Choy v R [2023] NSWCCA 23

Court of Criminal Appeal Supreme Court New South Wales Medium Neutral Citation: Choy v R [2023] NSWCCA 23 Hearing dates: 22 July 2022 Date of orders: 22 February 2023 Decision date: 22 February 2023 Before: Beech-Jones CJ at CL at [1] Price J at [2] Lonergan J at [3] Decision: (1) Extend the time for appeal to 8 April 2022. (2) Leave to appeal granted. (3) Appeal allowed. (4) The sentence imposed on the applicant by the District Court on 19 August 2016 is quashed and in lieu thereof the following sentence is imposed: 21 years imprisonment to date from 9 July 2013 to 8 July 2034 with a non-parole period of 14 years to expire on 8 July 2027. Catchwords: CRIMINAL LAW – appeal – sentence appeal – serious Commonwealth offences regarding importation of commercial quantity of border-controlled drug and aid and abet manufacture of methamphetamine – late guilty plea – withdrawal and then reinstatement of guilty plea – failure to take into account the utilitarian value of guilty plea – sentenced in August 2016 prior to NSWCCA decision in Xiao v R – error conceded CRIMINAL LAW – appeal – sentence appeal – parity – whether applicant has a justifiable sense of grievance in light of sentence imposed on co-offender because of the unexplained difference in the ratio of the non-parole period to head sentence – error conceded – resentenced Legislation Cited: Crimes Act 1914 (Cth) Criminal Appeal Act 1912 (NSW) Criminal Code (Cth) Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act 1985 (NSW) Cases Cited: Aslan v R [2014] NSWCCA 114 Diaz v R [2019] NSWCCA 216 DL v The Queen (2018) 265 CLR 215; [2018] HCA 32 DPP (Cth) v De La Rosa (2010) 79 NSWLR 1; [2010] NSWCCA 194 House v R (1936) 55 CLR 499; [1936] HCA 40 Huang v R [2018] NSWCCA 57 Khalid v R [2020] NSWCCA 73 Kentwell v The Queen (2014) 252 CLR 601; [2014] HCA 37 Lam v R (Cth); Lay v R (Cth); To v R (Cth) [2021] NSWCCA 242 R v Thomson and Houlton (2000) 29 NSWLR 383; [2000] NSWCCA 309 Singh v R [2018] NSWCCA 60 Xiao v R (2018) 96 NSWLR 1; [2018] NSWCCA 4 Category: Principal judgment Parties: Ka Ho Choy (Applicant) Regina (Respondent) Representation: Counsel: N Steel (Applicant) G Wright SC / S McGee (Respondent)