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R v Ellery

R v Ellery

Case [2022] NZHC 2251 5 September 2022

Sentencing

Aggravating & Mitigating Factors

Minimum Period of Imprisonment (MPI)

Personal Circumstances

Rehabilitation

Guilty Plea

Time Spent on Electronic Monitoring Bail

Criminal Law

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF NEW ZEALAND CHRISTCHURCH REGISTRY

I TE KŌTI MATUA O AOTEAROA ŌTAUTAHI ROHE

CRI-2019-009-10349

[2022] NZHC 2251

THE QUEEN

v

THOMAS ISSIAH ELLERY SARAH ELIZABETH BARRY

Hearing: 5 September 2022

Appearances:

B Hawes and A L Mills for Crown

K J Beaton QC and A L Hollingworth for Defendant Thomas Ellery

R G Glover and A C Kelland for Defendant Barry N Rout and M Rout for Interested Party

Judgment:

5 September 2022

SENTENCING REMARKS OF EATON J

Introduction

[1]Mr Ellery and Ms Barry, you may remain seated until I ask you to stand.

[2] Thomas Issiah Ellery you have pleaded guilty to a charge of murdering Jared Little on 20 October 2019.

[3] Sarah Elizabeth Barry, you have pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of Mr Little.

R v ELLERY [2022] NZHC 2251 [5 September 2022]

Facts

[4] Although you both will be very familiar with the facts, as will Mr Little’s family, it is important that I address those facts in this public forum. I adopt the facts as they were set out at the sentence indication.

[5] Mr Ellery and Ms Barry commenced a relationship in August 2019. Mr Little was an ex-partner of Ms Barry. Mr Ellery did not know Mr Little at all. During October 2019, Mr Little had attempted to rekindle his relationship with Ms Barry but she had resisted his advances.

[6] On 7 October 2019, a brick was thrown through the bedroom window at Ms Barry’s address and the windows of a van belonging to Mr Ellery were also smashed. Ms Barry and Mr Ellery believed that Mr Little was responsible for those acts. They sought to locate him to obtain retribution. Ms Barry contacted associates in an effort to find Mr Little and, on 10 October, they visited a house where he was believed to be. On that occasion, Mr Little hid and Mr Ellery and Ms Barry left shortly after. On 12 October, Ms Barry’s mother sent a Facebook message advising where Mr Little could be located and stated “… he needs a beating … [f]or yr window”.

[7] On 20 October, Ms Barry texted her mother asking: “is Jared still living with Steve”, to which she responded “[y]es definitely” and then said “[g]o ad get him at his house”. About 7 pm that same day, Ms Barry and Mr Ellery travelled to the nominated address where Mr Little was staying. They parked their vehicle on the street and walked up the driveway to Mr Little’s flat. Mr Little and his flatmate were present. Ms Barry started banging on the door, yelling out to Mr Little to: “Wake up you bastard”. She called out “We’re going to get you anyway”. Mr Little, seeing Mr Ellery and Ms Barry, became fearful and told his flatmate to hide in the bedroom.

[8] The details of what then occurred at the address are not entirely clear. It is accepted that Mr Little threw something through a window and then went…

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 Ellery

Details

AGLC: R v Ellery [2022] NZHC 2251
Case: [2022] NZHC 2251
Decision Date: 5 September 2022

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case of R v Ellery involved Thomas Issiah Ellery, who pleaded guilty to the murder of Jared Little, and Sarah Elizabeth Barry, who pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of Mr Little. The facts of the case involved the defendants seeking retribution against Mr Little, culminating in an altercation where Mr Ellery stabbed Mr Little multiple times, leading to his death. The High Court of New Zealand, Christchurch Registry, presided over the sentencing of the defendants.

The legal issues included determining the appropriate minimum period of imprisonment (MPI) for Mr Ellery's murder conviction and the starting point for Ms Barry's manslaughter sentence. The court had to balance the purposes of denunciation, deterrence, and protection of the public against the personal circumstances of the defendants, including their backgrounds and prospects for rehabilitation.

The court sentenced Mr Ellery to life imprisonment with an MPI of 11 years, taking into account aggravating factors such as the use of serious violence and premeditation, as well as mitigating factors like his guilty plea and personal history of trauma and abuse. Ms Barry was sentenced to seven months of home detention, reduced from an initial 24 months due to personal circumstances and the time already spent on bail. The court considered her guilty plea, efforts towards rehabilitation, and the impact of incarceration on her children.

The final orders included the sentencing of Mr Ellery to life imprisonment with an MPI of 11 years and Ms Barry to seven months of home detention. The court also reserved the issue of revoking the strike warning given to the defendants under the repealed Three Strikes law for a later date.

Orders