Jersey Unreported Judgments

Inferior Number Sentencing - common assault.

[2015]JRC040

Royal Court

(Samedi)

20 February 2015

The Attorney General

-v-

Tamara Nadine Dubois

Sentencing by the Inferior Number of the Royal Court, following a guilty plea to the following charge:

Age:  25.

Plea: Guilty.

Details of Offence:

On the 28^th April, 2014, the victim was standing outside the Mayfair Hotel.  She saw the defendant coming across the road from outside the flats opposite.  The defendant was wearing her nightgown and Ugg boots.  The defendant ran towards the victim and struck her to the face with her arm.  As a result of this strike the victim fell to the floor, and suspects that she was knocked unconscious.  She has no memory after the assault until re-entering the Mayfair Hotel some minutes later. 

The attack was unprovoked and there was no apparent motive.  The defendant had no connection with the victim t.  Upon arrest the defendant was described as being heavily intoxicated. 

The defendant was interviewed on 28^th April, 2014.  During interview the defendant was uncooperative and made no admissions. 

Details of Mitigation:

Guilty plea and mother of two young children. 

Previous Convictions:

The defendant has three previous convictions comprising seven offences, including one offence of being disorderly on licenced premises.  She also has a Parish Hall caution for causing a breach of the peace by fighting. 

Conclusions:

Sentence and Observations of Court:

The Court took into account that the defendant cared for two young children in reducing the conclusions of the Crown. 

The defendant was warned that she must comply with the Orders absolutely, if she breached in any way it would be likely that Probation would bring the matter back before the Royal Court when a custodial sentence was highly probable. 

R. C. P. Pedley, Esq., Crown Advocate.

Advocate M. J. Haines for the Defendant.

JUDGMENT

THE commissioner:

1.        You have pleaded guilty to assault on the basis that you were rushing to help your brother who was involved in a fight and in the course of doing so you struck the female victim in this case with your arm; she fell to the ground and either as a result of being struck or the fall, she suffered bruising. 

2.        The Crown has moved for a sentence of 120 hours' Community Service Order which is equivalent to 6 months' imprisonment.  They have also asked for a 12 month Probation Order.  Now we have had the benefit of oral evidence from the Chief Probation Officer and we have also heard from your Advocate and had the benefit of his submissions.  We are keen that you should not be set up to fail in this matter and so we are going to adjust the conclusions to take account of the fact that you look after two young children. 

3.        Now we were not impressed with the fact that you failed to turn up for the probation reports.  I do not need to hear why from you now, but we are not impressed.  You should have and you must realise that the order we are going to make has to be obeyed.  So we are going to impose community service of 90 hours, which is equivalent to 3 months' imprisonment and we are also going to place you on probation for 12 months. 

4.        Now you must comply with those orders absolutely.  In connection with probation, they are there to help you but you must do what they say; so when they fix a meeting you must turn up on the dot for that meeting, and comply with anything they ask you to do, which for all I know may involve alcohol and drug or other courses you have to attend.  Similarly with community service, you will be told what time you have to turn up; you must be there on the dot and you must work hard whilst it is taking place and, of course, on both of these you must not reoffend.  But I just want to make it absolutely clear that, particularly given the way you have failed to turn up for the report, if you breach any of these orders, in other words if you do not turn up, then it is not going to take much for the Probation Service to bring this matter back to us.  They are unlikely to give you much leeway and what is going to happen if you are brought back here?  You will go to prison.  So it is up to you now.  We hope very much that you will comply with these orders, you will benefit from them and then you can move forward with your life without looking back on these events. 

Authorities

Harrison v AG [2004] JCA 046.

AG v Martins [2015] JRC 016.

AG v Le Lay [2014] JRC 041.

AG v Capuano [2013] JRC 084.

Whelan on Aspects of Sentencing in the Superior Courts of Jersey -3rd Edition.