Hong Kong Case Law: Decisions & Judgments

Topic

Sentence enhancement for previous convictions

Legal area

Court

29 Nov 2019

HKSAR v. HAR TSZ YUI

Citation

[2019] HKCA 1336
Court

Court of Appeal
Case number

CACC18/2019

Enhancement for previous similar convictions is a matter for the sentencing judge's discretion and must be reasonable and proportionate to the basic offence; in this case the 7‑month enhancement was disproportionate because it equated to a notional sentence appropriate for double the quantity involved, and the appropriate enhancement was 4 months, resulting in a reduced sentence of 34 months (2 years 10 months) after a one‑third plea discount.
1 Jun 2018

HKSAR v. LAM MEI CHING, BET

Citation

[2018] HKCA 321
Court

Court of Appeal
Case number

CACC24/2015

Leave to appeal against conviction and sentence refused because appellate complaints of flagrant incompetence were without merit: trial counsel made tactical decisions within a wide discretion, the admissions and conduct did not deny a fair trial, alleged chain of custody gaps were explainable and not pursued for sound tactical reasons, and the sentence was appropriate given a recent, similar trafficking conviction.
5 Jan 2011

HKSAR v. LI CHEUK SUM

Citation

HKSAR v. LI CHEUK SUM
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCMA885/2010

The magistrate applied the correct sentencing range for pickpocketing (12 months starting point) and properly increased the sentence by 4 months due to the appellant's lengthy and serious criminal record; therefore the 16-month sentence was not excessive and the appeal is dismissed.
1 May 1998

HKSAR v. NG KAM KIN

Citation

HKSAR v. NG KAM KIN
Court

Court of First Instance
Case number

HCMA208/1998

The appellant's prior conviction for coming into and remaining in Hong Kong unlawfully constituted an aggravating feature under the authoritative guideline and justified increasing the normal 15 month sentence to 18 months; the appellant's medical condition did not warrant reduction or variation of the sentence, so the appeal is dismissed.

Hong Kong Case Law

HKSAR v. HAR TSZ YUI

HKSAR v. LAM MEI CHING, BET

HKSAR v. LI CHEUK SUM

HKSAR v. NG KAM KIN