Jersey Unreported Judgments

Inferior Number Sentencing - breaches of Exclusion Orders.

[2012]JRC143

Royal Court

(Samedi)

27 July 2012

The Attorney General

-v-

Norberto Francisco Do Nascimento Rocha

Sentencing by the Inferior Number of the Royal Court, on a breach of Exclusion Orders imposed on 6^th January, 2012:-

Age:  22.

Plea: Guilty.

Conclusions:

Breach of Community Service Order:6 months and 1 week's imprisonment, concurrent.

Total: 6 months and 1 week's imprisonment. 

Recommendation for deportation sought.

Sentence and Observations of Court:

Conclusions granted.

Community Service Orders and Exclusion Orders discharged.

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

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

JUDGMENT

THE DEPUTY BAILIFF:

1.        Mr Rocha last year you were sentenced for an affray in which all the victims suffered head and facial cuts.  Some of those cuts were inflicted by a broken bottle wielded by one of your accomplices and the Court said when you came to be sentenced on that occasion:-

"Mr Rocha the Court considers the incident at Charing Cross was really down to you"

and it also referred to the breach of bail for the offending.  You were given community service and you were warned that if you did not perform the community service you would be liable to be brought back and sentenced on the original offences.  You were put on probation for 12 months and were also subject to an 18 month Exclusion Order (AG-v-Rocha [2011] JRC 184). 

2.        You breached the Order and were brought back to this Court in January this year reported at [2012] JRC 010A when the Bailiff said to you:-

"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."

3.        The breach of the Exclusion Order, which is a criminal offence in itself, brings you back to this Court as a result and it is a serious matter for all those reasons.  The Court does not think that a Binding Over Order is appropriate; when you breach an Exclusion Order you must expect a sanction which the Court envisages.  In effect you owe a debt to the community for the offences which you have committed and in a sense you owe a debt to the Court because you have been given a chance despite the bad offending you committed last year and a further chance in January this year.  You had your warning. 

4.        The Court therefore grants the conclusions of the Crown and you are sentenced to 1 month's imprisonment on the breach of the Exclusion Order; on Count 2: 2 months' imprisonment; and on the breach of the Community Service Order: 6 months and 1 week's imprisonment respectively, all those to run concurrently, making a total of 6 months and 1 week's imprisonment. 

5.        The Probation Order is discharged. 

6.        We have also considered the question of deportation.  The test which has to be applied is well established and we apply the case of AG-v-Camacho [2007] JLR 462.  The Court is satisfied that both limbs of the test are met and accordingly we recommend that you be deported when the sentence has been served. 

7.        You are still only 22.  You have got your life ahead of you and it does not have to be like this.  You clearly have a drink problem.  When you come out of prison and you go back to Madeira, you will make a fresh start.  The Court thinks that is the best thing for you and it is for you to tackle that drink problem.  The Court hopes that you do but it is your choice. 

Authorities

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

AG-v-Rocha [2012] JRC 010A.

AG-v-Camacho [2007] JLR 462.