Jersey Unreported Judgments

Inferior Number Sentencing - Illegal entry - malicious damage - disorderly conduct

[2021]JRC304

Royal Court

(Samedi)

6 December 2021

Before     :

R. J. MacRae, Esq., Deputy Bailiff, and Jurats Crill and Dulake

The Attorney General

-v-

Keeley Charlotte O'Brien

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

1 count of:	Illegal entry with intent to commit a crime (Count 1).
1 count of:	Malicious Damage (Count 2).
1 count of.	Disorderly conduct contrary to Article 2 of the Crime (Disorderly Conduct and Harassment) (Jersey) Law 2008. (Count 3).

Age:  35.

Plea: Guilty

Details of Offence:

At 2:00am on 18^th June 2021, the Defendant illegally entered a flat (Count 1) and then maliciously damaged three computer monitors (Count 2) to the prejudice of the First Victim.  The First Victim, his partner and their 5-year-old son were asleep in bed at the time and awoke to the sound of crashing and banging.  The Defendant was intoxicated and seeking revenge for damage caused to her property (her car had been set alight not long before).  She believed at the time that the flat belonged to one of the parties she held responsible, the Second Victim.  In fact, it was the wrong apartment and she caused £422.88 worth of damage to the property of an innocent party.  The Defendant returned to First Victim's flat in the morning, apologised, offered to pay for any damage caused and said that she was now on her way to the police station to hand herself in.  Later the same day, the Defendant attended the Central Market, where the Second Victim was working, and shouted abuse and threw a plastic bottle on the ground at the Second Victim's feet (Count 3).  The matter of the damage to the Defendant's property was investigated at the time and no-one faced any charges in relation to that case.

Details of Mitigation:

Guilty pleas, remorse (returned to First Victim's home to apologise and offered to pay for damage), handed herself in to police, admissions in interview.  Difficult upbringing, primary carer for children, employer reference and charity work in recent years.

Previous Convictions:

Twelve convictions for twenty-eight offences: several for dishonesty comprising of ten theft and kindred offences that includes one offence for aiding and abetting a break and entry and committing a crime in October 2005.  She also has several convictions for offences against the person, albeit these were last committed some 15 years ago, and one public disorder offence as a youth in 2003.

Conclusions:

Count 1:	18 months' imprisonment, equivalent to 240 hours' Community Service Order.
Count 2::	3 months' imprisonment, equivalent to 90 hours' Community Service Order, concurrent.
Count 3::	1 month's imprisonment, equivalent to 50 hours' Community Service Order, consecutive to Count 1

Total:  19 months' imprisonment  equivalent to 252 hours of Community Service.

Restraining Order sought to commence from date of sentence for a period of 5 years in the following terms:

1. That the Defendant be prohibited from approaching or contacting, directly or indirectly, the Second Victim, other than any contact which is inadvertent or unavoidable.

2. That in the event that the Defendant finds herself in inadvertent or unavoidable contact with the Second Victim, the Defendant will remove herself from the situation as soon as reasonably possible

Compensation Order sought in the sum of £422.88  for the damage caused.

Sentence and Observations of Court:

Count 1:	18 months' Probation Order.
Count 2:	18 months' Probation Order.
Count 3:	18 months' Probation Order.

Total:  18 months' Probation Order.

No Restraining Order made.

Compensation Order made in the sum of  £400 to be paid at £50 per month.

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

Advocate A. D. Harrison for the Defendant.

JUDGMENT

THE DEPUTY BAILIFF:

1.        Keeley O'Brien you are 35 years old and you have been sent to the Royal Court for sentence by the Magistrate's Court in relation to three offences, all committed on 18^th June, 2021.  The first two offences were committed about 2 in the morning when you illegally entered an occupied flat in Don Road and damaged property including three computer monitors with a cost of replacement and repair of £422.

2.        It is a serious offence to enter someone's home as a trespasser and the flat that you entered was occupied by a man, his partner and their 5 year old son who were asleep until woken by you deliberately damaging their computer equipment.  At the time you were drunk, having consumed approximately 12 cans of lager, and you were seeking revenge for damage caused to your car, which had recently been set on fire.  We have seen the photographs of the vehicle,and the Police have been unable to identify the persons responsible.  You broke into the wrong apartment and maliciously caused damage.

