Jersey Unreported Judgments

2000/187

4 pages

ROYAL COURT

(Samedi Division)

 

22^nd September, 2000

 

Before: Sir Philip Bailhache, Bailiff,

and Jurats Rumfitt and Tibbo

 

The Attorney General

-v-

Lisa Marie Lopes

Ricky Lee Bree

 

 

Lisa Marie Lopes

 

First Indictment

4 counts of:  larceny (counts 1, 5, 6 & 20);

13 counts of:            obtaining goods by false pretences (counts 2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 & 16);

3 counts of:  obtaining a meal by false pretences (counts 17, 18 & 19).

 

Second Indictment

6 counts of:  obtaining goods by false pretences (counts 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6);

1 count of:   larceny (count 7).

 

Age:   18.

 

Plea:  Guilty to all counts, except count 6 of second indictment, on which count the Crown accepted a plea of not guilty.

 

Details of Offence:

 

Lopes pleaded guilty to the larceny of a purse, switchcard, visa card and cash of £130 belonging to a probation officer (count 1 second indictment), the subsequent fraudulent use of the cards on eight separate occasions to obtain goods to the total value of £1,284.38.  Lopes pleaded guilty to the larceny of 220 cigarettes value £27.70 (count 20 of the first indictment); larceny (jointly with Bree) of DVD player valued at approx. £200 (count 7 of the third indictment); larceny of purse, chequebook and bank cards (count 5 of the first indictment) and subsequent fraudulent use of cards on 12 separate occasions to obtain goods, cash and meals to the total value of £170 (counts 7 to 15 and 17 to 19 of the first indictment).  She also pleaded guilty to larceny of a further two bank cards (count 6 of the first indictment) and fraudulent use of one of those cards to obtain cash and goods to the total value of £5.50 (count 16 of the first indictment).  The cards were used principally to purchase high value designer clothing for Bree and Lopes and an expensive item of jewellery for Bree.

 

Details of Mitigation:

 

Youth.  Pretty much immediate admissions, cooperative with police, under Bree's influence.  Effectively first offender.

 

Previous Convictions:

 

February 2000: attempting to obtain property by deception in Kingston-Upon-Thames (but treated as a first offender as this offence occurred during the time-frame of the offences for which she is being sentenced by the Royal Court on 22^nd September).

 

Conclusions:   18 month Probation Order, with 240 hours Community Service.

 

Sentence and Observations of the Court:   18 month Probation Order, with 180 hours Community Service.

 

Ricky Lee Bree

 

Second Indictment

6 counts of:  aiding, assisting or participating in obtaining goods by false pretences (counts 1a, 2a, 3a, 4a, 5a & 6a);

1 count of: larceny (count 7).

 

Third Indictment

1 count of:   larceny by finding (count 1);

2 counts of:  obtaining goods by false pretences (counts 2 & 3).

 

Fourth Indictment

1 count of:   breaking and entering and larceny (count 1);

1 count of:   aiding, assisting or participating in breaking and entering and larceny (count 1a);

1 count of:   receiving (count 1b).

 

Age:   20.

 

Plea:  Guilty.

 

Details of Offence:

 

Bree pleaded guilty to receiving stolen property valued at £3,500 (count 1b of the fourth indictment); aiding or assisting Lopes obtain goods to the total value of £1,330 by false pretences (counts 1a to 6a inclusive of the second indictment); larceny of one DVD player jointly with Lopes valued at approx. £200 (count 7 of the second indictment); larceny of two bank cards by finding (count 1 of the third indictment) and use of the cards to obtain cash and goods to the value of £85 (counts 2 and 3 of the third indictment).

 

Details of Mitigation:

 

Youth, plea of guilty (but evidence compelling) managed to become drug free whilst on remand, attended counselling, lifeskills course and a building course whilst at HM Prison.  Remorse.  Intention to reform.  Not particularly bad record.

