Jersey Unreported Judgments

Inferior Number Sentencing - Malicious Damage - Breaking and entering

[2020]JRC066

Royal Court

(Samedi)

24 April 2020

Before     :

R. J. MacRae, Esq., Deputy Bailiff, and Jurats Ramsden and Ronge

The Attorney General

-v-

Gage James Saville

Sentencing by the Inferior Number of the Royal Court, following guilty pleas to the following charges:

2 counts of:	Malicious Damage (Count 1 and Count 3).
1 count of:	Breaking and entering with intent to commit a crime (Count 2).

Age:  24. 

Plea: Guilty. 

Details of Offence:

On 24^th December, 2019, in the early hours of the morning, the defendant collected two rocks from Snow Hill and rode his bicycle into the Royal Square.  He smoked some cannabis and then began throwing the rocks at the windows of the Royal Court building, causing several windows to smash.

 

He jumped onto a window ledge and began pushing and kicking in parts of a smashed window before jumping inside the building.  Several members of the public witnessed this and called the Police.

 

He was seen on CCTV with his hood up.  Once inside the building he walked around before entering the landing area of the Bailiff's Judicial Secretary where he pushed over a glass case cabinet, shattering the glass, and threw a large antique chair down the stairs.

 

Police Officers entered the building through the same smashed window and located the defendant in the Old Library.

 

The defendant damaged ten panes of glass across eight windows, a brass rail, doorframes, glass shatter in several rooms and damaged a secure glass cabinet.  There was also extensive damage to a 200-year-old chair.  The total cost of damage was unknown at the time of sentencing but the estimate received to date at sentencing totalled £10,933.19.

Details of Mitigation:

Guilty pleas and admissions in interview. Difficult upbringing.

Previous Convictions:

Bad record for someone of his age, including seven previous offences of illegally entering or breaking and entering premises and four previous offences of malicious damage. 

Conclusions:

Count 1:	3 months' imprisonment, concurrent.
Count 2:	28 months' imprisonment.
Count 3:	3 months' imprisonment, concurrent.

Total:  28 months' imprisonment.

Sentence and Observations of Court:

Count 1:	9 months' imprisonment, concurrent.
Count 2:	24 months' imprisonment, concurrent.
Count 3:	12 months' imprisonment, concurrent.

Total:  24 months' imprisonment.

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

Advocate J. C. Dix for the Defendant.

JUDGMENT

THE DEPUTY BAILIFF:

1.        Gage Saville you are 25 years old and, for a relatively young man, you have amassed a substantial criminal record including 7 offences of illegal entry or breaking and entering and 4 offences of malicious damage. 

2.        Today, you appear before the Court to be sentenced in respect of 3 offences arising out of an offence committed in the early hours of Christmas Eve, 2019.  Just after midnight you rode your bicycle from Snow Hill on to Hill Street and into the Royal Square.  You were wearing dark clothing with your hood up and carrying a bag.  And in that bag were large rocks that you picked up from Snow Hill minutes before, for the purpose of causing damage.  You alighted from your bicycle, sat on a bench, smoked some cannabis and then began throwing these rocks at the windows of the Royal Court Building.

3.        Various witnesses heard and saw you smashing the windows of the building.  One saw you kicking the glass out of a window.  Ultimately you broke 10 panes of glass across 8 windows and then entered the building.  Once in the building you made your way to the office of the Bailiff's Secretary, disturbing paperwork and leaving blood upon it.  You were bleeding because you had cut yourself quite badly, in particular on one of your arms, as you entered the building.  Outside the Bailiff's Office you gratuitously pushed over the armoured case which normally houses the Royal Mace causing it to smash.  You then picked up an antique Victorian chair, well over a hundred years old and of historic value, and then threw it down the stairs causing it damage.  From there you went to the Jurats Room and then up to the top floor of the building leaving blood on the doors and handrails.  Before you could do any more damage a police officer with his dog arrived and you were found in the Old Library.  A struggle ensued between the police office and you during which the police officer was forced to order his dog to bite you, in order to prevent you from resisting arrest further.  The police took you to the hospital where you said "I just lost it" and during the course of your police interview, you said "I'll end up killing someone, and I don't want to kill someone" you also spoke about your mental health.

4.        The cost of repairing the damage caused to the windows, a brass rail, door frames, the antique chair and the secure glass display is estimated to be at least £11,000.00.  The Court gives you credit for your guilty plea and the admissions you made in the course of your interview.  The Probation Officer assesses you as being a high risk of reconviction.  When you last appeared before this Court approximately 5 and half years ago, you were sentenced to 15 months' youth custody for another offence of an illegal entry.  On that occasion the Court observed that you have not had an easy background.  That is right, and you have plainly had a difficult start in life and we have read what is said in the reports prepared for today.  We have heard from your Advocate and we have read the moving letters written by your mother and your sister.  The members of the Court have also read your letter to us and we are pleased to see that you would use any time that you would spend in prison productively and seek help that you need to address your mental health and other issues.  You quite rightly say that you only have yourself to blame for what happened and that you need to take control of your behaviour in the future.  One thing your Advocate said that the Court agreed with was that it maybe that you are only now reaching maturity, and that is something which that the Court thinks might be accurate in your case.

5.        We note the previous cases that the Crown has put before the Court, particularly the case AG -v- Dowden and Ors [1992] JRC 138 which involved illegal entry into the States building where the Court held the appropriate starting point was 3½ years' imprisonment.  We find that to be the correct starting point for this offence too.  This is not merely an historic building, but is the building which is principally responsible for the administration of justice in the Island, and also houses the Island's Parliament. 

6.        There were a number of aggravating features in this case.  These were offences committed at night.  There was an element of pre planning, you collected the rocks in order to damage a building.  You have many previous convictions including for this sort of offence, and although we entirely accept that you had no personal ill will against those who work in this building, you knew you were attacking a public building when you did what you did.

7.        Notwithstanding that starting point, the Court gives you full credit for your guilty plea, and as much possible weight as it can for the mitigation available to you.  Advocate Dix urged us to impose a probation order on you today.  We are unable to do that, as we regard the offences as too serious and we have also had regard to your history of non-compliance with non-custodial sentences.  In relation to Count 1 and Count 3, which are the offences on the Indictment dealing with malicious damage, we regarded the conclusions moved for by the Crown has been too low as Count 1 did not adequately reflect the extent of the damage and in Count 3, the sentence moved for did not adequately reflect the gratuitous nature of the damage.  But in relation to the principle Count on the Indictment, having regard to what has been said on your behalf we do reduce the Crown's conclusions so that the overall sentence imposed upon you will be shorter than that moved for by the Crown.

8.        Having said that you are sentenced as follows; Count 1, 9 months' imprisonment.  Count 2, 2 years' imprisonment.  Count 3, 12 months' imprisonment, all to run concurrent, making a total of 2 years' imprisonment. 

9.        We make no order for compensation or costs in view of your means.

Authorities

AG -v- Dowden and Ors [1992] JRC 138. 

AG v MW and CD [1990] 55

AG v Gaffney [1995] JLR Notes - 22b;

AG v Gaffney [1995] 101

AG v Da Silva 1997/218

AG v McCormick 2001/64

AG v S [2010] JRC 230

AG v Saville [2014] JRC 237B

AG v Lynn [2014] JRC 029

AG v Carboulec [2015] JRC 196A

AG v De Faria [2017] JRC 139

AG v Davison [2019] JRC 235

Whelan, Aspects of Sentencing in the Superior Courts of Jersey, Third Edition (extracts)