R v SRH - [2019] NZHC 2893

ORDER PROHIBITING PUBLICATION OF NAME, ADDRESS,

OCCUPATION OR IDENTIFYING PARTICULARS OF DEFENDANT PURSUANT TO S 200 CRIMINAL PROCEDURE ACT 2011. SEE

IN THE HIGH COURT OF NEW ZEALAND WHANGAREI REGISTRY

I TE KŌTI MATUA O AOTEAROA WHANGĀREI-TERENGA-PARĀOA ROHE

CRI-2018-029-1118

[2019] NZHC 2893

THE QUEEN

v

SRH

Hearing: 6 November 2019

Appearances:

M B Smith for Crown

A M Dooney for Defendant

Judgment:

6 November 2019

SENTENCING REMARKS OF LANG J

R v SRH [2019] NZHC 2893 [6 November 2019]

[1] Mr H, you appear for sentence today having pleaded guilty to 49 charges alleging sexual offending against more than 11 separate victims. The charges to which you have pleaded guilty are:

(a)1 representative charge of sexual violation by rape;1

(b)6 charges of sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection;2

(c)10 charges, including two representative charges, of committing indecencies on a young person under 16;3

(d)8 charges of making an intimate visual recording;4

(e)13 charges, including 4 representative charges, of doing an indecent act on a child under 12 years of age;5

(f)1 representative charge of committing an indecent act in a public place;6

(g)10 charges, including 8 representative charges, of indecently assaulting a child under 12 years of age.7

[2] The maximum penalty for the two charges of sexual violation is 20 years imprisonment. The maximum penalties on the remaining charges range from two to 14 years imprisonment.

[3] I am required to sentence you on the basis of a summary of facts with which you agree. This sets out the offending against individual victims in some detail. It runs to some 29 pages and for that reason I will not be referring in detail to the offending against each victim. However, I hope that the summary I give will provide an indication of the nature and scale of your offending.

1      Crimes Act 1961, ss 128 and 128B. Maximum penalty 20 years imprisonment.
2      Crimes Act 1961, ss 128 and 128B. Maximum penalty 20 years imprisonment.
3      Crimes Act 1961, s 134(3). Maximum penalty 10 years imprisonment.
4      Crimes Act 1961, s 216H. Maximum penalty 3 years imprisonment.
5      Crimes Act 1961, s 132. Maximum penalty 14 years imprisonment.
6      Crimes Act 1961, s 125. Maximum penalty 2 years imprisonment.
7      Crimes Act 1961, s 133(1)(a). Maximum penalty 10 years imprisonment.

Factual background

Offending against L

[4] I begin, because it is the oldest in time, with the offending against L, who is your 31 year old niece. You face two charges, including one representative charge, of indecent assault on a child under 12 years of age in relation to this offending, which occurred between October 1994 and December 1996 when L was aged between 7 and 11 years.

[5] You would play with L when she came over to your house and would use the opportunity to touch L’s buttocks and vagina over her swimsuit. On one occasion when she was sitting on your lap you lifted her up and down on your erect penis. Her back made direct…

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 SRH

Details

AGLC: R v SRH [2019] NZHC 2893
Case: [2019] NZHC 2893
Decision Date: 6 November 2019

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case of R v SRH took place in the High Court of New Zealand, Whangarei Registry. The defendant, SRH, pleaded guilty to a total of 49 charges related to sexual offending against multiple victims, including family members and friends. The charges included sexual violation by rape, sexual violation by unlawful sexual connection, committing indecencies on a young person under 16, making an intimate visual recording, and indecent acts on children under 12 years of age. The court was required to decide on the appropriate sentence for SRH, considering both finite sentences of imprisonment and the alternative of preventive detention. The court found numerous aggravating factors, including the scale and variety of the offending, breach of trust, vulnerability of the victims, and the harm caused. Based on expert reports, the court assessed SRH to be at high risk of reoffending in the future. Ultimately, the court decided to impose a sentence of preventive detention to ensure the safety of the community, with a minimum term of six years before SRH becomes eligible to apply for parole.

The court's sentencing remarks highlighted the extensive and continuous nature of SRH's offending, which began in 1994 and continued until 2018. The victims were mostly young girls who were either members of SRH's household or guests within his home, as well as SRH's wife. The court found that SRH had established a pattern of serious sexual offending and that the harm caused by his actions extended beyond the immediate victims to their families and the broader community. The court also considered expert reports on SRH's risk of reoffending and his willingness to engage in treatment. While acknowledging SRH's current motivation to participate in therapeutic intervention, the court determined that a sentence of preventive detention was necessary to ensure the safety of the community upon SRH's release from prison.

Orders