R v Maher, Trevor Wayne; R v Maher, Troy Patrick [2021] NSWDC 80

District Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: R v Maher, Trevor Wayne; R v Maher, Troy Patrick [2021] NSWDC 80 Hearing dates: 16 March 2021 Decision date: 18 March 2021 Jurisdiction: Criminal Before: Yehia SC DCJ Decision: Troy Maher: The offender is convicted. Taking into account a reduction in sentence of 10% for the utilitarian value of the plea of guilty and a finding of special circumstances, I impose a sentence of imprisonment consisting of a non-parole period of 1 year 9 months commencing on 13 December 2019 and expiring on 12 September 2021, with a balance of term of 1 year 6 months. The total term is 3 years 3 months imprisonment. Trevor Maher: The offender is convicted. Taking into account a reduction in sentence of 25% for the utilitarian value of the plea of guilty and a finding of special circumstances, I impose a sentence of imprisonment consisting of a non-parole period of 3 years commencing on 10 December 2019 and expiring on 9 December 2022, with a balance of term of 3 years imprisonment. The total term is 6 years imprisonment. Catchwords: SENTENCING – Mitigating factors – Relevance of background of deprivation and disadvantage – Relevance of childhood exposure to domestic and family violence – Impact of intergenerational trauma where offender's mother a member of the Stolen Generations – application of the Bugmy Bar Book in sentencing proceedings Legislation Cited: Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW), s 21A(1)(d) Cases Cited: Bugmy v The Queen [2013] HCA 37 R v Mitchell [2007] 177 A Crim R 94 R v Zhang [2004] NSWCCA 358 Siganto v The Queen (1998) 194 CLR 656 Texts Cited: Andrew Day et al, 'Indigenous Family Violence: An Attempt to Understand the Problems and Inform Appropriate and Effective Responses to Criminal Justice System Intervention' (2012) 19 Psychiatry, Psychology and Law 104 Bugmy Bar Book, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Stolen Generations and Descendants (January 2020) Bugmy Bar Book, Childhood Exposure to Domestic and Family Violence (November 2019) Category: Sentence Parties: Director of Public Prosecutions Trevor Wayne Maher Troy Patrick Maher Representation: A Bowens (DPP) M Cusack (Trevor Maher) Aboriginal Legal Service NSW/ACT (Troy Maher) File Number(s): 2019/00389136 2019/00393500