R v Humphrey

[2014] VCC 2164

IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA Revised
(Not) Restricted
Suitable for Publication

AT BENDIGO

CRIMINAL DIVISION

CR-14-01399

DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

v

ROBERT JAMES HUMPHREY

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JUDGE:	HIS HONOUR JUDGE PUNSHON
WHERE HELD:	Bendigo
DATE OF HEARING:	5 November 2014
DATE OF SENTENCE:	15 December 2014 (Melbourne)
CASE MAY BE CITED AS:	R v Humphrey
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION:	[2014] VCC 2164

REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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Subject:  
Catchwords:            
Legislation Cited:     
Cases Cited:            
Sentence:                 

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APPEARANCES:	Counsel	Solicitors
For the DPP	Mr J.J. Jassar	Office of Public Prosecutions Victoria
For the Accused	Ms M. Aumair	Stuthridge Lawyers

HIS HONOUR:

1       Robert James Humphrey, you have pleaded guilty to one charge of intentionally causing a bushfire.

2       The prosecutor, Mr Jassar, opened the circumstances of the offending by reading from a written ‘Summary of Prosecution Opening’ which was tendered.

3       In short, along with two companions (Poole and Aczar) you lit a grass fire on the side of the St Arnaud/Dunolly Road towards Dunolly.

4       It was lit by you at the instigation of one of your companions (Poole) so that the father of the other companion (Aczar), who was also the father of a young girl, would attend the fire as a member of the CFA, allowing the opportunity for the young girl to leave her house and join your group, her father earlier that night having refused to allow her to do so.

5       It was you who alerted fire authorities, it seems, from a mixture of motives:  to free the young girl to leave and because you were concerned about the extent of the fire.

6       When fire authorities attended the fire was five metres wide and one hundred metres long and took an hour to extinguish.

7       The plan to collect the girl was never executed.

8       When formally interviewed you made admissions.  Your companions have been committed for trial.  The prosecutor described Poole as the “mastermind”.

9       Ms Aumair, appeared for you on the plea.  

10      Prior to the plea I had been provided with an Intellectual Disability Review Assessment Report prepared by Jane Schuppner, psychologist, in 2007;  a psychological report from Dr Simon Kennedy dated 2 October 2014;  and written submissions on sentence.  

11      I will mark each of these documents as Exhibits 1, 2 and 3 respectively.

12      You live with your parents and sister in Maryborough.  Your fiancée also lives with you.  You were found to have an intellectual disability at about age 10 and were considered to be vulnerable to the influence of others when assessed aged 13 by Ms Schuppner.  Your family support you.  You are unemployed and are interested in radio and football, which you umpire. 

13      The primary matters relied upon to support a submission that you should be assessed for release on a CCO with an Justice Plan were:  your early indication to plead guilty;  your secondary role including the fact that you were easily led, particularly after having consumed considerable alcohol (seven cans of Jack Daniels over some hours);  the fact that you called 000;  your youthfulness, being only 19 at the time of the offending and now 20;  your lack of prior criminal history;  your intellectual disability and low-level functioning;  the absence of any major mental health disorder;  the absence of any vulnerability to arson or fire lighting; and your remorse.  

14      Mental impairment was not relied upon but Dr Kennedy noted the absence of evidence that you understood your actions were morally wrong, which appeared to be limited by your cognitive deficit.

15      At the beginning of the plea, I indicated that I considered it appropriate to have you assessed in accordance with the defence submission for release on a CCO with a Justice Plan.  There was no opposition from the prosecution to this course.

16      I have now received the relevant material consisting of a pre-sentence report dated 15 December 2014 from Corrections, a Client Overview Report dated 3 December 2014 from DHS and a Justice Plan dated 4 December 2014 from DHS. 

17      I propose to convict you of the charge and release you on a community corrections order for 15 months with the following conditions.

·    That you be under supervision;

·    That you undertake 100 hours of unpaid community work;

·    That you undergo assessment and treatment including testing for alcohol abuse or dependency;

·    That you undergo assessment and treatment for mental health;

·    That you comply with the conditions of the Justice Plan;  and

·    That you undergo offending behaviour programs as directed.

Treatment hours are not to be counted as a contribution to the unpaid community work.

18      Is there anything I have overlooked that anyone can identify?

19      MR JASSAR:  No, sir.