 

Previous Convictions:

 

1996: robbery/aiding and abetting attempted robbery (placed on probation and to attend Les Chênes).  1997: larceny of shop (c.d.'s valued at £40) placed on probation; various drugs offences including importation of 42 ecstasy tablets into Guernsey in 1997 for which he received a sentence of 3 years' youth custody.  February 2000: attempting to obtain property by deception (Kingston-Upon-Thames).

 

Conclusions:

 

18 months' Probation Order, with 240 hours Community Service.  Further condition that he attend the Drug and Alcohol Service for such a period as the probation officer shall direct; that he remain abstinent from all controlled drugs other than drugs prescribed by a medical practitioner; and that he submit to random urine testing.

 

Sentence and Observations of the Court:

 

The Court recognises efforts made by Bree to free himself from his drug dependency whilst on remand and his efforts to seek to improve himself by attending a building and construction course ran at HM Prison and his intention to attend a similar course run at Highlands College.  In view of the fact that Bree had spent the equivalent of approximately 10 month sentence on remand with remission, the Court has reduced the conclusions sought by the Crown slightly.  Bree placed on probation for 18 months on condition that he complete 180 hours Community Service, other conditions as suggested by the Crown granted.

 

 

P. Matthews, Esq., Crown Advocate.

Advocate W. Grace for L.M. Lopes.

Advocate H. Boléat for R.L. Bree.

 

 

JUDGMENT

 

THE BAILIFF:

 

1.            Bree, you have a bad record; you have let down your mother; you have let down yourself and you gave no thought at all to the distress caused to that elderly lady by selling one of her precious possessions.

 

2.            You have spent some time in prison on remand and the Courts thinks that that was richly deserved.

 

3.            The Crown Advocate has invited the Court to give you a last chance and we are going to do that but the Court wants you to understand that we are doing this for two reasons: first, we applaud what you have accomplished in prison to cure yourself of your drugs habit.  Secondly, we applaud your intention to try to reform your life and to follow a course at Highlands and to make something of yourself.  We want to encourage you in that respect and following the submissions of your counsel we are going to reduce slightly the conclusions of the Crown Advocate so far as the community service is concerned in order to help you to follow the course at Highlands.  We hope that you take advantage of this and that you will indeed do something with your life because otherwise your future is pretty bleak.

 

4.            The Court is going to place you on probation for a period of 18 months.  You will   carry out to the satisfaction of a community service organiser 180 hours of community service.  It is a condition that you attend the Alcohol and Drugs Advisory Service as required by the Probation Service and that you submit to random urine testing from time to time, again, as may be required.

 

5.            Miss Lopes, stealing from a Probation Officer who is doing her best to help you is a contemptible thing to do.  We hope that you appreciate that and that you are as ashamed of your conduct as you ought to be.  We note that you have offered to pay compensation,  and we think that is the very least that you can do.

 

6.            You have been punished to a certain extent by the period of time that you have spent in custody on remand and we believe that that has had some effect upon you.

 

7.            We hope that your intentions to behave yourself in future and not to continue offending are genuine and that we are not going to see you in this Court again.

 

8.            We are going to make a Compensation Order in favour of Miss Carré in the sum of £130 and we will authorise the police to release the £120 seized from you to Miss Carré in part satisfaction of that Order.

 

9.            The Court is placing you on probation for a period of 18 months, subject to the usual conditions that you be of good behaviour during that time, that you live and work as directed by your Probation Officer, and that you carry out 180 hours community service to the satisfaction of the community service organiser.

 

10.        We hope that you both understand that if you are not of good behaviour that you will be liable to be brought back before this Court and if that should happen it is very likely that you will receive a custodial sentence.

Authorities

 

 

AG -v- Ahier (11^th February, 2000) Jersey Unreported.

Whelan: Aspects of Sentencing in the Superior Courts of Jersey: pp. 53-4.

AG -v- Durkin (7^th August, 1998) Jersey Unreported.

AG -v- Hamon (22^nd May, 1998) Jersey Unreported.