Transcript You be the Judge VELS Armed Robbery Slides

Armed robbery
Case study for VELS
1. What is sentencing?
Photo: John French / Courtesy of The Age
What laws guide
a judge when
sentencing?
Chief Justice Marilyn Warren of the
Supreme Court of Victoria
Sentencing Advisory Council, 2015
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Who is responsible for sentencing?
In Australia, responsibility for
sentencing is spread among
three groups
Parliament
~ makes the laws ~
 Creates offences and
decides what the maximum
penalties will be
 Makes the rules that the
courts must apply to cases
 Sets up punishments for
judges and magistrates to
use
Courts
~ interpret the laws ~
 Apply the law within the
framework set up by
parliament
 Set specific sentences for
individual offenders
Government
~ puts laws into operation ~
 Correctional authorities
(e.g. prisons) – control
offenders after sentencing
 Adult Parole Board –
supervises offenders who
are on parole
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Where is sentencing law found?
• Sentencing Act 1991
• Children, Youth and Families Act 2005
• Common law – previous court judgments
• Various Acts and Regulations creating particular
offences, for example:
– Crimes Act 1958 deals with a range of crimes,
including injury offences
– Road Safety Act 1986 deals with a range of driving
offences, including drink driving and drug driving
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Types of sentences
Most severe
 Imprisonment
 Drug treatment order
 Community correction order
 Fine
 Adjourned undertaking
Least severe
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2. Sentencing theory
What must a
judge consider
when deciding
what sentence
to impose?
Source: Victorian Sentencing Manual, Judicial College of Victoria
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Purposes of sentencing
These are the ONLY
purposes for which
sentences can be given
Just
punishment
Community
protection
Deterrence
PURPOSES OF
SENTENCING
Denunciation
Sentencing Act 1991 s 5(1)
Rehabilitation
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Principle of parsimony
Parsimony
~ extreme care when imposing punishment ~
Where a choice of punishment exists,
the judge should take care to choose
the least severe option that will achieve
the purposes of sentencing
Example - If there is a choice between imposing a fine
or a community correction order, a fine should be imposed
provided it meets the purposes of sentencing
Sentencing Act 1991 ss 5(3)(7)
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Factors that must be considered
Factors that must be considered
when sentencing
Maximum penalty
& current
sentencing
practices
Type of offence
& how serious
Circumstances
of the offender
Victim
Aggravating or
mitigating
factors
Relevant Acts
of Parliament
& previous
court decisions
Factors making
the crime worse,
intention, effects,
method, motive,
weapons,
role the offender
played
Prior offences,
age, character,
& mental state.
Alcohol, drug, or
gambling addiction.
Personal crisis,
guilty plea
Impact of crime
on victim (e.g.
psychological
or physical
trauma), material
or financial loss
Factors that
increase or
lessen the
seriousness
of the crime
Victim Impact
Statement
Sentencing Act 1991 s 5(2)
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Victim Impact Statements
• If a court finds a person guilty, a victim of the offence
may make a Victim Impact Statement (VIS)
• A VIS contains details of any injury, loss, or damage
suffered by the victim as a direct result of the
offence
• A person who has made a VIS can request that it be
read aloud during the sentencing hearing
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How long is a sentence?
• Cumulative  sentences for two or more crimes that
run one after the other, e.g. two x five-year prison
sentences served cumulatively = 10 years in prison
• Concurrent  sentences for two or more crimes that
run at the same time, e.g. two x five-year prison
sentences served concurrently = five years in prison
• The total effective sentence (TES) (or head
sentence)  the total imprisonment sentence for all
offences within a case, after orders making sentences
cumulative or concurrent
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Non-parole period
Parole is the prisoner’s release from prison before the end of
his or her total possible prison sentence, subject to conditions
(e.g. regular reporting to a parole officer)
A non-parole period:
• is set by the court
• is the part of the sentence that must be served in prison
• must be set by the court for sentences of two years or
more
• may or may not be set for sentences of one to two years
• is not set if the sentence is less than one year
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3. The crime and the time
What is
armed robbery?
What is the
maximum penalty?
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Armed robbery
A person is guilty of armed robbery if he or she
commits any robbery and at the time has with him or
her a firearm, imitation firearm, offensive weapon,
explosive, or imitation explosive. A person guilty of
armed robbery is guilty of an indictable offence
Maximum penalty
The maximum penalty for armed robbery is Level 2
imprisonment (maximum 25 years’ imprisonment)
and/or a fine of 3,000 penalty units
Crimes Act 1958 s 75A(1)(2)
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Armed robbery  people sentenced
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Armed robbery  sentence types
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Age & gender of people sentenced
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Total effective sentence & non-parole period
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4. The case
What are the facts
of this case?
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The offender
• Bradley Flint is 19 years old
• He was 18 at the time of the offence
• He has been found guilty of one count of
armed robbery
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The crime 1
• Bradley went into his local milkbar, took a can of soft
drink from the fridge, and went to the counter
• He took a knife from his pocket, pointed it at the
female shopkeeper, and said, ‘Money, quickly!’
• The shopkeeper took a $10 note from the cash
register
• Bradley grabbed the $10 and ran from the store with
the can of soft drink
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The crime 2
• Bradley ran down a laneway near the store
• He hid the knife behind a wall
• He caught a bus home, using the $10 note to buy
his bus ticket
• He was arrested soon after and taken to the local
police station
• At the police station, he was charged with armed
robbery
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Factors for consideration
• Bradley was 18 when he committed the offence
• He pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity
• He has four prior juvenile convictions for theft,
driving offences, and cannabis possession
• Bradley had an unstable home life. His parents
separated when he was five years old
• He is a regular cannabis user, a habit he started
when he was 11 years old
• He left school after Year 11 and worked briefly as an
apprentice bricklayer. He is now unemployed
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5. The sentence
What sentence
would you give?
Photo: Department of Justice & Regulation
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You decide …
What sentence would you give?
• If imprisonment, what would be the total effective
sentence and the non-parole period?
• If a community correction order, what would be the
length of the order?
• If a fine, what would be the amount of the fine?
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The maximum penalty
Armed robbery
• A person found guilty of
armed robbery is liable to
Level 2 imprisonment
and/or fine
• Maximum 25 years and/or
3,000 penalty units
Crimes Act 1958 s 75A(1)(2)
Bradley Flint is guilty of one
count of armed robbery and
could receive:
• possible maximum
imprisonment of 25
years
• possible maximum fine
of 3,000 penalty units
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What the judge decided
Bradley Flint’s case, County Court
• Two years community correction order
• Conditions
– report to a community corrections worker for supervision
– attend treatment for alcohol and drug addiction
– complete 100 hours of unpaid community work
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6. Conclusion
Effective sentencing achieves a
balance between the interests of
society, the concerns of the
victim, and the best interests of
the offender
The more information society
has about crimes and the people
involved in them, the more
reasonable it is in its demands
about sentencing
Photo: Department of Justice & Regulation
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