AT MELBOURNE CRIMINAL DIVISION Case No. CR HIS HONOUR CHIEF JUDGE ROZENES. Melbourne REASONS FOR SENTENCE ---

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1 !Und efined Boo kmark, I IN THE COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA Revised (Not) Restricted Suitable for Publication AT MELBOURNE CRIMINAL DIVISION Case No. CR DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS v GREGORY CURRELL --- JUDGE: HIS HONOUR CHIEF JUDGE ROZENES WHERE HELD: Melbourne DATE OF HEARING: 16 April 2013 DATE OF SENTENCE: 19 April 2013 CASE MAY BE CITED AS: DPP v Currell, Gregory MEDIUM NEUTRAL CITATION: [2013] VCC 240 REASONS FOR SENTENCE --- Subject: Catchwords: Legislation Cited: Cases Cited: Sentence: Attempted armed robbery - recklessly cause injury - resist arrest extensive priors serious offending drug addiction loss of mother extra curial punishment mental health issues early plea of guilty - remorse Total Effective Sentence: 2 years and 10 months imprisonment, Non-Parole Period: 22 months imprisonment --- APPEARANCES: Counsel Solicitors For the DPP Ms D Hogan Office of Public Prosecutions For the Accused Ms R Champion Pica Criminal Lawyers COUNTY COURT OF VICTORIA 250 William Street, Melbourne

2 HIS HONOUR: 1 Gregory Currell, you have pleaded guilty to one charge of attempted armed robbery, one charge of recklessly cause injury, and one charge of resist arrest. The maximum penalties for these offences are 20 years imprisonment, 5 years imprisonment and 6 months imprisonment respectively. 2 You have 148 prior convictions arising out of 30 court appearances, dating back to 1978 and broadly involving minor theft and burglary offences, a myriad of driving offences, the use and possession of drugs of dependence, possession of firearms without a licence, and breaches of court orders. Apart from two very early convictions for assault and resist arrest, there have been no convictions for robbery, armed robbery or other acts of violence. Your most recent conviction was in The facts in this case were opened in detail by Ms Hogan and are contained in the summary of prosecution opening, Exhibit A. 4 In brief summary, you approached the victim, who was walking his dog in the evening, armed with a knife and demanded money. There was a struggle, which ended up with the victim being cut across the neck and eventually the victim s wife pushed you off him and you ran away. In addition to the cut to the neck, the victim sustained cuts to his hands, which were sustained in the course of wresting control of the knife from you. Police eventually tracked you to premises nearby in which you were hiding in a shed. You resisted arrest and were subdued by a police dog, as a result of which you suffered extensive injuries to your leg, requiring five to six operations and which would likely leave you with a permanent disability. 5 Exhibit B was a Victim Impact Statement from the complainant, and Exhibit C was a Victim Impact Statement from the complainant s wife. Both statements recount the lasting effects of your offending upon them including the fear they both continue to feel as a result of your actions. Exhibit D was a photo of the 1 SENTENCE

3 injury sustained by the complainant to his neck. 6 At my request, the prosecutor said that the appropriate sentencing range applicable to your case was between 2 years and 6 months and 3 years and 6 months imprisonment as a head sentence, with a non parole period between 18 months and 30 months imprisonment. 7 Ms Champion, who appeared for you, agreed that the summary of prosecution opening constituted the facts upon which you fall to be sentenced. She said that the prosecution range was slightly higher than the sentencing snapshots indicated. 8 Tendered on your behalf was a letter from St Vincent s Quality and Risk Unit - exhibit 1, a letter from Doctors on Broadway dated 10 March 2013 exhibit 2, a psychological report from Mr Bernard Healy exhibit 3 and a Letter from Northern Health dated 15 April 2013 exhibit 4. 9 In terms of your personal background, you had an unremarkable childhood, a satisfactory relationship with your parents, your 3 siblings all live stable and productive lives and you had a happy childhood. You left school early and fell into the wrong crowd and began using drugs. You commenced using cannabis at age 15, heroin at the age of 17 and have struggled with this addiction ever since. You have two children from two relationships, are divorced and have had an intermittent employment history. 10 Ms Champion conceded that your offending was serious and that it was a serious example of armed robbery. She said I should view the commission of this offence in the context of a rather tumultuous past 6 months for you, during which your mother, with whom you lived and who you cared for, progressively was overtaken by lung cancer and died shortly after you were apprehended. 11 It appears that over the past 12 months you had resorted to abusing prescription and non-prescription drugs and had returned to the use of heroin 2 SENTENCE

