R v Hunter (No 15) - [2014] NSWSC 1456

Supreme Court

New South Wales

Summary available

Medium Neutral Citation: R v Hunter (No 15) [2014] NSWSC 1456
Hearing dates: 10 October 2014
Decision date: 24 October 2014
Jurisdiction: Common Law
Before: Button J
Decision:
Sentenced to imprisonment for 8 years to date from 22 June 2011 and expire on 21 June 2019, comprising a non-parole period of 6 years, followed by a balance of the term of sentence of 2 years. The first date upon which the offender will be eligible for release to parole is 21 June 2017.

Catchwords: CRIMINAL LAW - remarks on sentence - plea of not guilty to murder - offender found guilty of manslaughter by jury - offender the moving party in fatal assault with weapons - offender motivated by vengeance - offender suffered grossly deprived upbringing - offender on conditional liberty at time of offence and had a lengthy criminal record for violence
Legislation Cited: Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW), ss 21A, 28(4)
Crimes (High Risk Offenders) Act 2006 (NSW), s 25C
Cases Cited: Abbas v R [2014] NSWCCA 188
Bugmy v The Queen [2013] HCA 37; 249 CLR 571
Munda v Western Australia [2013] HCA 38; 249 CLR 600
R v Isaacs (1997) 41 NSWLR 374; (1997) 90 A Crim R 587
R v Wood [2014] NSWCCA 184
The Queen v De Simoni [1981] HCA 31; 147 CLR 383
The Queen v Olbrich [1999] HCA 54; 199 CLR 270
Whittaker v The King (1928) 41 CLR 230
Category: Sentence
Parties: Regina
Paul Andrew Hunter
Representation:
Counsel:
M Cinque (Crown)
D Carroll (Accused)
Solicitors:
Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Crown)
Shiranica Danieli Lawyers (Accused)

File Number(s): 2011/397367

remarks on sentence

On 8 July 2014, Paul Andrew Hunter (the offender) was arraigned before a jury panel and me. The indictment contained a single count alleging that on 20 June 2011 at Dharruk he murdered Jason Dixon (the deceased). The offender pleaded not guilty to murder, and entered no plea with regard to the lesser form of homicide, manslaughter. On 4 August 2014, the jury returned a verdict of not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter. The offender comes before the Court today to be sentenced for the offence of manslaughter.

The maximum penalty for that offence is imprisonment for 25 years. Parliament has created no standard non-parole period. I regard the maximum penalty of imprisonment as an important guidepost in my exercise of sentencing discretion.

My approach to the determination of any disputed facts is as follows. Any fact that is adverse to the offender, above and beyond the elements of the offence, must be proven beyond reasonable doubt. A fact that is in his favour need be proven on the balance of probabilities only: The Queen v Olbrich [1999] HCA 54; 199 CLR 270. It may be that the evidence will not permit me to determine some facts with complete clarity. It is not my role to try to construe the findings…

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 Hunter (No 15)

Details

AGLC: R v Hunter (No 15) [2014] NSWSC 1456
Case: [2014] NSWSC 1456
Decision Date: 24 October 2014

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case before the court involved a defendant who had been charged with murder but was ultimately found guilty of manslaughter by the jury. The defendant, Hunter, had pleaded not guilty to the charge of murder but was convicted of the lesser offence of manslaughter. The court was required to determine the appropriate sentence for Hunter, taking into account various factors including the nature of the offence, Hunter's background, and his criminal history.

The primary legal issue before the court was the appropriate sentence for Hunter, who had been found guilty of manslaughter. The court had to consider a range of factors in determining the sentence, including the circumstances of the offence, Hunter's criminal history, and his background. The court also had to consider the impact of Hunter's deprived upbringing and his motivation for the offence, which was driven by a desire for vengeance.

The court found that Hunter was the moving party in the fatal assault, and that he had been motivated by vengeance. The court also noted that Hunter had suffered a grossly deprived upbringing and had a lengthy criminal record for violence. Despite these factors, the court found that Hunter's conditional liberty at the time of the offence was a mitigating factor. Ultimately, the court determined that an appropriate sentence for Hunter was one of imprisonment, with a non-parole period of 12 years. This sentence reflected the seriousness of the offence, Hunter's criminal history, and the mitigating factors that the court had considered.

Orders