3.        Violating a home of another person in this way is an offence which, absent exceptional circumstances, is met with an immediate custodial sentence of some length, and the fact that you thought you were entering someone else's property is no mitigation.  We have read about the effect on the victims today and one in particular suffered from anxiety, sleeplessness and panic attacks as a consequence of the offence you committed.

4.        Later the same day, Count 3 on the Indictment, you went to the Central Market to find the person you believed to be responsible for setting fire to your car, the Second Victim.  You shouted at her, you threw a plastic bottle to the ground near where she was standing, CCTV of footage shows passers by stopping concerned at your behaviour, and witnesses told the Police that they found the incident alarming.  Now, it is to your significant credit that you apologised to the householder, offered to pay him compensation and handed yourself in to the Police all within 12 hours of these offences.  You made full admissions when you were interviewed by the Police.

5.        It is clear from the papers that we have read that as a teenager you were a regular offender, but since the age of 20 you have only appeared once before the Courts when you were fined for careless driving in 2016.  The Probation Officer refers to a difficult start that you had in life.  Your mother left the island, and you were brought up by your grandparents.  Unfortunately, your grandmother died when you were 12 and your grandfather struggled to cope with you, being the sole carer for you and your siblings.  You were seriously exploited during your teens in the way described in the Pre-Sentence Report and placed in voluntary care.

6.        Now, many years later, you are the primary carer for your two children aged 12 and 8.  You work when you can and you attempted to establish a café last year, which unfortunately was victim of the first Covid related lockdown in the spring of last year.  You now work as a waitress whenever you are able to do so, and your employer speaks highly of you.  You have health difficulties referred to in the report which may be connected to the trauma which you experienced when you were growing up.  What limited spare time you have when you are not looking after your children or working, you volunteer for a number of charities and you are an unpaid helper at a local primary school.

7.        The starting point for this offence, entering a residential premises with intent to commit a crime is, as you know, 3 years' imprisonment, and the Crown has drawn our attention to the case of AG -v- Cameron [2008] JRC 182 where the Court said "to enter someone else's property when that person is present is a potentially terrifying experience for the householder." 

8.        The Crown calls for a period of 18 months' imprisonment for the offence of illegal entry and 1 month imprisonment consecutive for the public order offence making a total of 19 months' imprisonment, and also seek a restraining order.  The Probation Officer says, and we accept, that a prison sentence would have a great impact on the achievements that you have made over the last 15 years and jeopardise the future of your son and daughter, one of whom has challenges of their own.

9.        In the exceptional circumstances of this case, we have decided to follow the recommendations made by the Probation Officer in this case and we are going to make a Probation Order.  .The reason we are going make the Probation Order is to deal with the matters listed at paragraph 33 of the Report namely, to help you tackle your drinking, to strengthen your emotional resilience, to undertake work on enhancing problem solving skills and to encourage your continued involvement in employment and voluntary activities.  It is really important that you go on the courses that are offered and commit yourself to the Order which will last for 18 months.  We make the 18 month Order concurrent on all three counts.

10.      We are not going to make the Restraining Order sought by the Crown.  We are trusting you not to get involved with the Second Victim again, do you understand.  But if you do, that may amount to a separate criminal offence, it will be a breach of the probation order as well, so it is very important that you stay away from her.  Do you understand? 

11.      We are going to order you to pay £400 compensation at the rate of £50 per month, starting tomorrow.

Authorities

AG v Cameron [2008] JRC 182

AG v Allo & Collins [1983] JJ 85

AG v Da Silva [1997] JRC 218

AG v Falle [2000] 193

A v Samson [2009] JRC 085

AG v Saville [2020] JRC 066

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

Criminal Justice (Compensation Orders) (Jersey) Law 1994

Crime (Disorderly Conduct and Harassment) (Jersey) Law 2008

R v Brewster and ors [1997] EWCA Crim 3421

R v Edwards and Brandy [1996] WL 1092972