R v. Chong; ex parte A-G (Qld)

The Attorney-General for Queensland appealed against the sentence imposed on the respondent who had been convicted of unlawful wounding and breaching an intensive correction order. The respondent had been sentenced to two and a half years imprisonment, with immediate parole to apply, for the unlawful wounding offence and re-sentenced to 15 months probation for the breach of the intensive correction order. The Attorney-General argued that the sentence was manifestly inadequate. The court was required to decide whether the sentence for the offence of unlawful wounding, both before and after the re-sentencing, was manifestly inadequate and whether the court should have taken into account the respondent's status as an Aboriginal mother from a remote community who would no longer be able to breastfeed her youngest child if imprisoned.
The court held that the sentence for unlawful wounding was not manifestly inadequate, having regard to the need to ensure that a person convicted of that offence must spend time in custody. The court considered that the hardship caused to the offender's children by imprisonment could be taken into account in sentencing in exceptional circumstances, but held that this was not such a case. The court dismissed the appeal against sentence.

No further orders were made.