder for you than it would be for prisoners without those difficulties.

22I do not think there is any need for me to go through your schoolboy and young history in any great detail.  It is sadly often the case that people come before the courts, young men in particular, charged with this offence with perfect antecedence and yet as I say, this destruction of human life somehow has to be stopped.

23You were examined by a psychologist and I accept for these sentencing purposes that as a result of this accident, if I can call it that, you have been diagnosed with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and a major depressive disorder.  I take those into account in the way that I have described, that is that gaol will be harder for you.  You would appear to have had a depressive disorder of some description for some period of time, but in this situation, there is nothing to suggest that the principles regarding general deterrence and moral culpability outlined in Verdins are in any way protracted.

24Further to those disabilities, you also have several significant cognitive disabilities and they are outlined in the report of Dr Vowels.  It is not suggested that those disabilities have contributed to this accident but again, I take them into account when imposing this sentence.  You would now describe has having a diagnosis of mild dysexecutive syndrome and, which is not uncommon in these situations, an amnesic syndrome.

25I have taken into account the other material from your general practitioner that has been filed on your behalf.  I very much endeavour to take into account the sworn evidence that has been given as to your normal disposition and attitude to life.

26In all the circumstances here, I have taken the view that you are a person that who can be fairly given an opportunity for parole earlier than might have otherwise been the case.  The prospects of your rehabilitation should be good and I have already discussed the prospects of you reoffending.  But in all the circumstances, the only sentence that can be imposed is a significant custodial one.

27Accordingly, on Charge 1 of dangerous driving causing death, you are sentenced to be imprisoned for a period of 42 months, that is three years and six months.  I direct that you serve a period of 21 months before becoming eligible for parole and I have outlined the reasons for getting that.  I direct that six days be reckoned as having been served under this sentence.

28In this situation, I am obliged, your licence is to be cancelled and you are disqualified from obtaining a licence for a period of 21 months.  I am aware of the principles outline in various decisions that the need to have a licence upon release for someone like you, for work purposes, and accordingly that disqualification will be for the length of your non-parole period.  It may well be that in effect, it is longer than that, but that is the way it is.

29I say that pursuant to s.6AAA of the Sentencing Act, so that you are fully aware and your family and friends are fully aware of the benefits of your plea of guilty brought you, but for your plea of guilty, you would have been sentenced to imprisonment for a period of four years and ten months with a minimum term of three years and two months.

30Are there any other orders I have to make?

31MR McWILLIAMS:  No, Your Honour.

32HIS HONOUR:  No, all right.  Thank you.

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