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Jersey Unreported Judgments
You are here: BAILII >> Databases >> Jersey Unreported Judgments >> AG v Sudol [2022] JRC 143 (01 July 2022)
URL: http://www.bailii.org/je/cases/UR/2022/2022_143.html
Cite as: [2022] JRC 143
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Before : |
R. J. MacRae, Esq., Deputy Bailiff, and Jurats Averty and Le Heuzé |
The Attorney General
-v-
Andrzej Dawid Sudol
Sentencing by the Inferior Number of the Royal Court, following a guilty plea to the following charges:
First Indictment
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2 counts of: |
Grave and criminal assault (Count 1 and Count 3). |
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1 count of: |
Malicious damage (Count 2). |
Second Indictment
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1 count of: |
Attempting to pervert the course of justice (Count 1). |
Age: 33.
Plea: Guilty.
Details of Offence:
The Defendant and the victim had been in a relationship for approximately 10 months prior to the offences taking place during which he displayed coercive and controlling behaviour.
On 16th November 2021, a member of the public telephoned the police after she witnessed the defendant throwing the victim's mobile phone over arm into the road (Count 2). The victim told the witness that this was not the first time the Defendant had done this and that the Defendant prevented her from speaking to her family. On police arrival the victim disclosed that, the week prior, the defendant had grabbed her by the neck and thrown her down onto the bed (Count 1). When assessed by the police doctor, the victim was found to have numerous injuries. The Defendant was intoxicated when he was arrested. In interview the Defendant accepted smashing her mobile phone but claimed that the victim caused her own injuries.
On 18th November 2021, whilst on police bail and subject to conditions of no contact with the victim, the Defendant called the police reporting that a mutual friend of his and the victim was being aggressive. The attending officers found the Defendant outside the victim's home address and he was, again, intoxicated. It transpired that he had been in the victim's home address in breach of his bail conditions. The victim informed officers that the Defendant had thrown a glass ashtray across the room at her, striking her on the thigh (Count 3). The defendant denied the assault.
On 1st December 2021, the Defendant called a mutual friend from prison. During the call the Defendant stated that he wanted the victim to retract her statement and he asked the mutual friend to tell the victim to withdraw her complaint (Count 4). The mutual friend reported this to the police and did not tell the victim about the conversation. When interviewed, the defendant made full admissions to this offence.
The defendant pleaded guilty to the two assaults on a basis that was not accepted by the Crown. The court determined that a Newton hearing was not required.
In relation to Count 1, the Defendant stated that he and the victim had been drinking and concerned for her safety, he took her keys to prevent her leaving home to buy more alcohol. A struggle ensued and he placed his left hand around her lower neck with moderate force whilst pushing her away from him onto the bed. He accepted causing the bruising to her lower neck.
In relation to Count 3, when the victim refused to give the Defendant a cigarette, he lost his self-control and threw the ashtray in the victim's general direction. Whilst the ashtray was not aimed, he accepted that he was reckless and he caused the injury.
Details of Mitigation:
Guilty plea to all offences albeit two the pleas to the assaults were not entered at the earliest opportunity.
Previous Convictions:
Two previous convictions for motoring offences.
Conclusions:
First Indictment
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Count 1: |
12 months' imprisonment. |
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Count 2: |
1 month's imprisonment, concurrent. |
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Count 3: |
6 months' imprisonment, concurrent. |
Second Indictment
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Count 1: |
12 months' imprisonment, consecutive to Count 1 of the First Indictment. |
Total: 2 years' imprisonment.
Recommendation for deportation sought.
Sentence and Observations of Court:
First Indictment
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Count 1: |
12 months' imprisonment. |
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Count 2: |
1 month's imprisonment, concurrent. |
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Count 3: |
12 months' imprisonment, concurrent. |
Second Indictment
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Count 1: |
9 months' imprisonment, consecutive to Count 1 of the First Indictment. |
Total: 21 month's imprisonment.
Recommendation for deportation made.
Ms C. L. G. Carvalho, Crown Advocate.
Advocate A. E. Binnie for the accused.
JUDGMENT
THE DEPUTY BAILIFF:
1. Andrzej Sudol, you are 33 years old and fall to be sentenced for offences against the person and property of your former partner, and an offence of attempting to pervert the course of justice when you attempted to prevent your former partner from giving evidence against you. Your former partner is now 41 years old and was in a relationship with you between March and November of last year. During that relationship you became jealous of her and exhibited coercive and controlling behaviours, including attempting to control her movements and her contact with family and friends.
2. On 16th November 2021, a member of the public telephoned the police because she had seen you snatch your partner's mobile telephone and throw it over arm into the road. The damage you caused to this device is represented by Count 2 on the indictment. The member of the public who saw you doing this challenged you and you simply walked away. That member of the public also approached your former partner, your victim, and asked if she was alright. She could see that your partner was upset and as she reached for her mobile telephone, she said to the member of the public "that is the second or third time he has done that to me in the last few weeks. He won't let me call my brother. He won't let me speak to him".
3. The police attended and found your former partner upset, crying, and could see bruising to her chest and arms.
4. You were arrested by the police, and it was noted that you smelt heavily of intoxicants when you were arrested. You were interviewed the following day on 17th November 2021, at 1.30pm. You denied assaulting your former partner but admitted smashing her phone in the street during an argument about her being on the phone to another man. You accepted that you felt jealous when she left the flat that you shared to speak to someone on the phone. You denied ever having assaulted her and said that she bruised very easily. You said she would sometimes punch herself and hit herself. In respect of what you said about assaulting your partner, your account in interview was a lie. Your basis of plea shows that on or before 16th November, when you say that both you and your partner had been drinking, you took her door keys from her so as to prevent her from leaving her home in order to buy alcohol; a struggle ensued and you placed your left arm around her neck which you grabbed with moderate force when pushing her away from you and onto her bed. In doing so you accept you caused her significant bruising to her neck which we have seen evidenced by the photographs and you have pleaded guilty to grave and criminal assault (Count 1).
