R v TOWNSEND [2010] NSWCCA 336

Procedural Posture

Crown Appeal Against Sentence for Dangerous Driving Causing Death / Court of Criminal Appeal; Reasons for Order Previously Made Dismissing the Appeal

Legal Issues

1. 1 ['Whether the sentencing judge erred in accepting that the respondent was not in a hurry and in treating contemporaneous statements about being late and speeding with circumspection.' "Whether the sentencing judge erred in assessing the respondent's moral culpability as low." 'Whether the sentencing judge gave impermissible additional significance to the early guilty plea.' 'Whether the sentencing judge erred in finding that the respondent was not generally a careless or bad driver.' 'Whether the sentencing judge failed to give sufficient weight to general and specific deterrence.' 'Whether the sentencing judge erred by reducing the automatic driver licence disqualification period to twelve months and by not providing reasons for doing so.' 'Whether the sentence of 300 hours community service was manifestly inadequate.']

Ratio Decidendi

The Crown did not establish House v The King error in the sentencing judge's findings that the respondent was not in a hurry and that the collision resulted from momentary inattention or misjudgment rather than deliberate risk-taking. Those factual findings were reasonably open, the assessment of low moral culpability was open, the judge did not impermissibly reason from momentary inattention automatically to low culpability, no material error was shown in relation to the plea, driving record or deterrence, and the sentence of 300 hours community service with twelve months disqualification was not manifestly inadequate.

Court Disposition

Crown appeal dismissed.

Orders

• ['Appeal dismissed.']