ETB v Commissioner of Police

The appellant, ETB, appealed against sentences imposed by a magistrate in the Mt Isa Magistrates Court. ETB was convicted of contravening a domestic violence order and of common assault. Each offence was punished by a sentence of nine months’ imprisonment, to run concurrently. ETB argued that the sentences were manifestly excessive, that the magistrate had failed to properly apply the principle of totality, had misinterpreted relevant case law, and had contravened section 16 of the Criminal Code. The Court of Appeal was required to determine whether the sentences imposed were manifestly excessive or inadequate, whether the magistrate had erred in the application of sentencing principles, and whether the magistrate had contravened statutory obligations.

The Court of Appeal found that the sentences imposed by the magistrate were manifestly excessive. The Court considered that the magistrate had failed to properly apply the principle of totality, which requires that the aggregate sentence for multiple offences should not be disproportionate. The Court found that the magistrate had incorrectly applied relevant case law in determining the appropriate sentence. The Court also found that the magistrate had contravened section 16 of the Criminal Code, which requires that a court must not impose a sentence that is harsher than necessary to achieve the relevant sentencing objectives.

Accordingly, the Court allowed the appeal, set aside the sentences imposed by the magistrate, and substituted sentences of three months’ imprisonment for the contravention of the domestic violence order and six months’ imprisonment for the common assault, to run concurrently. The Court otherwise affirmed the sentence imposed by the magistrate.