Director of Public Prosecutions v Zaatiti

[2019] VCC 497

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

AT MELBOURNE
CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

CR 18-00433

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

ZAKARIA ZAATITI

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JUDGE:	HIS HONOUR JUDGE DEAN
WHERE HELD:	Melbourne
DATE OF HEARING:	15 March 2019 & 8 April 2019
DATE OF SENTENCE:	10 April 2019
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	DPP v Zaatiti
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2019] VCC 497

REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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Subject:

Catchwords:  Intentionally cause injury; Recklessly cause injury; Use of firearm; Handgun used in a public place; Planned act of reprisal; High moral culpability; Denunciation; Protection of the community; General deterrence; Specific deterrence; Post-traumatic stress disorder; Hardship of imprisonment; Reasonable prospects of rehabilitation

Legislation Cited:
Cases Cited:
Sentence:

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APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the Director of Public Prosecutions	Mr G. Hevey	Office of Public Prosecutions
For the Accused	Mr B. Newton	Randles Cooper Lawyers

HIS HONOUR:

1Zakaria Zaatiti, you have pleaded guilty to the following charges –

2(i) Two charges of intentionally causing injury contrary to s.18 of the Crimes Act 1958. The maximum penalty for that offence is ten years imprisonment.

3(ii) One charge of recklessly causing injury contrary to s.18 of the Crimes Act 1958. The maximum penalty for that offence is five years imprisonment.

4You initially pleaded guilty to an Indictment that also contained two charges of conduct endangering persons contrary to s.23 of the Crimes Act 1958, but after consideration was given to the issue of double punishment the further Indictment was filed over containing the charges I am now to sentence you for.

5A contested committal hearing was conducted in your case on 27 February 2018 and the matter listed for trial in this court.  Following a final directions hearing on 4 February 2019, negotiations between the parties resulted in the resolution of the matter on 19 February 2019.

6Your plea of guilty was at a late stage but it has spared the community and witnesses the burden of a criminal trial and I accept it is evidence of some remorse in your case.  I have taken it into account in your favour in mitigation of sentence.

7You have admitted a criminal history in relation to driving charges in the Children's Court in 2012 which are not relevant for sentencing purposes, but more significantly charges of stalking and threat to inflict serious injury for which you received a Community Correction Order from the Broadmeadows Magistrates Court on 20 November 2015.

8You breached that order and it was extended for nine months on 21 February 2017 and you were therefore subject to that order when the offending in this instance occurred. 

9A prosecution opening was read to the court and your offending may be summarised as follows –

10On 11 August 2017 at approximately 2.30 am two brothers, Suhayl Omran and Ayoub Omran were shot outside premises in Roxburgh Park.  Another victim, Issam Sankari, was assaulted outside the premises sustaining facial and head injuries including a fractured jaw.

11It is the prosecution case that the offending occurred as a reprisal for a stabbing attack on a cousin of yours, Omar Zaatiti, that was carried out by the Omran brothers.  When the offending the subject of the charges before the court occurred you were in company with two co-offenders.  One of you was armed with a .380 calibre pistol and it was agreed that it would be used during the course of the attack on the Omran brothers.

12The pistol was obtained on 10 August 2017, that is the previous day, by you or a co-offender from a firearms trafficker at the Meadow Heights Shopping Centre. 

13Suhayl Oman was shot twice in the right leg and required treatment in hospital for six days.  Ayoub Omran was shot twice in the left leg and once in the right leg and he also required treatment in hospital for a period of six days.

14There are no Victim Impact Statements before the court but it is clear that the offending must have had a significantly traumatic effect on all three men over and above their physical injuries.

15Following an investigation you were arrested on 11 August 2017 and interviewed by investigating police.  You made no comment to questions put to you.  You were further interviewed on 4 September 2017 and charged with the offences before the court.  On 22 January 2018 you were released on bail by the Supreme Court of Victoria. However, that bail was revoked on 21 December 2018 and you were remanded in custody where you remained. 

16Clearly your offending is of the utmost seriousness.  The use of firearms to inflict injuries to other persons in these circumstances must be clearly denounced by this court and the sentence I impose must be calculated to protect the public from offending of this nature.

17These shootings occurred in the early hours of the morning in a residential street no doubt causing great concern to residents and disrupting the security offered to them by their homes. 

18In my opinion, Charges 1 and 2 are very serious examples of the offence of intentionally causing injury. A handgun was used in a public place to fire multiple shots at two victims in a planned act of reprisal.  This sentence must unequivocally deter others from offending in this manner and in my opinion specific deterrence is also an important consideration in this case. You chose to be a party to offending of this gravity in response to an attack on your cousin and so you too must also be deterred from resorting to extreme violence in such circumstances.  Your criminal history is also relevant in this regard.

19I now turn to your personal circumstances.  You were born on 28 June 1994 in Melbourne and are now aged 24.  You have three siblings.  Your parents separated when you were six years old and between the ages of eight and 15 you resided with your father in Tripoli in Lebanon.  You had no contact with your mother and your formal education was seriously disrupted. You were also exposed to extreme sectarian violence in Lebanon and I accept that this has also disrupted your personal development. 

20Following your return to Australia you recommenced your education at Roxburgh Park Secondary College where you completed Years 9 and 10. You left school in Year 11.  Following this you commenced work as a labourer with a roof plumber and at the time of your offending you operated your own roof plumbing business.  I accept that you have a good work history and your business continues to be operated by your brother.

21You have one daughter now aged two and a half who resides in Sydney with her mother.  There are no current drug or alcohol abuse issues in your case.  I have however received in evidence the psychological report of Ms Pamela Matthews detailing your background and psychological profile.

22I accept that you suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder requiring treatment and medication and that your mental illness will compound the hardship of imprisonment upon you and further that imprisonment may in turn adversely affect your condition. Your disrupted childhood has resulted in you developing impaired personal attachments and it is in part in this context that your offending occurred. 

23However, your offending was a planned and deliberate act of reprisal and I do not accept that there is a connection between your post-traumatic stress disorder and the offending such that your moral culpability is to be moderated and the principle of general deterrence also moderated.

24As I have observed general deterrence is a significant sentencing factor in this case and in my opinion your moral culpability for these crimes is high.  However, I accept that you require ongoing treatment and medication as further set out in a report of Mr Ilker Abak, a psychologist who has treated you.

25I have also received in evidence a number of character and family references and I accept that you have family and community support that will further assist in your rehabilitation. 

26You are a relatively youthful offender and I accept that your prospects for rehabilitation may be described as reasonable.

27In the result the sentence of the court is as follows –

28On Charge 1, you are convicted and sentenced to be imprisoned for five years.

29On Charge 2, you are convicted and sentenced to be imprisoned for five years.

30On Charge 3, you are convicted and sentenced to be imprisoned for 18 months.

31Charge 2 is the base sentence.  I order that 18 months of the sentence on Charge 1 and six months of the sentence on Charge 3 be served cumulatively on each other and cumulatively on the base sentence.  This makes for a total effective term of imprisonment of seven years.

32I direct that you serve four years and nine months before becoming eligible for release on parole. 

33I declare that you have served 253 days by way of pre-sentence detention not including today. 

34But for your plea of guilty I would have imposed a total effective term of imprisonment of nine years and fixed a non-parole period of seven years.

35Thank you.  Are there any further orders required?

36MR VELLA:  No, Your Honour.

37HIS HONOUR:  Mr Newton?

38MR NEWTON:  No, Your Honour.

39HIS HONOUR:  Thank you.

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