R v KIMMINS

The appellant, R v Kimmins, was sentenced in the District Court for two counts of contravening a paedophile restraining order and for breaching a bond requiring him to come up for sentence if called upon. The judge estreated the bond but imposed no further penalty for that breach, instead sentencing the appellant to 16 months and two weeks imprisonment with a non-parole period of eight months for the two restraining order breaches. The appellant appealed this sentence.

The appeal raised two grounds: firstly, that the sentencing judge erred in applying a 30 per cent discount for the pleas of guilty, arguing that the maximum applicable discount rate was 40 per cent; and secondly, that the sentence imposed was manifestly excessive, considering the nature of the breaches and the appellant's intellectual challenges.

The Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal, holding that the sentences imposed fell within the sentencing judge's discretion. While acknowledging that the judge had mistakenly applied a 30 per cent discount when the maximum available was 40 per cent, the Court found that this error did not warrant interference with the sentence. The Court concluded that, despite this miscalculation, it was not a case where a different sentence should have been passed.