Regina v Patricia Ann Fuller [2007] NSWDC 354

New South Wales District Court

CITATION: Regina v Patricia Ann Fuller [2007] NSWDC 354 This decision has been amended. Please see the end of the judgment for a list of the amendments.

JUDGMENT DATE: 7 August 2007

JURISDICTION: District Court of New South Wales

JUDGMENT OF: Cogswell SC DCJ at 1

DECISION: Appeal allowed. Sentence set aside. Two months imprisonment suspended upon entering into a good behaviour bond under s12 Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999.

CATCHWORDS: Criminal law - Sentence appeal - Assault police officer - Obstruct police - Alcohol problem - Need for courts to support police

LEGISLATION CITED: s60 Crimes Act 1900 ss 12, 21A Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999

PARTIES: Regina Patricia Ann Fuller

FILE NUMBER(S): 07/32/0394

SOLICITORS: Ms Harris for the NSW DPP Mr North for the appellant

JUDGMENT 1. The question in this case is how I should deal with an offender who has an alcohol problem and who is attempting to combat that alcohol problem but committed the serious offence of assaulting a police officer.

2. The offender is Patricia Ann Fuller. She was dealt with by a Local Court magistrate for two offences. One was 'obstructing a police officer in the execution of duty' and the other was 'assaulting an officer in the execution of duty'. In respect of the first offence she was fined $400 by the learned magistrate and in respect of the second offence she was imprisoned for two months to commence on 12 June 2007.

HIS HONOUR: Mr North, is there an appeal from the 'wilfully obstruct officer'?

NORTH: No your Honour.

3. The appeal to this court is from the conviction for assaulting a police officer in the execution of duty. The police facts are these and are contained in exhibit A. Ms Fuller was at a hotel on 4 April 2007 at Coopernook. She was there with her de facto Shane Miller. There was some incident which prompted Ms Fuller to call the police in respect of Mr Miller but when the police arrived and determined that they should arrest Mr Miller, Ms Fuller had changed her mind about the desirability of Mr Miller being arrested. She held onto Mr Miller preventing the police from taking him away. She stood between Mr Miller and the police at one stage. As the police were trying to remove Mr Miller from Ms Fuller's hold she at one stage swung around and started to punch into the chest and face of one of the police officers, Senior Constable Murray. She continued to punch him in the body area until she was arrested. She herself was placed in the rear of the police vehicle.