Director of Public Prosecutions v Wragge (a pseudonym)

[2017] VCC 638

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

AT LATROBE VALLEY
CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

CAMRON WRAGGE (a pseudonym)

---

JUDGE:	HIS HONOUR JUDGE SMALLWOOD
WHERE HELD:	Latrobe Valley
DATE OF HEARING:
DATE OF SENTENCE:	23 May 2017
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Wragge (a pseudonym)
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2017] VCC 638

REASONS FOR SENTENCE
---

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

---

APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the Director of Public Prosecutions	Mr P. Triandos
For the Offender	Mr B. Johnston

HIS HONOUR

1Camron Wragge[1], you have pleaded guilty to one charge of sexual penetration of a child under the age of 16 and one charge of grooming for sexual conduct with a child under the age of 16.  Each of those crimes carries a maximum penalty of 10 years' imprisonment.  You are 20 years of age now, you were 18 years of age at the time of the offending. You pleaded guilty at an early opportunity.  In fact you were not charged for quite some time. I accept there is appropriate remorse and you must get the utilitarian benefit of those pleas of guilty. 

[1] A pseudonym.

2You, when speaking to police, made admissions. You have no priors and there has been a delay of real significance. 

3In this particular situation, I am satisfied by the material, particularly the report of Dr Walton, which goes into detail that I do not think I really need to go into in open court, which satisfies me that you do have an intellectual disability, and indeed that you are very close to being unfit to plead. 

4The next matter that I have to deal with is that because of this offending, and I find this absolutely outrageous, and I am happy to say so, you will be on Sex Offenders Register for life. That will have to be forwarded to your solicitor, who will undertake from the Bar table to give it to you. Do I have that undertaking? 

5SOLICITOR:  Yes, Your Honour. 

6HIS HONOUR:  A summary of the offending in very simple terms is that the charge of sexual penetration is a representative one and relates to three separate occasions.  You were close friends with a male, who was aged 17, and each of you in the ultimate ended up living in the area with a women and her two daughters. 

7You became involved in a sexual relationship with the younger of those two, and from memory she was 13. You were all attending a Special School as I understand it. The mother was aware that you had an intellectual disability, and whether she was getting a carer's pension for it or not, I do not know, but in any event it seems clear that the older girl was in a relationship, even though she was under 16, with your friend. 

8In any event the sexual penetrations took place. Each one of them was at the instigation of the complainant, and carried out with the assistance of the complainant not only in terms of the suggestion of having sex but the actual physical mechanics were directed and orchestrated by her. She would obtain the condom from her sister's room, and as I say I don't have to go into the detail of it all. You are seriously intellectually disabled, and she was clearly a worldly child though under age and you did know that. 

9The second victim was a friend of the first victim, and I have been through the text messages that relate to that. I think the less said about it the better. You were in your very limited capacity inviting her to have sex, though it is my view that that was never going to eventuate. 

10What I will do is I will annexe the Crown opening to these, my sentencing remarks. That is about as much I think as I need to say about it.  It is hard to believe sometimes that matters like this get brought before this court, but it seems that they have to be. I think general and specific deterrence have to be moderated in your circumstances, and denunciation and appropriate punishment also have to play some part significantly, mitigated by the circumstances surrounding it all. 

11The report of Dr Walton, which I will direct is to remain on the court file, in very graphic terms describes your problems. 

12You have no contact with your siblings. You have multiple siblings who have been diagnosed as intellectually disabled. You have some contact with your father. Your mother died not long before this offending of cancer, and you have had an extremely difficult upbringing. Dr Walton describes you as having a childlike manner, and said that you are intellectually disabled. He said that your capacity to stand trial was "Line ball indeed."  And I think this is as much as I really need to say, that at the time of this offending your level of operation was arguably less than that of a 10‑year‑old. 

13It is inappropriate for you to be involved in a sex offender program, and I put that into my sentencing remarks in case somebody thinks that you should be. 

14I am going to put you on a community corrections order. It will be without conviction, and the only conditions upon it will be supervision so that you have somebody to talk to if you run into difficulties and that the matter can then be brought back before me promptly, and that you comply with the Justice Plan that has been prepared and is dated 2 May 2017. 

15I have had you assessed for a community corrections order, and the report on that says that you are acceptable and that you have consented to such an order.  I will also take into account the client overview report which I now make Exhibit 1 in this matter and Dr Walton’s Exhibit 2, and that again goes through in very simple terms the matters that I have gone through. You do appear able to look after yourself to a certain extent, but it is very limited. 

16In all those circumstances, you are to be placed on a community corrections order. 

17Is there any difficulty with a Justice Plan in terms of the length of the order?  Someone told me there's a problem, isn't there? 

18VOICE (from body of court):  A Justice Plan can't exceed two years.

19HIS HONOUR:  That's all I need to know.  Thanks for that.  CCO for two years, and the only condition will be supervision and to comply with the Justice Plan. 

20COUNSEL:  As Your Honour pleases.