R v Boyle [2023] NSWDC 57

District Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: R v Boyle [2023] NSWDC 57 Hearing dates: 8 February 2023 Date of orders: 8 February 2023 Decision date: 08 February 2023 Jurisdiction: Criminal Before: Haesler SC DCJ Decision: Sentenced to a term of imprisonment of 1 year 10 months with a non-parole period of 6 months. Catchwords: CRIME – Dishonestly obtain financial advantage by deception SENTENCING - Relevant factors on sentence – fraud on State COVID payments- committed in custody - gaols sentences have not deterred this offender - accumulation - totality- institutionalised offender – parity VICTIM COMPENSATION - order made Legislation Cited: Crimes Act 1900 Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 Cases Cited: Gordon v R (1994) 71 A Crim R 459 MAK v R [2006] NSWCCA 381 Postiglione v The Queen (1997) 189 CLR 295; [1997] HCA 26 R v Boyle [2022] NSWDC 4 R v Clinch (1994) 72 A Crim R 301 Veen v R (No 2) (1988) 164 CLR 465; [1988] HCA 14 Category: Sentence Parties: Matthew John Boyle (the offender) Director of Public Prosecutions Representation: Counsel: Mr S Fraser, Public Defender (for the offender)

Solicitors: Morrisons Law (for the offender) Ms K McCrossin (for Director of Public Prosecutions) File Number(s): 2022/00068825

sentence – ex tempore revised

Introduction 1. On 1 February 2022 I sentenced Matthew Boyle to a term of imprisonment of six years, six months with a non‑parole of four years and six months for a number of very serious offences: R v Boyle [2022] NSWDC 4. Boyle has a long criminal history and a sad and tragic personal history. It is a history of deprivation, drug use, crime, symptoms of mental illness and trauma. That background has had a significant impact on him and how he has lived his life in society. I recognised in that earlier sentence that his moral culpability would not be the same as a person who did not have such a background and sought to give full weight to it. 2. Boyle had been sentenced by Judge Conlon in September 2019. He was released to parole on 6 July 2020. He committed the offences that I dealt with on 1 February 2022, while he was on parole for those earlier offences. While he was in custody, he committed the two further offences that are for sentence today. They occurred before I sentenced him in February 2022. He was arrested on 7 December 2020. He has been in custody ever since. 3. Although the matters were originally listed before Nowra District Court both the prosecution and the defence agreed that it would be expedient and in the interests of justice that I resolve this matter. I acceded to an application to move this matter to Wollongong District Court. 4. The two matters for sentence today are offences of dishonestly obtain a financial advantage by deception: s 192E(1)(b) Crimes Act 1900. That offence carries a maximum penalty of ten years imprisonment. 5. I am also asked to take into account a Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 Form 1 with a further offence of deal with identity information to commit an indictable offence, s 192J Crimes Act. It is appropriate I do so.