Jersey Unreported Judgments

[2009]JRC062

ROYAL COURT

(Samedi Division)

6^th April 2009

The Attorney General

-v-

Carli White

Sentencing by the Superior Number of the Royal Court, to which the accused was remanded by the Inferior Number on 16th January, 2009, following a guilty plea to the following charge:

Age:  33.

Plea: Guilty.

Details of Offence:

Defendant imported 136.09 grams heroin internally at airport.  Treated by Crown as "mule".  Aggravating factors, 8 weeks pregnant and accompanied by four year old daughter, bad criminal record.

Details of Mitigation:

Co-operation, early plea, appalling and deprived social background (mother and father addicts, defendant habitual drug user at 14 and became addicted to heroin), short of money, single mother of three children and did importation for financial gain - she thought between £500 and £1,000.  Remorse, using time constructively at HMP undertaking various training courses.

Previous Convictions:

20 previous convictions for 41 offences, including 2 drug offences.

Conclusions:

Forfeiture and destruction of drugs sought

Confiscation order in the sum of £80 sought.

Sentence and Observations of Court:

Conclusions granted

S. Sharpe, Crown Advocate.

Advocate C. R. Baglin for the Defendant.

JUDGMENT

THE commissioner:

1.        Carli White was eight weeks pregnant when she arrived at Jersey Airport on a flight from Gatwick.  She was accompanied by her four year old daughter and a seventeen year old youth.  She was found to have heroin in four packages carried internally and the imported heroin would have had a value in Jersey of £136,090. 

2.        She has twenty previous convictions for 41 offences which include two drug offences in 1999 for which she received a 12 month probation order.  She has been a serious drug user and has not apparently worked for five years.

3.        The Rimmer guidelines give a starting point of 10 to 13 years for importation of between 100 and 250 grams of heroin but she is a mule and not a drugs baron.  Mr Gafoor in his report says:-

"while I am unable to make any treatment recommendations in respect of this case, the Court may wish to take into account this defendant's dire background, emotional vulnerability and her efforts of staying clean in prison".  

The Crown, despite the statements in Rimmer about being caught in flagrante delicto have still given a full credit of one-third for her guilty plea and which we find extraordinary.  The Crown has taken into account all the reports and the fact that she is responsible for three children.   She had an appalling upbringing with parents who were also drug abusers which, according to Advocate Baglin, led inevitably to this offence.  But she has, according to her Advocate, a much brighter future and we are encouraged by the progress she has already made in prison.

4.        We are going to sentence you in the light of the guidelines and in the light of all the powers, all the papers before the Court and despite the fact of the case of AG-v-Sweeney [2003] JRC 122 which was shown to us by Advocate Baglin we are not prepared to alter the calculations, the conclusions of the Crown.

5.        Taking all matters into account, in light of all the mitigation we are going to sentence you to 5 years' imprisonment.

6.        We order the forfeiture and destruction of the drugs.

Authorities

Rimmer, Lusk and Bade-v-AG [2001] JLR 373.

AG-v-Sweeney [2003] JRC 122.