R v Thuc
[2015] VCC 261
•6 March 2015
| IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA | Revised (Not) Restricted Suitable for Publication |
AT MELBOURNE
CRIMINAL DIVISION
CR-15-00042
| DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS |
| v |
| AWENG THUC |
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JUDGE: | HIS HONOUR JUDGE PUNSHON | |
WHERE HELD: | Melbourne | |
DATE OF HEARING: | 6 March 2015 | |
DATE OF SENTENCE: | 6 March 2015 | |
CASE MAY BE CITED AS: | R v Thuc | |
MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION: | [2015] VCC 261 | |
REASONS FOR SENTENCE
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APPEARANCES: | Counsel | Solicitors |
| For the DPP | Ms T. Saville | Office of Public Prosecutions Victoria |
| For the Offender | Mr N. Brown | Victoria Legal Aid |
HIS HONOUR:
1 Aweng Thuc you have pleaded guilty to one charge of armed robbery and a summary charge of committing an indictable offence on bail.
2 The prosecutor opened the circumstances of the offending by reading from a written ‘Summary of Prosecution Opening’ which was tendered.
3 In short, on 11 October 2014 you robbed the attendant at a service station of approximately $1,000 at knifepoint.
4 Your mother had earlier spoken to the victim telling him not to let you into the service station as you had no money. Soon after the offending police spoke to your mother who said the culprit was you. Police attended your home, the money was located under your mattress and you were arrested.
5 At the time of the armed robbery you were on bail for offences committed in April and October 2014 and subsequently dealt with in the Children’s Court and Magistrates Court on the same day. The offences were criminal damage (Children’s Court) and shop theft (Magistrates Court). In each instance you were placed on good behaviour bonds.
6 You must benefit from your pleas of guilty to the current matters which were entered at the earliest reasonable opportunity.
7 You are only 18 years old and have now been in adult prison for 146 days awaiting this hearing.
8
Plea submissions, a psychiatric report from Professor Andrew Carroll
(21 February 2015), a Forensicare report (7 October 2014) and a report from Orygen Youth Health were all tendered.
9 Your counsel essentially relied upon the written submissions to argue that you should be released on a Community Correction Order for the current offences.
10 You were born in Sudan and came to Australia in 2005 with your mother and two of your three older sisters. Your oldest sister and father remain in Sudan.
11 Prior to your arrest you were living with your mother and sisters.
12 You had a limited education and were expelled from school. You have never been employed.
13 Between May and August 2014 you had seven admissions to mental health facilities. You commenced treatment with Orygen Youth Health in late May 2014 and were on a Community Treatment Order until arrested.
14 Your crime is serious and would have had an adverse impact on your vulnerable victim although no victim impact statement was tendered.
15 Your mental health, which has deteriorated since your mid-teens, is central to sentencing considerations.
16 It is likely you suffer paranoid schizophrenia and that this condition is likely to be permanent.
17 The Verdins principles are engaged. Your condition would have led to at least a moderate degree of impairment in your judgment and capacity for self-control at the time of the offending. You are finding prison more difficult than a person not suffering your condition and Dr Carroll noted “I have grave concerns about the impact of imprisonment on this man’s mental health … I have major concerns that imprisonment essentially denies him coercive treatment under the Mental Health Act, which he requires for his long-term effective treatment of his mental health issues”.
18 The prosecution agree that release on a CCO is within range.
19 In my view it is highly undesirable that you remain in prison and that a CCO is the appropriate disposition.
20 During brief discussion this morning I noted that my main concern was to ensure you are immediately supervised and supported on release. I have both the protection of the community and your welfare uppermost in my mind in trying to facilitate an immediate assessment of your mental health to enable you to receive whatever treatment is required.
21 Your mother and one sister attended court. You can live at home.
22 It may be that you require immediate coercive treatment under the Mental Health Act perhaps requiring variation of your Community Treatment Order to an Inpatient Treatment Order to facilitate admission to hospital.
23 I had you assessed to determine your suitability for release on a CCO. In particular I sought advice about what could be done to have you assessed immediately.
24 Your counsel also undertook to contact Orygen Youth Health to see if that organisation could assist with an immediate assessment. The information that has been provided is that they can. To have this assessment done, you will need to present yourself at Orygen Youth Health, on the first floor, Visy Cares Hub, 80B Harvester Road, Sunshine, by 5 pm today. I am hopeful that this can be done. Your mother proposes to take you there.
25 In those circumstances, I propose to release you on a Community Correction Order for both offences. The term of the order will be for 18 months with the following conditions:
o That you are to perform 150 hours of unpaid community work;
o That you are to be under supervision;
o That you are to undergo treatment and rehabilitation for drug addiction;
o That you are to undergo treatment and rehabilitation concerning your mental health; and
o That you are to undergo programs to reduce re-offending.
26 Is there anything I have overlooked. I know that is a bit rushed, but:
27 MS SAVILLE: Your Honour, the 464.
28 HIS HONOUR: Yes.
29 MS SAVILLE: If Your Honour is intending to declare any PSD.
30 HIS HONOUR: I do not think I need to declare any PSD given the order I have made. If the order is breached and there is no alternative but imprisonment PSD will then be available for reduction of any ultimate sentence that is imposed. This is not a case where I am going to impose a period of imprisonment, declare PSD and then attached a CCO.
31 MS SAVILLE: Certainly, Your Honour.
32 HIS HONOUR: I think a CCO is the appropriate penalty in all the circumstances. There was consent to the taking of a forensic sample. I will make the order. My reasons will appear in the order. I think we have got that documentation prepared. Can I just get counsel to check that document for me and then we will have your client sign it with your assistance, if you would not mind, Mr Brown.
33 MR BROWN: That looks good to us, Your Honour. I will have Mr Thuc sign it.
34 HIS HONOUR: Thank you.
35 MS SAVILLE: Your Honour, might I be excused and my instructor will remain?
36 HIS HONOUR: Thank you, yes. Thank you very much for your help and for coming back.
37 MS SAVILLE: I apologise everything happened at once, Your Honour.
38 HIS HONOUR: That is the way it often goes.
39 MS SAVILLE: Thank you, Your Honour.
40 HIS HONOUR: Would you convey my thanks to Judge Stuart.
41 MS SAVILLE: Certainly.
42 HIS HONOUR: That has been done? You understand, Mr Thuc, that you not only need to go to Sunshine this afternoon to Orygen, but you need to report to the Corrections office at Werribee by - I think it is by 4 o'clock next Tuesday.
43 MR BROWN: It would be Wednesday, it is normally two clear working days.
44 HIS HONOUR: Will you please explain to your client that he needs to get there quickly.
45 MR BROWN: Yes.
46 HIS HONOUR: I do not expect he will go today, obviously.
47 MR BROWN: No.
48 HIS HONOUR: His best option would be to go as soon as they open, which is probably Tuesday.
49 MR BROWN: Yes. I mentioned just then that he had to head down there on Tuesday.
50 HIS HONOUR: All right. I cannot release your client from the dock immediately. The prison authorities will need to have the appropriate documentation, so you will have to go downstairs and you will be released as soon as we can possibly get it done. Madam Prison Officer, can you see that we have got an urgent issue here. Mr Thuc needs to be released as soon as possible so that he can get to Sunshine for the purposes of having the mental health assessment made by 5 o'clock.
51 I will leave the Bench. Thanks very much for coming back. I will leave the Bench and I will come back on the Bench in a couple of minutes.
52 (Community correction order signed and acknowledged.)
53 (Section 464 order signed and acknowledged.)
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