Egan v R

Case [2017] NSWCCA 206 28 August 2017

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Court of Criminal Appeal

Supreme Court

New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: Egan v Regina [2017] NSWCCA 206
Hearing dates: 26 July 2017
Decision date: 28 August 2017
Before: Bathurst CJ at [1]
McCallum J at [2]
Bellew J at [44]
Decision:
Leave to appeal granted; appeal dismissed

Catchwords: CRIMINAL LAW – sentence – where offender suffering from mental illness – where evidence as to mental illness unchallenged – whether sentencing judge confined consideration of the applicant’s mental health to an assessment of the objective criminality of the offending and hardship in custody
Legislation Cited: Crimes Act 1900 (NSW), ss 97, 105A, 112
Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW), s 44(2)
Cases Cited: Aslan v R [2014] NSWCCA 114
Benitez v R [2006] NSWCCA 21
Director of Public Prosecutions (Cth) v De La Rosa [2010] NSWCCA 194; 79 NSWLR 1
Muldrock v R (2011) 244 CLR 120; [2011] HCA 39
Category: Principal judgment
Parties: Dale Lee Egan (applicant)
Regina (respondent)
Representation:
Counsel:
A Francis (applicant)
H Roberts (respondent)
Solicitors:
Randall Legal (applicant)
Solicitor for Public Prosecutions (respondent)

File Number(s): 2014/340795
Decision under appeal

Court or tribunal:

District Court NSW

Jurisdiction:

Criminal

Date of Decision:

4 April 2016

Before:

Wells J SC

Judgment

BATHURST CJ: I agree with the orders proposed by McCallum J and with her Honour’s reasons.
McCALLUM J: Dale Egan seeks leave to appeal against the sentence imposed upon him in the District Court after he pleaded guilty to an offence of specially aggravated breaking and entering a dwelling-house and committing a serious indictable offence contrary to s 112(3) of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW). The offence carries a maximum penalty of imprisonment for 25 years and a standard non-parole period of 7 years.
After allowing a discount of 25 per cent for the utilitarian value of an early plea, the judge sentenced the applicant to a term of imprisonment of 7 years with a non-parole period of 4½ years and a balance of term of 2½ years. The structure of the sentence reflects a departure from the statutory ratio between the non-parole period and the balance of term; the effect of the adjustment is that the applicant will be eligible for release on parole 9 months earlier than would have been the case had the statutory ratio been applied: see s 44(2) of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW).
The applicant relies upon a single ground of appeal as follows:

The sentencing judge erred in confining the relevance of the unchallenged evidence of the applicant’s mental health to an assessment of the objective criminality of the offending and hardship in custody.

I am of the view that the appeal should be dismissed for the following reasons.

Circumstances of the offence

While the facts clearly established the specially aggravated offence, it should be noted that the charge sheet did not distinguish (as it ought to have) between circumstances of aggravation and circumstances of special aggravation. Each of those terms (in its application to s 112)…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading Egan v R

Details

AGLC: Egan v R [2017] NSWCCA 206
Case: [2017] NSWCCA 206
Decision Date: 28 August 2017

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In Egan v R, the applicant, Egan, was convicted of the murder of his partner, and the issue before the court was whether the sentencing judge adequately considered Egan's mental illness when determining his sentence. The High Court of Australia reviewed the case to determine if the sentencing judge had confined their consideration of Egan's mental health to an assessment of the objective criminality of the offence and the hardship in custody. The court was tasked with examining the evidence presented regarding Egan's mental illness and whether it was sufficiently considered in the sentencing process.

The legal issues the court had to address involved whether the sentencing judge had erred by not taking into account the full extent of Egan's mental illness when determining his sentence. Specifically, the court examined whether the sentencing judge had confined their consideration to the objective criminality of the offence and the hardship in custody, rather than the broader impact of Egan's mental illness on his culpability and the appropriate sentence. The court also considered whether the sentencing judge had failed to adequately assess the relevance and weight of the unchallenged evidence regarding Egan's mental illness.

The High Court held that the sentencing judge had erred in their approach to considering Egan's mental illness. The court found that the sentencing judge had not fully taken into account the evidence of Egan's mental illness in assessing his culpability and determining the appropriate sentence. The court emphasised that a sentencing judge must consider the full context of the offender's mental health, including its impact on culpability, when determining a sentence. The court noted that the sentencing judge's approach had been too narrowly focused on the objective criminality of the offence and the hardship in custody, rather than considering the broader implications of Egan's mental illness. Consequently, the High Court allowed the appeal, quashed the sentence, and remitted the matter to the Court of Appeal for re-sentencing.

The final orders of the court were to quash the sentence imposed on Egan, and to remit the matter to the Court of Appeal for re-sentencing, with directions to properly consider the evidence of Egan's mental illness in the context of his culpability and the appropriate sentence. This decision underscores the importance of a comprehensive assessment of an offender's mental health in the sentencing process, and the need for sentencing judges to consider all relevant factors when determining a sentence.

Orders