R v Ngo

The applicant, in this case, was sentenced to three years of periodic detention by his Honour Dodd DCJ for causing significant facial injuries to Shao Xiao during a fight at the Babylon Health Club. The applicant acquired two meat cleavers intending to scare off the opposing group but struck Shao Xiao in the face, causing severe and permanent scarring. The applicant appealed against his sentence on the grounds that the sentencing judge failed to follow the correct two-step process in awarding periodic detention, did not provide adequate reasons for not fixing a non-parole period, and did not correctly determine the appropriate starting point for the head sentence. The court was required to determine whether the trial judge followed the appropriate legal framework in sentencing the applicant and whether the sentence imposed was appropriate.

The court considered that the trial judge had correctly applied the principles in awarding periodic detention but had not adequately articulated the reasons for not fixing a non-parole period. While the court found that the sentence was not manifestly excessive, it determined that the starting point for the head sentence should have been higher due to the objective seriousness of the offence. The court held that the trial judge's failure to correctly identify the starting point for the head sentence meant that the sentence was not properly determined.

The appeal was allowed, and the matter was remitted to the District Court for resentencing. The court emphasised the importance of following the correct legal framework in sentencing, particularly in determining the appropriate starting point for the head sentence and providing adequate reasons for not fixing a non-parole period. The court did not specify the new sentence that should be imposed, leaving it to the District Court to determine an appropriate sentence on resentencing.