Regina v LC - [2010] NSWSC 815

NEW SOUTH WALES SUPREME COURT

CITATION:
Regina v LC [2010] NSWSC 815

JURISDICTION:

FILE NUMBER(S):
2009/6525

HEARING DATE(S):
10 March 2010, 18 March 2010, 11 June 2010, 30 July 2010

JUDGMENT DATE:
6 August 2010

PARTIES:
Regina (Crown)
LC (Offender)

JUDGMENT OF:
Hidden J

LOWER COURT JURISDICTION:
Not Applicable

LOWER COURT FILE NUMBER(S):
Not Applicable

LOWER COURT JUDICIAL OFFICER:
Not Applicable

COUNSEL:
J Kiely SC (Crown)
S Hanley (Offender)

SOLICITORS:
S Kavanagh - Solicitor for Public Prosecutions (Crown)
P O'Brien, O'Brien Solicitors (Offender)

CATCHWORDS:
CRIMINAL LAW
sentence
manslaughter of child by stepfather
plea of guilty accepted in discharge of indictment for murder
offender with difficult background, personality disorder
on parole for previous manslaughter

LEGISLATION CITED:
Children (Criminal Proceedings) Act 1987
Crimes Act 1900

CATEGORY:
Sentence

CASES CITED:
R v Fernando (1992) 76 A Crim R 58
R v Marshall [2003] NSWSC 448
R v Compton [2008] NSWSC 204
R v Hoerler [2004] NSWCCA 184, 147 A Crim R 520
R v Hoerler [2003] NSWCCA 1187

TEXTS CITED:

DECISION:
Sentenced to imprisonment for 14 1/2 years, NPP 10 1/2 years, from 18.6.08.

PUBLICATION RESTRICTION:
To preserve the anonymity of the child victim, offender identified by initials only, suppression of names of child, child's mother and any other relative.

JUDGMENT:

IN THE SUPREME COURT
OF NEW SOUTH WALES
COMMON LAW DIVISION
CRIMINAL LIST
HIDDEN J
Friday 6 August 2010
2009/6525 Regina v LC
REMARKS ON SENTENCE

HIS HONOUR: The offender was to face trial for the murder of a baby boy, who was only 13 months old. He pleaded guilty to manslaughter, on the basis that he killed the child by an unlawful and dangerous act, and that plea was accepted by the Crown in satisfaction of the indictment. He stands for sentence for that crime.
The law seeks to protect the anonymity of the child, as it does generally in respect of children involved in criminal proceedings in any capacity: Div 3A of Pt 2 of the Children (Criminal Proceedings) Act 1987. For that reason, the offender is identified only by initials and in these remarks I shall not refer by name to the child’s mother or any other relative of his.
Facts
I have a comprehensive statement of facts, based largely upon the eyewitness account of the baby’s mother and, as to some background incidents, the observations of her brother. The statement of facts is lengthy, and it is not necessary to set it out in full.
The child was killed on the night of 6 November 2007. The offender had been in a relationship with his mother for about 6 months, and they were living in a home unit at Blacktown. However, they had known each other much longer than that. Indeed, the mother had known the offender’s family all her life. The child was not the offender’s; he was the product of an earlier relationship of the mother’s.
There is evidence that the offender had been generally affectionate towards the child. However, not only did he cause…

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 Regina v LC

Details

AGLC: Regina v LC [2010] NSWSC 815
Case: [2010] NSWSC 815
Decision Date: 6 August 2010

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Regina v LC involved a tragic case where LC was charged with the murder of a child. The offender had been in a relationship with the child's mother for approximately six months and was living with her and the child. LC pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the discharge of an indictment for murder. The court had to consider LC's background, which included a history of violence, a personality disorder, and a prior conviction for manslaughter while on parole. The offender's history and psychiatric evaluations were central to the court's assessment of his culpability.

The court had to determine the appropriate sentence for LC, taking into account the violent nature of the offence, the offender's troubled past, and his psychiatric condition. The legal issues revolved around whether the offender's background and mental health should mitigate his sentence and what the appropriate punishment should be given the circumstances. The court needed to balance the need for punishment and deterrence with considerations of rehabilitation and the offender's mental health.

In delivering the judgment, the court emphasised the violent and deliberate nature of the crime, noting the multiple instances of prior assaults on the child. The court also took into account LC's difficult background and psychiatric assessments that highlighted his personality disorder. While acknowledging these factors, the court ultimately determined that the severity of the offence warranted a significant custodial sentence. The court found that LC's history of violence and his inability to control his actions, despite knowing better, underscored the necessity of imposing a lengthy prison term to protect the community and deter future offences. The offender was sentenced to a term of imprisonment with a non-parole period, reflecting the gravity of the crime and the need for substantial punishment.

Orders

Orders of the court

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Background

Background to the litigation

The law seeks to protect the anonymity of the child, as it does generally in respect of children involved in criminal proceedings in any capacity: Div 3A of Pt 2 of the Children (Criminal Proceedings) Act 1987. For that reason, the offender is identified only by initials and in these remarks I shall not refer by name to the child’s mother or any other relative of his. Facts I have a comprehensive statement of facts, based largely upon the eyewitness account of the baby’s mother and, as to some background incidents, the observations of her brother. The statement of facts is lengthy, and it is not necessary to set it out in full. The child was killed on the night of 6 November 2007. The offender had been in a relationship with his mother for about 6 months, and they were living in a home unit at Blacktown. However, they had known each other much longer than that. Indeed, the mother had known the offender’s family all her life. The child was not the offender’s; he was the product of an earlier relationship of the mother’s. There is evidence that the offender had been generally affectionate towards the child. However, not only did he cause the baby’s death in a very violent manner, he had also assaulted him on prior occasions. Some explanation for this paradox is to be found in psychiatric material, to which I shall refer later. I shall deal firstly with those earlier incidents. Early in June 2007, the baby was crying while the offender was changing his nappy. The offender said, “Would you lay still, you little cunt”, and slapped him twice across the legs. The mother remonstrated with him, and he promised not to smack the child again. In late July 2007, the offender was teasing the child by putting his bottle near his face and then pulling it away. The mother tried to seize the bottle from the offender but he struck the baby to the back of the head with his open hand, forcing the baby’s head to come into contact with the mother’s mouth. As a result, she suffered a laceration, and teeth marks and a bruise were observed on the back of the child’s head. On 6 August 2007, the offender picked up the baby when he started to cry. He told him to stop crying, then took hold of his shoulders and shook him roughly, causing his head to move back and forth very quickly. On the following day, he was observed again to be holding the baby, who was screaming, and shaking him back and forth. The last, and most significant, of these earlier incidents occurred in the evening of 5 November 2007, that is, the night before the killing. The baby was crying. The offender squeezed him around his neck with both hands and shook him for a significant period of time. He also held him around the throat with one hand, choking him, while he punched him forcefully to the face several times. The mother tried to intervene, but the offender seized her by the hair and pushed her hard enough to propel her over a lounge, causing her to hit her head on a staircase. He then pulled out a knife and threatened to stab her. The child lost consciousness but, fortunately, he was able to revive him. He went upstairs but, when the baby resumed crying, he came back down and again choked him with one hand while he punched him to the face with the other. The manslaughter

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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