5. Two or so days after the first assault and the day after you had been interviewed by the police on suspicion of assault, you assaulted your partner again, in spite of the fact you had been released by the police on bail with a condition that you do not contact her. At 11.20pm that night you called the police from your partner's home saying that a mutual friend of yourself and of your former partner was being aggressive. The police arrived at your partner's home and found you outside, drunk with blood on your face. But the police were concerned about your partner as they were, in their words "shocked" by the amount of bruising she had on her arms and upper chest. She disclosed that you had thrown an ashtray at her which had hit her on the leg. She declined to make a statement of complaint at the time as she did not want you arrested or to get into trouble. It is a common feature of these cases that victims of domestic violence, through a misplaced sense of loyalty or fear, often chose not to incriminate their abusers. On a subsequent occasion she did give an ABE interview to the police complaining about your behaviour during the relationship with her.
6. You were arrested on suspicion of grave and criminal assault. You were interviewed by the police and denied throwing an ashtray at your former partner. This too was a lie, as you accept by the basis of your guilty plea on this count (Count 3). You say that you had been drinking heavily this day, you were drunk, you lost your self-control, you picked up an ashtray and threw it in the direction of your partner and the ashtray hit her thigh, resulting in reddening and bruising. This was an ashtray that was made of glass, was heavy - was six inches in diameter - and could have caused really serious injury. This is a second offence of grave and criminal assault you committed on your partner in her own home when you were drunk in the space of a few days.
7. When you appeared before the Magistrate's Court on 22nd November 2021, you pleaded not guilty to the two offences of grave and criminal assault. Accordingly, you will not receive full credit for your pleas of guilty, as you did not plead guilty at the first opportunity. You were remanded in custody pending indictment.
8. Your offending was compounded in terms of its seriousness by your subsequent attempt to pervert the course of justice. On 1st December 2021 you telephoned a friend known to your former partner from the prison. During that call, you made it clear that you wanted your partner to retract her statement and that your friend should tell her to do it. Wisely, your friend contacted the police and did not tell your victim about this conversation.
9. When you were interviewed in relation to this offence, you made admissions and you said your motivation was to receive a shorter sentence and release from custody.
10. On 28th January 2022, you appeared in this Court and maintained your not guilty pleas to Counts 1 and 3 on the Indictment and a jury trial was listed for May 2022. It was only on 18th March 2022 that you entered guilty pleas to Counts 1 and 3, the offences of grave and criminal assault. The Crown do not accept the basis of your plea, but we agree with the Crown that the difference between the prosecution's case on the facts and the basis of your plea is not material to sentence.
11. You pleaded guilty to the offence of attempting to pervert the course of justice at the first opportunity when you were indicted on 6th May 2022, and accordingly you receive full credit for your guilty plea in relation to that offence.
12. We have considered the case of Coelho v AG [2020] JRC 216, the leading case on domestic violence sentencing. There were various aggravating features in this case:
(i) This was an offence you committed on your partner who was entitled to trust you. Accordingly, this was a breach of trust.
(ii) You assaulted her when she was in her home, the place where she was entitled to feel safest.
(iii) On the second occasion you used a weapon and assaulted her in breach of a condition of police bail imposed the day before.
(iv) Your victim was vulnerable. Not only was she in drink but she was a victim of your coercive and controlling behaviour in the weeks prior to the incident, she had been unable to contact her siblings and friends, you had tried to isolate her and these findings are supported by the contents of the social enquiry report which indicates that you blame the victim in part for your offending.
13. We are in no doubt that these offences are so serious that only a custodial sentence can be justified. As to the attempt to pervert the course of justice, the clear policy of the courts is that perpetrators of domestic abuse who attempt to intimidate or persuade their victims not to give evidence will be dealt with severely and in almost all circumstances will receive consecutive custodial sentence to any other sentence they receive when they fall to be sentenced.
14. You have previous convictions but not for relevant offences, and accordingly we do not hold those previous matters against you.
15. The pre-sentence report assesses you at being high risk of general reconviction and at moderate risk of perpetrating further domestic abuse.
16. We have considered the question of deportation which is not opposed. Firstly we have had to ask ourselves if your continued presence is detrimental to the island. We are satisfied that it is. You committed a serious assault on your partner and despite the police intervention committed a second assault whilst on bail and then attempted to pervert the course of justice whilst in prison on remand for those offences. We are also satisfied that the effect of your deportation on the human rights of innocent persons connected to you is not disproportionate in this case. You arrived in the island in 2017 and left after 3 months. You returned in 2019 and had been living here for approximately 3 years at the time of your offending. You parents and siblings are all in Poland. In our view the effects of your deportation are not disproportionate so far as you or those connected to you are concerned and we make a recommendation for your deportation.
17. As to sentence, on Count 1 the sentence is 12 months' imprisonment. Count 2, 1 month's imprisonment, concurrent. Count 3, 12 months' imprisonment, concurrent, making a total of 12 months' imprisonment on the First Indictment. On the Second Indictment the sentence is 9 months' imprisonment, consecutive. Accordingly you will serve a total of 21 months' imprisonment. There were no ancillary applications.
Authorities
AG v Goncalves [2022] JRC 097.
AG v Kennedy and White [2022] JRC 100.
AG v Nicolle [2020] JRC 201.