R v Vandermade [2022] NSWDC 679

District Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: R v Vandermade [2022] NSWDC 679 Hearing dates: 6 December 2022 Date of orders: 15 December 2022 Decision date: 15 December 2022 Jurisdiction: Criminal Before: Buscombe DCJ Decision: Impose a sentence of 14 years and 6 months imprisonment. The sentence consists of a non-parole period of 9 years 7 months and a balance of term of 4 years and 11 months. The sentence commences 3 September 2020 and expires on 2 March 2035. The non-parole period expires on 2 April 2030. The offence on the certificate under s. 166 of the Criminal Procedure Act is dismissed as there is no evidence to support it. Catchwords: CRIME – Violent offences – Shoot at with intent to murder Legislation Cited: Crimes Act 1900 (NSW), s 29 Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW), s 3A, s 21A Cases Cited: DPP (Cth) v De La Rosa [2010] NSWCCA 194 Category: Sentence Parties: Director of Public Prosecutions (Crown)

Thomas Karras Vandermade (Offender) Representation: Counsel:

Mr Paish (Crown)

Mr Djemal (Offender)

Solicitors:

Director of Public Prosecutions (Crown)

Miers Legal (Offender) File Number(s): 2020/00257160

SENTENCE

Introduction 1. The offender stood trial before myself and a jury earlier this year on an indictment containing 4 counts. The second count was expressed to be in the alternative to count 1, and the third count was expressed to be in the alternative to count 2. The 4th count stood alone. On 3 June 2022 the jury returned verdicts of guilty on count 1 and not guilty on count 4. In the circumstances, no verdict was taken on counts 2 and 3. There has been some delay in the sentencing of the offender due to the unavailability of a psychological report and the offender changing legal representation. 2. As a consequence of the verdicts the offender stands to be sentenced having been found guilty by a jury of the following offence: 3. That on 8 August 2020 in Warwick Farm the offender did shoot at John Lavulo with intent to murder John Lavulo. That is an offence under s. 29 of the Crimes Act and has a maximum penalty of 25 years imprisonment and there is an applicable standard non-parole period of 10 years. 4. Of some significance in the fact finding exercise I must now undertake is the jury's verdict of not guilty on count 4 on the indictment. That was a charge that on 8 August 2020 the offender possessed a firearm not being authorised to do so. The Crown case on count 4 on the indictment, as put to the jury, was that the offender was a person who actually discharged a firearm at the victim in the incident which grounded count 1. It was that alleged possession of a firearm that was relied upon for the proof of count 4.