Jersey Unreported Judgments

Inferior Number - breach of community service order.

[2012]JRC010A

Royal Court

(Samedi)

6 January 2012

The Attorney General

-v-

Noberto Francisco Do Nascimento Rocha

Sentencing by the Inferior Number of the Royal Court on a breach of a Community Service Order imposed on 23^rd September, 2011, on the following charges:

First Indictment

Second Indictment

Age:  22.

Plea: Guilty.

Conclusions:

Breach of Community Service Order: 7½ months' imprisonment sought.

Recommendation for deportation sought.

Sentence and Observations of Court:

Breach of Community Service Order: Additional 50 hours' Community Service Order imposed, (equivalent to 1 month's imprisonment). 

No recommendation for deportation made. 

C. M. M. Yates, Esq., Crown Advocate.

Advocate J. W. R. Bell for the Defendant.

JUDGMENT

THE BAILIFF:

1.        You were very lucky on the last occasion not to be sent to prison for what were serious offences.  The Jurats were divided; one of them felt that you should go to prison; the other felt that community service would be adequate.  It was only the casting vote of the Deputy Bailiff which meant that you did not have to go to prison.  So that shows how close it was.  You were given a chance and the Court made that clear in its judgment.  Now you have breached the Community Service Order by failing to turn up on two occasions.  Your excuse that you were relying on someone else to wake you up is pathetic, and is no excuse at all.  You are old enough to wake yourself up.  You have only completed 25 hours as a result. 

2.        Normally, when a person fails to carry out community service and they are brought back to the Court, the Court sends them to prison.  You have come very close to that, but we have just been persuaded to give you a last chance, and the only reason for that is that you have been doing very well on your Probation Order and we want to encourage you to continue that progress.  But you must be punished for your failure, so we are going to vary the Community Service Order by imposing an additional 50 hours, which we say is the equivalent of 1 month's imprisonment. 

3.        Now I want to emphasise to you as strongly as I can that this is your last chance.  If you do not carry out the community service exactly as directed, or if you do not do everything the probation officer tells you to do, or if you re-offend, then you will be brought back here and it seems to this Court inevitable that you would then be sent to prison, and it is highly likely that the Court would re-consider recommending your deportation.  So if you want to avoid those two things you must fulfil this Order to the letter. 

Authorities

AG-v-Da Silva Rocha Correia and Franco [2011] JRC 184.

Camacho-v-AG [2007] JLR 462.