R v Stratford

[2005] QCA 78

SUPREME COURT OF QUEENSLAND

CITATION:

R v Stratford [2005] QCA 78

PARTIES:

R
v
STRATFORD, Mark Leslie
(appellant/applicant)

FILE NO/S:

CA No 411 of 2004
DC No 13 of 2004

DIVISION:

Court of Appeal

PROCEEDING:

Appeal against Conviction & Sentence

ORIGINATING COURT:

District Court at Warwick

DELIVERED EX TEMPORE ON:

22 March 2005

DELIVERED AT:

Brisbane

HEARING DATE:

22 March 2005

JUDGES:

McPherson and Keane JJA and Fryberg J
Separate reasons for judgment of each member of the Court, each concurring as to the order made

ORDER:

1.     Appeal against conviction dismissed
2.     Application for leave to appeal against sentence        dismissed

CATCHWORDS:

CRIMINAL LAW - APPEAL AND NEW TRIAL AND INQUIRY AFTER CONVICTION - APPEAL AND NEW TRIAL - PARTICULAR GROUNDS - UNREASONABLE OR INSUPPORTABLE VERDICT - WHERE APPEAL DISMISSED - appellant convicted of stealing after trial - appellant did not give evidence at trial - appellant alleged that evidence of other witnesses was false - whether it was open to the jury to find the appellant guilty on the available evidence

CRIMINAL LAW - APPEAL AND NEW TRIAL AND INQUIRY AFTER CONVICTION - APPEAL AGAINST SENTENCE - APPLICATIONS TO REDUCE SENTENCE - WHEN REFUSED - PARTICULAR OFFENCES - PROPERTY OFFENCES - appellant sentenced to serve whole of suspended sentence previously imposed - sentenced to 15 months imprisonment to be suspended after 158 days - property stolen was of significant value - appellant had significant criminal history - whether sentence was manifestly excessive

Criminal Code 1899 (Qld), s 22

MFA v The Queen (2002) 213 CLR 606, cited
R v Antoniutti [2003] QCA 360; CA No 164 of 2003, 21 August 2003, cited
R v Phillips [2002] QCA 97; CA No 333 of 2001, 19 March 2002, cited

COUNSEL:

Appellant/applicant appeared on his own behalf

M J Copley for respondent

SOLICITORS:

Appellant/applicant appeared on his own behalf

Director of Public Prosecutions (Queensland) for respondent

McPHERSON JA:  I will ask Justice Keane to give the first judgment in this matter.

KEANE JA:  The appellant was convicted, after a trial, on 10 November 2004 on two counts of stealing.  The offences were committed between 3 October 2003 and 3 November 2003.  He was sentenced to two years imprisonment on each count to be served concurrently, suspended after 15 months with an operational period of three years.  Further it was ordered that a previously imposed sentence which had been suspended be reactivated for a period of nine months and 19 days to be served concurrently with the sentences imposed on 10 November 2004.  The appellant appeals against the conviction and seeks leave to appeal against the sentence.

By way of background to the case, the appellant and his partner, Mia Wallace, were found guilty of having stolen a drott and a tractor, the property of Mr Charnock, from a property at Kogan.  They were also found guilty of having stolen a quantity of farming equipment, also the property of Mr Charnock, from the property at Kogan.

The appellant did…