R v Watson [2024] NSWDC 362

District Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: R v Watson [2024] NSWDC 362 Hearing dates: 16 July 2024 Date of orders: 16 July 2024 Decision date: 16 July 2024 Jurisdiction: Criminal Before: Haesler SC DCJ Decision: Aggregate imprisonment sentence of 3 years 3 months with a non-parole period of 1 year 10 months Catchwords: CRIME — Drug offences — Supply prohibited drug SENTENCING — Aggravating factors — Breach of conditional liberty — Record of previous convictions SENTENCING — Mitigating factors — Plea of guilty SENTENCING — Penalties — Imprisonment SENTENCING — Relevant factors on sentence — Form 1 offences — Objective seriousness — Deterrence SENTENCING — Sentencing procedure — Instinctive synthesis SENTENCING — Subjective considerations on sentence — Mental illness — Drug addiction —Health issues — Institutional childhood sexual abuse Legislation Cited: Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW) Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act 1985 (NSW) Cases Cited: Bugmy v The Queen [2013] HCA 37; (2013) 249 CLR 571 Category: Sentence Parties: Steven Watson (the offender) Public Prosecutions (NSW) (Crown) Representation: Solicitors: M Kwan solicitor for Legal Aid (NSW) (for the offender) K Mackinnon solicitor for Public Prosecutions (NSW) (Crown) File Number(s): 2023/186071

JUDGMENT – ex tempore

Introduction 1. Steven Watson is for sentence today for a number of drug supply offences. 2. He was born in 1989. On 13 December 2022 he was released to parole after serving the non-parole period of a drug supply offence sentence. He was subject to parole until 17 June 2023. 3. On 9 June 2023 police stopped the vehicle he was driving in the Wollongong suburb of Fairy Meadow. There were drugs in the car, some of which were thrown from the car prior to the police stop. Despite his initial evasions and denials, which would appear to be the result of him not thinking very clearly at the time and perhaps being drug affected, when he was before the Local Court he said he would plead guilty to four drug supply offences. Each was charged pursuant to s 25(1) Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act 1985 (NSW). 4. The supply offences were charged separately because each relates to a different illicit drug: * Sequence 2: Supply 41.8 grams of methylamphetamine; * Sequence 3: Supply 13.7 grams of cocaine; * Sequence 4: Supply 25.71 grams of 3, 4 MDMA; and * Sequence 5: Supply of 13.6 grams of heroin. 1. He also asked when I sentenced him for the supply of methylamphetamine (Sequence 2) that I take into account three additional offences on a Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 (NSW) Form 1: Possession of cannabis; Possession of a restricted substant SUS250, I believe to be a steroid; And possession of $3,835 of Australian currency, suspected of being the proceeds of crime.