Regina v Stevens - [2008] NSWSC 1370

CITATION: REGINA v STEVENS [2008] NSWSC 1370

HEARING DATE(S): Tuesday 7 October 2008, Friday 5 December 2008

JUDGMENT DATE :
18 December 2008

JURISDICTION: Criminal

JUDGMENT OF: Hall J at 1

DECISION: I sentence the offender to a term of imprisonment with a non-parole period of six years and seven months to commence on 24 February 2007 and to expire on 23 September 2013 and to a balance of term of two year and two months to commence on 24 September 2013 and to expire on 23 November 2015. The earliest date upon which the offender will become eligible for release on parole will be 23 September 2013.

CATCHWORDS: CRIMINAL LAW – SENTENCING – manslaughter by reason of provocation – sentencing after plea of guilty with discount of 20 per cent – domestic relationship between offender and deceased – assessment of gravity of offence – reasonably low level of provocation in the form of deceased’s drug abuse and neglect of parental duties and admissions of infidelity by deceased – extremely high level of violence inflicted – offender under the influence of excessive amount of prescribed medication on day of offence – limited evidence of prospects of rehabilitation

LEGISLATION CITED: Crimes Act 1900
Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999

CATEGORY: Principal judgment

CASES CITED: Regina v Alexander (1994) 78 A Crim R 141
Regina v Blacklidge (NSW Court of Criminal Appeal, unreported 12 December 1995)
Regina v Dodd (1991) 57 A Crim R 349
Regina v Fernando (1997) 95 A Crim R 533
Regina v Henry (1999) 46 NSWLR 446 at 381
Regina v Hill (1981) 3 A Crim R 397
Regina v KMB [2005] NSWCCA 185
Regina v Previtera (1997) 94 A Crim R 76 at 86
Regina v Spiero (1979) 22 SASR 543
Regina v Thomson & Houlton [2000] NSWCCA 309
Regina v Wickham [2004] NSWCCA 193
Regina v Williams [2005] NSWCCA 99
Veen v The Queen (No 2) (1988) 164 CLR 465

PARTIES: REGINA v
STEVENS, Bradley James

FILE NUMBER(S): SC 2007/4190

COUNSEL: C: C McPherson
O: R Jankowski

SOLICITORS: C: S Kavanagh
O: Ford Criminal Lawyers

IN THE SUPREME COURT
OF NEW SOUTH WALES
COMMON LAW DIVISION
CRIMINAL LIST

HALL J

THURSDAY 18 DECEMBER 2008

2007/4190

REGINA v BRADLEY JAMES STEVENS

SENTENCE

1 HIS HONOUR: The offender, Bradley James Stevens, was originally charged in relation to the death of the deceased, Katrina Ann McMahon, with the following offences:-

(1) Murder pursuant to s.18(1)(a), Crimes Act 1900.

(2) Maliciously inflict grievance bodily harm pursuant to s.33, Crimes Act 1900.

Crimes Act

2 He was arrested on 24 February 2007 and has been in custody since that date.

3 On 4 September 2007, he was committed for trial on the charge of murder.

4 On 2 November 2007, the Director of Public Prosecutions presented an indictment charging the offender with the murder of Katrina Ann McMahon.

5 On 7 October 2008 at Lismore, on the first day proceedings were…

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 Stevens

Details

AGLC: Regina v Stevens [2008] NSWSC 1370
Case: [2008] NSWSC 1370
Decision Date: 18 December 2008

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case of Regina v Stevens involved the sentencing of the defendant, Stevens, who pleaded guilty to manslaughter by reason of provocation. The incident occurred in a domestic relationship between the defendant and the deceased. The court was tasked with determining an appropriate sentence for Stevens, considering the plea discount of 20 per cent, the nature of the relationship, the gravity of the offence, and the circumstances surrounding the incident.

The central legal issues before the court were the appropriate level of discount for the guilty plea, the impact of the relationship dynamics on the sentencing, and the degree of provocation and violence. The court had to balance the mitigating factor of the defendant's intoxication from prescribed medication against the aggravating factor of the high level of violence inflicted on the deceased. Additionally, the court needed to assess the level of provocation, which included the deceased's drug abuse, neglect of parental duties, and admissions of infidelity.

The court considered the relatively low level of provocation, juxtaposed with the extremely high level of violence. The defendant was under the influence of an excessive amount of prescribed medication on the day of the offence, which was a mitigating factor. However, the court also took into account the limited evidence of the defendant's prospects for rehabilitation. After careful deliberation, the court determined the appropriate sentence, which balanced the mitigating and aggravating factors, ultimately resulting in a sentence that reflected the severity of the crime and the circumstances of the case. The court's decision and the final orders were communicated in the judgement, providing clarity on the sentencing outcome.

Orders