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R v Quinn (No 3)

R v Quinn (No 3)

Case [2016] NSWSC 1699 2 December 2016

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Supreme Court

New South Wales

Amendment notes

Medium Neutral Citation: R v Quinn (No 3) [2016] NSWSC 1699
Hearing dates: 18 November 2016
Date of orders: 02 December 2016
Decision date: 02 December 2016
Jurisdiction: Common Law - Criminal
Before: Beech-Jones J
Decision:
For the offence of murder, the offender is sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 20 years commencing 9 September 2015, comprising a non-parole period of 15 years and an additional term of 5 years.

Catchwords: SENTENCING – MURDER – offender convicted following judge alone trial – offender fatally stabbed ex‑girlfriend in neck – offender then stabbed himself in the neck – offender rendered himself a quadriplegic – offender suffered from borderline personality disorder – offender suffered from obsessive compulsive disorder – contribution of mental state to offending – application of objectives of sentencing to offender suffering from mental condition and quadriplegia - whether offender suffered extra curial punishment – whether prison conditions rendered more severe – whether special circumstances – HELD – imprisonment for twenty years – non parole period of fifteen years
Legislation Cited: Crimes (High Risk Offenders) Act 2006 (NSW)
Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW)
Crimes Act 1900 (NSW)
Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW)
Cases Cited: Aktar v R [2015] NSWCCA 123
Betts v R [2015] NSWCCA 39
Christodoulou v R [2008] NSWCCA 102
Director of Public Prosecutions (NSW) v Quinn [2015] NSWSC 1326
DPP (Cth) v De La Rosa [2010] NSWCCA 194
Markarian v R [2005] HCA 25; 228 CLR 357
Mulato v R [2006] NSWCCA 282
Muldrock v R [2011] HCA 39; 244 CLR 120
R v Daetz [2003] NSWCCA 216
R v Fidow [2004] NSWCCA 172
R v Israil [2002] NSWCCA 255
R v Maglovski (No 2) [2013] NSWSC 16
R v Olbrich [1999] HCA 54; 199 CLR 270
R v Pearson [2004] NSWCCA 129
R v Quinn (No 2) [2016] NSWSC 1244
R v Smith (1987) 44 SASR 587
Street v Queensland Bar Association (1989) 168 CLR 461
Category: Sentence
Parties: Regina (Crown)
Michael James Quinn (Offender)
Representation:
Counsel:
M Hobart SC (Crown)
J Manuell SC (Offender)
Solicitors:
Solicitor for Public Prosecutions (Crown)
William O’Brien and Ross Hudson Solicitors (Offender)

File Number(s): 2013/275908

REMARKS ON SENTENCE

HIS HONOUR: On 8 August 2016, the offender, Michael James Quinn, was arraigned in this Court on an indictment that charged him with murdering Cherie Vize at Farmborough Heights in this State on 22 July 2013. He pleaded not guilty.
Previously, on the application of Mr Quinn and with the consent of the prosecution, I ordered that he be tried by a Judge alone (Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW); s 132(2)). Accordingly, after Mr Quinn was arraigned, the trial proceeded before me without a jury.
On 8 September 2016 I found Mr Quinn guilty of murder. I published reasons for the verdict (R v Quinn (No 2) [2016] NSWSC 1244; the “Principal Judgment”). On 18 November 2016 I heard submissions from the Crown and on behalf…

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 Quinn (No 3)

Details

AGLC: R v Quinn (No 3) [2016] NSWSC 1699
Case: [2016] NSWSC 1699
Decision Date: 02 December 2016

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the case of R v Quinn (No 3), the defendant, Quinn, was convicted of murder following a trial before a judge alone. The dispute centred around the appropriate sentencing for Quinn, who had fatally stabbed his ex-girlfriend in the neck and subsequently attempted to take his own life by stabbing himself in the neck, resulting in quadriplegia. Quinn had a history of borderline personality disorder and obsessive compulsive disorder. The court was tasked with determining the extent to which Quinn's mental health conditions contributed to his offending behaviour and how these should be considered within the objectives of sentencing. The court also had to consider whether Quinn's quadriplegia and the conditions of his imprisonment constituted special circumstances warranting a departure from standard sentencing principles.

The legal issues before the court included the assessment of the offender's mental health at the time of the offence and its impact on his culpability, as well as the application of sentencing principles to an offender who was now a quadriplegic and imprisoned under severe conditions. The court examined whether Quinn's self-inflicted injuries and subsequent quadriplegia constituted an extra-curial punishment and whether the prison conditions exacerbated his suffering. The court also considered whether these circumstances constituted special circumstances that warranted a departure from the usual sentencing practices.

In delivering its judgment, the court held that despite Quinn's mental health conditions, they did not absolve him of responsibility for his actions. The court found that while these conditions were relevant, they did not negate the gravity of the offence. The court also determined that Quinn's self-inflicted injuries and resulting quadriplegia did not constitute an extra-curial punishment. However, the court acknowledged that the prison conditions had rendered Quinn's suffering more severe. The court ultimately sentenced Quinn to imprisonment for twenty years, with a non-parole period of fifteen years, taking into account the objectives of sentencing and the unique circumstances of the case.

The final orders of the court were that Quinn be sentenced to imprisonment for twenty years, with a non-parole period of fifteen years. The court's decision balanced the need for retribution and deterrence with the consideration of Quinn's mental health and the severity of his self-inflicted injuries.

Orders