4 on the night of the offence for the first time in some years, together with Xanex, which you had not previously taken. You were not interviewed by police following your apprehension and accordingly I am in a large part reliant upon what Ms Champion said about the reasons behind this offending. I am prepared to accept that you have an incomplete memory of what occurred on the evening and that there probably was no real need for you to rob anybody. I accept that you were drug affected on the evening and, whilst you may not remember all of the events, you now have sufficient insight into your offending. You have expressed a concern about the effect on the part of the victim and I accept that you are genuinely remorseful for your conduct. 12 Your son gave evidence and confirmed that he was living with you and your mother whilst she was dying. He said that you became depressed and were clearly not coping well. He recounted an episode of approximately 10 days before the offence when he saw you emerging from the side of the house with having slashed your wrists. When asked what you had done you responded I ve tried to kill myself but I can t even get that right. When visiting you in hospital shortly afterwards, you described yourself as a wasted space. Exhibit 5 was a photograph showing your leg injury. As I said, it has required several operations, including at least two failed skin grafts, and I am asked to discount your sentence on the basis of this extra curial punishment. 13 Ms Champion pointed out that you had lasted for you to two years without the use of heroin, that you used for the first time this day for some time and that you had a low IQ. Mr Healey s report said that 96% of the population would perform better than you. She also pointed out that you were acting rather abnormally at the time. The robbery seemed to be spontaneous and you were poorly prepared, if not a little bizarre. You were carrying the knife in one hand and a container of fish and chips in the other. She submitted that you had no pressing need for money and were clearly drug affected. She relied upon the observation of Mr Healey at page 8 of his report where he said that at the time 3 SENTENCE

5 of your offending your capacity to act rationally and to exercise appropriate judgement would have been significantly impaired. She submitted that you were performing at the lower end of the borderline range of intellectual functioning. 14 The basic purposes for which a court may impose a sentence are punishment, deterrence (both specific and general), rehabilitation, denunciation, and protection of the community. In sentencing, I must have regard to a range of matters such as the seriousness of the offence, your culpability for it, your personal circumstances and those of the victim if any. I am required to balance the interests of the community in denouncing criminal conduct with the interests of the community in seeking to ensure that as far as possible offenders are rehabilitated and reintegrated into society. 15 Armed robbery is a very serious offence. It not only deprives persons of their property but puts them in fear of their personal safety. It violates the community s fundamental values. This was a serious example of an attempted armed robbery having regard to the consequences, and I have no doubt it was a terrifying ordeal for the victim. Your conduct was brazen, and could have had fatal consequences for the complainant. I am reasonably satisfied that it was not your intent to cause the victim any harm and it probably is the case that it was his conduct in attempting to disarm you by wrestling you to the ground with him that caused the injury. Nevertheless, this is yet another example of how the production of a weapon during an interpersonal exchange can lead to serious consequences, whether intended or not. 16 Ms Champion submitted that I should treat the three charges substantially as one ongoing event for the purpose of sentencing concurrency. Whilst there is some basis for this with respect to the first two charges, it is clear that the third charge is more remote. 4 SENTENCE

6 17 I am somewhat concerned about your prospects of rehabilitation Mr Currelll. You have a long history of drug use which appears unresolved together with an ongoing need for regular psychiatric treatment as stated by Dr Perera, I hope that upon your release you are able to find a supportive and stable environment which in the absence of your mother may be quite a challenge. 18 I take into account that you have pleaded guilty and done so at the earliest possible opportunity. You plea has utilitarian benefit as well as demonstrating an immediate recognition of your wrong doing and an acceptance of responsibility. I accept that you are genuinely remorseful. 19 I do propose to moderate your sentence by taking into account your somewhat compromised mental state and intellectual functioning at the time of offending. 20 Please stand Mr Currell. You are convicted and sentenced as follows: On charge 1 of Attempted Armed Robbery to 2 years and 6 months imprisonment; On charge 2 of Recklessly Cause Injury to 9 months imprisonment; and On the related summary charge of Resist Arrest to 1 month imprisonment. 21 I direct that 3 months of the sentence imposed on charge 2 and the whole of the sentence imposed on charge 3 be served cumulatively upon the sentence imposed on charge 1, making a total effective sentence of 2 years and 10 months imprisonment. I direct that you served a minimum of 22 months imprisonment before being eligible for parole. 22 I declare that 201 days of pre-sentence detention be reckoned as having been served under the sentence and I direct that a declaration to that effect be recorded in the records of the court. 23 Section 6AAA of the Sentencing Act requires me to state the total effective 5 SENTENCE

7 sentence and the non parole period that I would have imposed had you pleaded not guilty and been convicted. Had you been convicted after a trial, I would have sentenced you to 4 years and 6 months imprisonment with a non parole period of 3 years imprisonment. 24 I have made the forfeiture and disposal orders by consent. I make an order pursuant to s.464zf of the Crimes Act I do so because of the seriousness of the circumstance of the offending, and because the application is by consent. 25 I am obliged to inform you Mr Currell though that notwithstanding your consent you do not ultimately co-operate in the taking of a sample, reasonable force may be used. Do you understand that? 26 OFFENDER: Yes. 6 SENTENCE