George Trikilis v The Queen - [2010] VSCA 241

SUPREME COURT OF VICTORIA

COURT OF APPEAL

No S APCR 0796 of 2009

GEORGE TRIKILIS	Applicant
	v
THE QUEEN	Respondent

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JUDGES	NEAVE and WEINBERG JJA and T FORREST AJA
WHERE HELD	MELBOURNE
DATE OF HEARING	8 September 2010
DATE OF JUDGMENT	23 September 2010
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION	[2010] VSCA 241
JUDGMENT APPEALED FROM	R v Trikilis (Unreported, 3 September 2009, County Court of Victoria, Judge Chettle)

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CRIMINAL LAW – Application for leave to appeal against sentence – Four counts of trafficking in a drug of dependence (MDMA, testosterone, cocaine and methylamphetamine) – Whether sentencing judge improperly took subsequent offending into account in considering prospects of rehabilitation – Application for leave to appeal refused.

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Appearances:

Counsel

Solicitors

For the Applicant

Mr T Kassimatis

Valos Black & Associates

For the Crown

Mr B L Sonnet

Mr C Hyland, Solicitor for

Public Prosecutions

NEAVE JA
WEINBERG JA
T FORREST AJA:

The applicant was part of an active drug trafficking ring in the northern suburbs of Melbourne. He lived with two co-accused, Papadopoulos and Harrington, at 57 Pearson Street Brunswick. From that address they organised the purchase and sale of MDMA (ecstasy), cocaine, methylamphetamine and various types of steroids. The residents of 57 Pearson Street and their associates did not conduct a single organised business. Rather, they were a loose collection of like-minded individuals. Each of them trafficked on their own behalf to each other and to the broader public. So far, fifteen members of the ring have been dealt with by the courts.

The applicant pleaded guilty and was sentenced before the County Court as follows:

Count 1:        Trafficking in MDMA   two years six months’ imprisonment.
Count 2:        Trafficking in testosterone                 six months’ imprisonment.
Count 3:        Trafficking in cocaine   two years’ imprisonment.
Count 4:        Trafficking in methylamphetamine     six months’ imprisonment.

Three months of the sentence imposed on count 2, 12 months of the sentence imposed on count 3 and three months of the sentence imposed on count 4 were ordered to be served cumulatively upon the sentence imposed on count 1 and upon each other. Thus, an effective term of imprisonment of four years was imposed with a minimum non-parole period of two years and nine months.

The applicant’s offending occurred between December 2006 and April 2007 and involved dealing in 450-490 grams of MDMA (2200 ecstasy tablets), 405 grams of cocaine, 1500 grams of testosterone and 150 grams of methylamphetamine.[1]
[1]Count 4, the methylamphetamine count, involved aiding and abetting Papadopoulos in his trafficking of that drug.

The application for leave to appeal was deemed dismissed, pursuant to a letter from the Court of Appeal Registry dated 4 June 2010, for the applicant’s failure to file his full statement of grounds and outline of submissions. Therefore the application for leave to appeal against sentence must be reinstated prior to the determination of the application itself. We would reinstate the application for leave to appeal.

Counsel for the applicant sought to argue one ground of appeal only.…

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.

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Details

Case: [2010] VSCA 241
Decision Date: 23 September 2010

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The applicant, George Trikilis, sought leave to appeal against his sentence imposed for four counts of trafficking in a drug of dependence, namely MDMA, testosterone, cocaine, and methylamphetamine. The matter was heard in the High Court of Australia. The central issue before the court was whether the sentencing judge had erred by considering the applicant's subsequent offending in determining his prospects for rehabilitation, thereby affecting the sentence imposed. This raised questions about the appropriate scope of factors that a sentencing judge can consider when assessing rehabilitation prospects.

The court examined the sentencing principles and the relevant authorities to determine the proper approach to assessing rehabilitation prospects. It considered the sentencing judge's reasons and whether the judge had misapplied the law by taking into account the subsequent offending. The High Court concluded that the sentencing judge had not erred in considering the subsequent offending, as it was relevant to the applicant's prospects of rehabilitation. The court found that the sentencing judge had properly exercised their discretion in this regard.

As a result of this finding, the High Court refused the application for leave to appeal. The court held that the sentencing judge had not misapplied the law in considering the subsequent offending when assessing the applicant's prospects of rehabilitation. The High Court's decision upheld the original sentence imposed on the applicant.

Orders