R v Krook

[2020] ACTSC 93

SUPREME COURT OF THE AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY

Case Title:

R v Krook

Citation:

[2020] ACTSC 93

Hearing Date:

17 April 2020

DecisionDate:

17 April 2020

Before:

Mossop J

Decision:

See [45]

Catchwords:

CRIMINAL LAW – JURISDICTION, PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE – Judgment and punishment – sentence – charges arise from two drug deals – recklessly inflict grievous bodily harm – unlawful act causing grievous bodily harm – trafficking in cannabis and cocaine –  offender suffers from Irlen Syndrome, ADHD, anxiety and depression – limited criminal history – early plea of guilty – youth and good prospects of rehabilitation – imprisonment – non-parole period at lower end of appropriate range

Legislation Cited:

Crimes Act 1900 (ACT), ss 20, 25

Criminal Code 2002 (ACT), ss 603(5), 603(7)

Parties:

The Queen (Crown)

Damon Krook (Offender)

Representation:

Counsel

J Hiscox (Crown)

D Perkins (Offender)

Solicitors

ACT Director of Public Prosecutions (Crown)

Darryl Perkins Solicitors (Offender)

File Number:

SCC 318 of 2019

MOSSOP J:

Introduction

1. Damon Krook has pleaded guilty in the Magistrates Court to:

(a) one count of recklessly inflicting grievous bodily harm, contrary to s 20 of the Crimes Act 1900 (ACT), the maximum penalty being 13 years’ imprisonment (CC2019/12468);

(b) one count of an unlawful act causing grievous bodily harm, contrary to s 25 of the Crimes Act, the maximum penalty being five years’ imprisonment (CC2019/12649);

(c) one count of trafficking in a controlled drug (cocaine), contrary to s 603(7) of the Criminal Code 2002 (ACT), the maximum penalty being 10 years’ imprisonment, 1,000 penalty units or both (CC2019/9223); and

(d) one count of trafficking in a trafficable quantity of cannabis, contrary to s 603(5) of the Criminal Code, the maximum penalty being 10 years’ imprisonment, 1,000 penalty units or both (CC2019/9225).

Facts

1. The offences occurred on 16 April 2019 in the context of two drug deals. At this time, the offender was living in a granny flat behind his parent’s property. The offender had received a ‘large payout’ following the death of his father, sometime after which he became a drug dealer. He also owned a collection of knives and machetes.

1. At about 12:30am, the victims, Mr Morris and Mr Swanston, and a third man (Mr Fattorini), arrived at ‘Langtrees Bordello’ in Mitchell. This includes a bar located above an establishment named ‘Wanderlust’, a so-called ‘gentlemen’s club’. The three men drank at the bar and played pool for a couple of hours. Around 2:30am, Mr Swanston proposed buying cocaine, and Mr Morris began to message numerous people on Facebook in an attempt to “get a baggy”.

1. A Facebook friend later identified as Chevelle Jones, replied to Mr Morris’s message. Ms Jones was friends with the offender, and at the time she received the message from Mr Morris, she was with the offender at his residence. The offender also knew Mr Morris as the pair had attended high school together. The offender confirmed that he would sell Mr Morris a bag of cocaine, and Ms Jones relayed this message to Mr Morris.