Morina v Northern Territory - [2008] NTMC 39

CITATION: Morina v NTA [2008] NTMC 039

PARTIES: CHARMAINE MORINA

THE NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA

TITLE OF COURT: Local Court

JURISDICTION: Crimes (Victim’s Assistance) Alice Springs

FILE NO(s): 20711977

DELIVERED ON: 13 June 2008

DELIVERED AT: Alice Springs

HEARING DATE(s): 23 April 2008

JUDGMENT OF: G. Borchers

CATCHWORDS:

REPRESENTATION:

Counsel:
Applicant: Nicholas Simmons
Respondent: John McBride

Solicitors:
Applicant: Povey Stirk
Respondent: John McBride

Judgment category classification: C
Judgment ID number: [2008] NTMC 039
Number of paragraphs: 25

IN THE LOCAL COURT
AT ALICE SPRINGS IN THE NORTHERN
TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA

No. 20711944
[2008] NTMC 039

BETWEEN:

CHARMAINE MORINA
Applicant

AND:

THE NORTHERN TERRITORY OF AUSTRALIA
Respondent

REASONS FOR JUDGMENT

(Delivered 13 June 2008)

Mr G BORCHERS SM:
1. The Applicant seeks an Assistance Certificate pursuant to s 5 of the Crimes (Victim’s Assistance) Act in respect of an injury suffered as a result of an offence that occurred at the Alice Springs Centrelink office on 28 June 2004.
2. The Application which is related to Application No 20711972 was filed on the 27th April 2007 together with an Application for Extension of Time in which to apply for an Assistance Certificate. Pursuant to s 5(1) of the Crimes (Victim’s Assistance) Act an Application is to be filed within 12 months of the offence.
3. Leave was granted to the Applicant on 9 January 2008 to extend the period for filing the Application pursuant to s 5(3) of the Crimes (Victim’s Assistance) Act until 27 April 2007.

THE OFFENCE
4. The Applicant relied upon an affidavit she swore on 8th October 2007. She deposed that on 8 June 2004 she was interviewing a couple at the Centrelink Alice Springs office located at 5 Railway Terrace. She became aware that a man who was with two work colleagues was becoming quite agitated and angry. He became abusive. During this time the Applicant had her back to the man. She heard a loud noise and turned to see that the man had pulled a workstation from its bolts on the floor upending a desk over the two work colleagues. This incident was brought to an end with another male colleague forcing the man onto the ground. The police were called. The Applicant was not involved in this incident nor was the man’s behaviour directed towards her. It is to be noted that this incident is alleged to have occurred on a difference date to the incident alleged in the Application.
5. The Applicant did not make a statement to the police. This is no bar to her application as the incident was reported to the police. (See 12(b) of the Crimes (Victim’s Assistance) Act).
6. The Applicant tendered correspondence from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions dated 4 September 2007. This correspondence states that Richard Boyd was convicted in the Alice Springs Court of Summary Jurisdiction on 8 June 2004 of unlawfully damaging property, and acting in a disorderly manner in a public place. He was fined on both offences…

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 Morina v Northern Territory

Details

AGLC: Morina v Northern Territory [2008] NTMC 39
Case: [2008] NTMC 39
Decision Date: 06 May 2008

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Charmaine Morina brought an application in the Local Court of the Northern Territory against the Northern Territory of Australia, seeking an Assistance Certificate under the Crimes (Victim’s Assistance) Act. Morina alleged that she suffered an injury in the form of a post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of an incident that occurred at the Alice Springs Centrelink office on 7 June 2004. The legal issues before the court were whether Morina could be considered a victim under the Act and, if so, whether the injury was of sufficient severity to warrant the grant of an Assistance Certificate.

The court found that Morina had indeed been injured as a result of the incident, and that her injuries amounted to a post-traumatic stress disorder. However, the court noted that Morina's symptoms had long-standing causes beyond the 2004 incident, and that she had continued to work and engage in public life after the incident. While Morina argued that she was now unable to work in environments with high levels of customer interaction, the court found this inconsistent with the facts. The court also noted that Morina's symptoms of anxiety, hypersensitivity, anger, sleep disorder, and lack of concentration were not necessarily the result of the 2004 incident.

The court ultimately found that Morina's injury was not chronic or substantial, and that she was not entitled to an Assistance Certificate of between 60 to 100% of the maximum permitted under the legislation. The court did, however, grant an Assessment Certificate in the amount of $5000.

In conclusion, the court found that Morina had been injured as a result of the 2004 incident, but that her injury was not of sufficient severity to warrant a substantial Assistance Certificate. The court ordered that an Assessment Certificate be awarded in the amount of $5000 and that the respondent pay the applicant's costs and disbursements.

Orders