R v McKeay

Case [2020] NSWDC 408

District Court


New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: R v McKeay [2020] NSWDC 408
Hearing dates: 6 July 2020
Date of orders: 31 July 2020
Decision date: 31 July 2020
Jurisdiction:Criminal
Before: Weinstein SC DCJ
Decision:

For use carriage service to procure person under 16 years for sexual activity, I impose a head sentence of 2 years, 3 months.

For possess child abuse material, I make an order under s10A of the Crimes (sentencing Procedure) Act 1999.

For orders see [49].

Catchwords:

Sentence- use carriage service to procure person under 16 years for sexual activity- possess child abuse material - no prior criminal history - online advertisement for an Asian teen girl – police assumed online identity of a 14 year old female

Legislation Cited:

Crimes Act 1900

Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999

Cases Cited:

DPP (Cth) v Boyle (A Pseudonym) [2016] VSCA 269

DPP (Cth) v Haynes [2017] VSCA 79

DPP (Cth) v Singh [2017] VSCA 146

Hili v the Queen; Jones v the Queen [2010] HCA 45

Markarian v The Queen [2005] HCA 25

Minehan v R [2010] NSWCCA 140

Muldrock v The Queen (2011) 244 CLR 120

Power v R [1974] 131 CLR 623

R v Asplund [2010] NSWCCA 316

R v De Leeuw [2015] NSWCCA 183

R v Gajjar (2008) 192 A Crim R 76

R v Hutchinson [2018] NSWCCA 152

R v Porte [2015] NSWCCA 174

Tector v The Queen (2008) 186 A Crim R 133

Category:Sentence
Parties: Regina (Crown)
Jamie McKeay(Offender)
Representation: Mr Kangasabapathy (Crown)
Mr Steward (Offender)
File Number(s): 2019/183582

Judgment

  1. The offender Jamie McKeay, born in 1987, is before the court for sentence for the offence of use carriage service to procure person under 16 years for sexual activity contrary to s 474.26(1) of the Criminal Code (Cth) for which the maximum penalty is 15 years imprisonment, and possess child abuse material contrary to s 91H(2) of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) for which the maximum penalty is 10 years imprisonment. There is no standard non-parole period for either offence.

  2. The agreed facts are as follows:

Sequence 1: Use a carriage service to procure person under 16 years for sexual activity

  1. On 4 June 2019, NSW Police located an advertisement on the website “Locanto” which allows users to post classified advertisements.

  2. The advertisement was posted by an individual located in Cabramatta who used the username “Icy56” and stated:

“reward for teen girl

looking to reward an asian girl for some fun. reward will be $1000 but you must be in your teens”

  1. Shortly after locating the advertisement, investigators from the NSW Police Child Exploitation Internet Unit (CEIU) began communicating with the accused utilising the assumed online identity of a 14 year old female (CEIU30).

  2. The following conversation took place on Locanto:

CEIU30   hey im thai n im 14 my names Kim :) $1000 would be awesome!!

ACCUSED   Hi there, what things are you willing to do?

CEIU30   What wud u want me to do?

ACCUSED   Bj, sex and let…

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Details
AGLC
R v McKeay [2020] NSWDC 408
Case
[2020] NSWDC 408
Decision Date

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The defendant, McKeay, was charged with using a carriage service to procure a person under 16 years of age for sexual activity and possessing child abuse material. The case was heard in the District Court of New South Wales. McKeay, who had no prior criminal history, was arrested following an undercover police operation where he was communicating with what he believed to be a 14-year-old girl in response to an online advertisement. The police had assumed the online identity of a 14-year-old female to catch McKeay in the act of attempting to procure the minor for sexual activity.

The court was required to determine the appropriate sentence for McKeay's crimes, considering factors such as the nature of the offences, McKeay's lack of prior criminal history, and the impact of the crimes on the potential victim. The court had to balance these factors with the need to deter such behaviour and protect the community. The court also needed to consider whether the possession of child abuse material should result in a separate sentence or if it should be considered as part of the overall offending behaviour.

The court found that McKeay's actions were predatory and demonstrated a significant breach of trust. It imposed a head sentence of 2 years and 3 months for using a carriage service to procure a person under 16 for sexual activity. The court also made an order under s10A of the Crimes (sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 for the possession of child abuse material. The court considered the totality of McKeay's offending behaviour and his lack of prior criminal history in arriving at the final sentence. The court also considered the need to deter McKeay and others from engaging in such behaviour.

The court made orders for McKeay's sentence to be served concurrently and also ordered that McKeay be subject to a number of supervision and reporting requirements as part of his sentence. The court also made orders for McKeay to be placed on the sex offender register and subject to a number of other restrictions and requirements as part of his sentence.

Orders

Orders of the court

For use carriage service to procure person under 16 years for sexual activity, I impose a head sentence of 2 years, 3 months.

For possess child abuse material, I make an order under s10A of the Crimes (sentencing Procedure) Act 1999.

For orders see [49].

Background

Background to the litigation

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Evidence

Evidence Before The Court

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Decision

Reasons for decision

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Ratio Decidendi

Legal Principle Established

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