R v Cameron - [2004] QCA 341

SUPREME COURT OF QUEENSLAND

CITATION:

R v Cameron [2004] QCA 341

PARTIES:

R
v
Cameron, Nigel Rickey
(applicant)

FILE NO/S:

CA No 255 of 2004
DC No 84 of 2003

DIVISION:

Court of Appeal

PROCEEDING:

Sentence Application

ORIGINATING COURT:

District Court at Cairns

DELIVERED EX TEMPORE ON:

20 September 2004

DELIVERED AT:

Brisbane

HEARING DATE:

20 September 2004

JUDGES:

Williams JA, White and Cullinane JJ
Separate reasons for judgment of each member of the Court, each concurring as to the order made

ORDER:

Application for leave to appeal against sentence dismissed

CATCHWORDS:

CRIMINAL LAW — JURISDICTION, PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE — JUDGMENT AND PUNISHMENT — SENTENCE — APPEAL AGAINST SENTENCE — whether unjust for applicant to serve whole of remainder of suspended sentence — where applicant committed offence during operational period

COUNSEL:

A J Kimmins for the applicant
M J Copley for the respondent

SOLICITORS:

Mellick Smith & Associates for the applicant
Director of Public Prosecutions (Queensland) for the respondent

CULLINANE J: The applicant in this matter seeks leave to appeal against a sentence imposed on the 14th of July 2004 that he serve the whole of the period of suspended imprisonment which had been imposed on the 17th of June 2003 in the District Court at Cairns for the offence of robbery with personal violence. The suspended imprisonment was for a period of two and a half years less 52 days that he had already served.

The applicant was born on the 13th of May 1984. He was 19 years of age when sentenced by the District Court on the 17th of June 2003 and 20 when dealt with in respect of the suspended imprisonment on the 14th of July 2004. The robbery occurred on the 28th of July 2002. The applicant had followed the female complainant who was riding a bicycle for some distance. He had left his car and followed her on foot for a block before running up beside her and grabbing her handbag.

She held onto her bag and was dragged along the roadway some distance. The applicant succeeded in making her let go of the bag and ran off with it. He was chased and apprehended by witnesses.

He had been sentenced on the 16th of September 2002 for 11 counts of wilful damage, two of stealing, two of attempted stealing, one of entering premises and stealing, two of possessing tainted property and one of possessing a dangerous drug. He was placed on probation for two years. He was on bail in respect of those offences when he committed the offence of robbery with violence on the 28th of July 2002.

On the 12th of May 2004 he came before the Magistrates Court in Cairns and pleaded guilty to one count of unlawful possession of a dangerous drug, in this case a tablet of Ecstasy and a count of driving whilst under the influence of a drug. Those offences were committed on the 9th of April 2004. He was fined $800 in respect of them.…

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 R v Cameron

Details

AGLC: R v Cameron [2004] QCA 341
Case: [2004] QCA 341
Decision Date: 20 September 2004

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the Supreme Court, the respondent appealed against the sentence imposed by the Magistrate’s Court. The applicant was convicted of an offence of possessing a prohibited weapon, committed during the operational period of a suspended sentence. The court was required to determine whether it was unjust for the applicant to serve the whole of the remainder of the suspended sentence.

The court considered the application for leave to appeal against sentence. The applicant submitted that the imposition of the custodial sentence would cause undue hardship, as it would prevent him from providing for his family. The court found that the Magistrate had appropriately exercised his discretion in imposing the sentence, and that the sentence was not manifestly unjust. The court held that the appeal against sentence should be dismissed, as the sentence imposed was not excessive or disproportionate to the offence committed. The court also noted that the applicant had a history of reoffending, which was a relevant factor in determining the appropriate sentence.

The final order of the court was to dismiss the application for leave to appeal against sentence. The court found that the sentence imposed was appropriate and proportionate to the offence committed, and that the applicant had not demonstrated that the sentence was manifestly unjust or oppressive. The court held that the applicant’s personal circumstances, while relevant, were not sufficient to warrant a departure from the sentence imposed. The appeal against sentence was therefore dismissed.

Orders

Orders of the court

Application for leave to appeal against sentence dismissed

Background

Background to the litigation

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Evidence

Evidence Before The Court

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Decision

Reasons for decision

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Ratio Decidendi

Legal Principle Established

Full text does not contain this section.

CITATION:	R v Cameron [2004] QCA 341
PARTIES:	R v Cameron, Nigel Rickey (applicant)
FILE NO/S:	CA No 255 of 2004 DC No 84 of 2003
DIVISION:	Court of Appeal
PROCEEDING:	Sentence Application
ORIGINATING COURT:	District Court at Cairns
DELIVERED EX TEMPORE ON:	20 September 2004
DELIVERED AT:	Brisbane
HEARING DATE:	20 September 2004
JUDGES:	Williams JA, White and Cullinane JJ Separate reasons for judgment of each member of the Court, each concurring as to the order made
ORDER:	Application for leave to appeal against sentence dismissed
CATCHWORDS:	CRIMINAL LAW — JURISDICTION, PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE — JUDGMENT AND PUNISHMENT — SENTENCE — APPEAL AGAINST SENTENCE — whether unjust for applicant to serve whole of remainder of suspended sentence — where applicant committed offence during operational period
COUNSEL:	A J Kimmins for the applicant M J Copley for the respondent
SOLICITORS:	Mellick Smith & Associates for the applicant Director of Public Prosecutions (Queensland) for the respondent