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VELS Level 6 Armed Robbery

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VELS Level 6. Armed Robbery. 1. What is sentencing?. What laws guide a judge when sentencing?. Photo: John French / Courtesy of The Age. Chief Justice Marilyn Warren of the Supreme Court of Victoria. Who is responsible for sentencing?. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Page 1: Armed Robbery

VELS Level 6

Armed Robbery

Page 2: Armed Robbery

2 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

1. What is sentencing?

What laws guidea judge when sentencing?

Pho

to: J

ohn

Fre

nch

/ Cou

rtes

y of

The

Age

Chief Justice Marilyn Warren of the Supreme Court of Victoria

Page 3: Armed Robbery

3 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

Who is responsible for sentencing?

In Australia, responsibility for sentencing is spread between

three groups

Parliament ~ makes the laws ~

Government~ puts laws into operation ~

Courts ~ interpret the laws ~

Creates offences and decides what the maximum penalties will be

Makes the rules the courts must apply to cases

Sets up punishments for judges and magistrates to use

Apply the law within the framework set up by parliament

Set specific sentences for individual offenders

Correctional authorities (e.g. prisons) – control offenders after sentencing

Adult Parole Board – supervises offenders who are on parole

Page 4: Armed Robbery

4 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

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, e.g.:

–Crimes Act 1958 deals with a range of crimes including injury offences

–Road Safety Act 1986 deals with offences related to driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Page 5: Armed Robbery

5 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

Types of sentences

imprisonment

drug treatment order

suspended sentence

community correction order

fine

adjourned undertaking

Most severe

Least severe

Page 6: Armed Robbery

6 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

2. Sentencing theory

What must a judge consider when deciding what sentence to impose?

Source: Victorian Sentencing Manual, Judicial College of Victoria

Page 7: Armed Robbery

7 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

Purposes of sentencing

These are the ONLY purposes for which sentences can be given

Sentencing Act 1991, s 5(1)

PURPOSES OF SENTENCING

Community protection Deterrence

RehabilitationDenunciation

Fair punishment

Page 8: Armed Robbery

8 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

Principle of parsimony

Judges should choosethe most straightforwardsolution when sentencing

Parsimony~ taking extreme care in using resources ~

If a choice of punishmentexists a 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

Sentencing Act 1991, ss 5(3), 5(4), 5(5), 5(6), 5(7)

Page 9: Armed Robbery

9 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

Factors that must be considered

Sentencing Act 1991, s 5(2AC(2))

Maximum penalty& current sentencing

practice

Type of offence& how serious

Offender’sdegree of

responsibility& culpability

VictimAggravating or

mitigatingfactors

Relevant Actsof Parliament& statistical

data

Factors making the crime worse, intention, effects, method, motive,

weapons,role the offender

played

Prior offences,age, gender,race, culture,

character, mentalstate, alcohol,

drugs, gambling,personal crisis,

guilty plea

Impact of crimeon victim (e.g.psychological

or physicaltrauma), materialor financial loss

Factors thatincrease orlessen the

seriousnessof the crime

Victim impactstatement

Factors that must be considered when sentencing

Page 10: Armed Robbery

10 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

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

Page 11: Armed Robbery

11 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

How long is a sentence?

• Cumulative sentences are sentences for two or more crimes that run one after the other, e.g. 2 x 5-year prison sentences served cumulatively = 10 years in prison

• Concurrent sentences are sentences for two or more crimes that run at the same time, e.g. 2 x 5-year prison sentences served concurrently = 5 years in prison

• The head sentence is the sentence given for each crime before a non-parole period is set

• The total effective sentence (TES) is the total sentence for all crimes once they have been made cumulative or concurrent

Page 12: Armed Robbery

12 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

Non-parole period

Non-parole period:• is set by the court

• is the part of the sentence the offender must serve in prison before being eligible for parole

• must be fixed for sentences of 2 years or more

• may be fixed for sentences of 1–2 years

• is not given if the sentence is less than 1 year

Parole is the release of a prisoner before the end of a sentence, subject to certain conditions (e.g. regular reporting to parole officer), to help him or her settle back into the community

Page 13: Armed Robbery

13 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

3. The crime and the time

What isarmed robbery?

What is themaximum penalty?

Page 14: Armed Robbery

14 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

Armed robbery

Maximum penalty

• 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 and is liable to Level 2 imprisonment (25 years maximum) and/or a fine of 3000 penalty units.

Crimes Act 1958, s 75A(1) and (2)

Page 15: Armed Robbery

15 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

Armed robbery people sentenced

147 133 133 166 153

195182

169

209

188

0

70

140

210

2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11

Nu

mb

er o

f p

eop

le

People sentenced Immediate custodial sentence

Page 16: Armed Robbery

16 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

Armed robbery sentence types

122 109 111134 127

2129 22

3525

1713

15

20

22

0

70

140

210

2006-07 2007-08 2008-09 2009-10 2010-11

Nu

mb

er o

f p

eop

le

Imprisonment Wholly/partially suspended Community-based orderYouth justice centre order Other

Page 17: Armed Robbery

17 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

Imprisonment by age & gender

286

188

9583

10 1119 13 11

3

140

84

0

100

200

300

18-19 20-24 25-29 30-34 35-39 40+

Age (years)

Nu

mb

er o

f p

eop

le

Male Female

Page 18: Armed Robbery

18 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

Total effective sentence & non-parole period

9

32

88

29

99

49

8

71

18

17

47

7

18

35 11

15 6

4

<1

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Total effective sentence (years)

No

n-p

aro

le p

erio

d (

year

s)

Page 19: Armed Robbery

19 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

4. The case

What are the facts of this case?

Page 20: Armed Robbery

20 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

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

• The maximum penalty for armed robbery is 25 years’ imprisonment

Page 21: Armed Robbery

21 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

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

Page 22: Armed Robbery

22 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

The crime 2

• Bradley ran down a laneway near the store where he hid the knife behind a wall

• He then 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 and charged

Page 23: Armed Robbery

23 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

Factors for consideration

• Bradley was 18 when he committed the offence

• He pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity

• He has 4 prior juvenile convictions for theft, driving offences and cannabis possession

• Bradley had an unstable home life as his parents separated when he was 5

• He is a regular cannabis user, a habit he started at age 11

• He left school after Year 11 and worked briefly as an apprentice bricklayer, but is now unemployed

Page 24: Armed Robbery

24 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

5. The sentence

What sentence would you give?

Photo: Department of Justice

Page 25: Armed Robbery

25 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

You decide …

What sentence would you give?• If imprisonment, what would be the head sentence

and 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?

Page 26: Armed Robbery

26 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

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 3000 penalty units

Crimes Act 1958, s 75A(1) and (2)

Bradley Flint, guilty of one count of armed robbery could receive:

• possible maximum imprisonment of 25 years

• possible maximum fine of 3000 penalty units

Page 27: Armed Robbery

27 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

What the judge decided

Bradley Flint’s case, County Court

• 2 year 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

Page 28: Armed Robbery

28 Sentencing Advisory Council, 2012

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