R v Bittar, Louise [2010] NSWDC 263

New South Wales District Court

CITATION: R v Bittar, Louise [2010] NSWDC 263

HEARING DATE(S): 26/08/10 and 27/08/10

JUDGMENT DATE: 17 September 2010

JURISDICTION: Criminal

JUDGMENT OF: Nicholson SC DCJ

DECISION: Convicted. Pursuant to Section 11 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 conditional bail granted for the purpose of assessing the offender's capacity and prospects for rehabilitation .

CATCHWORDS: Criminal Law - sentencing - attempted arm robbery - female offender - armed with claw hammer - wearing balacalava - demands cash at fast food outlet - off duty security guard apprehends offender - police arrive - thereafter full cooperation with police - acts completed in pursuit of criminal purpose - 25 year old offender - difficult and sometimes traumatic childhood - drug abuse issues - contrition - full time rehabilitation at Guthrie House - importance of rehabilitation - s.11 conditional bail granted.

LEGISLATION CITED: Crime (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999

CASES CITED: Griffiths v The Queen (1977) 137 CLR 293

PARTIES: Regina Louise Bittar

FILE NUMBER(S): 2010/64263

COUNSEL: Defence: P Kintominas

SOLICITORS: Crown Mr. K Prince

JUDGMENT 1. Louise Bittar was committed for sentence on 16 June 2010 from the Burwood Local Court, on a charge that she between 9.50 and 10pm on 12 March 2010, at Greenacre, attempted to rob Hassan El-M Ahad of certain property, to whit Australia currency, the property of Red Rooster Pty Ltd while she was armed with an offensive weapon, namely a claw hammer. 2. The circumstances of that offence were that at about 9.50pm on that date she entered the Red Rooster restaurant, on the Hume Highway at Chullora. She was wearing a black balaclava, blue short jacket, black tracksuit pants and brown shoes. At the time she came into the shop she had a claw hammer in her left hand and a plastic shopping bag in her right. The manager, a 19-year-old, Mr El-M Ahad, noticed her walk in and told his workers to go and lock themselves into the office. As I say, if anyone comes in with a balaclava it does not take Einstein to realise what is about to happen. 3. She approached the front counter where he was standing. He said to her, "What do you want?" She replied, "I want all the cash in the store." The manager replied, "Yes, okay," and opened the till. He began to take the cash out of the registry and at the same time activated the hold-up alarm situated under the counter next to the till. 4. He spoke to her in an attempt to distract her. He said, "Why are doing this for? You're risking yourself over a couple of hundred dollars." The offender replied, "I owe people money and if I don't get it back to them, they're going to kill me." He said, "It's your fault for getting yourself into this." Her response was to raise the hammer towards him, saying, "Give me the money now." He said, "Relax, I don't want any trouble because there are people under age here and I don't want anyone getting hurt. I'm responsible for the people who are working here." She said, "I won't hurt anyone if you give me the money." The manager said, "Well, I'll get you the money. Do you need a bag?" She replied, "No, I've got one." 5. He began handing the money over, but decided he would not give any money to her. He said to her, "I'm not going to give you shit. You are sad, low-life coward. You'll get what you deserve." She again raised the hammer head height towards him and demanded the money. He said, "What are you doing this for? Just leave us and go. There is still time for you to go." 6. One Matthew Atkinson, who is a licensed security guard, was sitting at a table behind the offender, waiting for his food order to arrive. He approached behind her, put his right arm around her neck in a chokehold, reached with his left hand and attempted to grab the hammer and wrestle it from her. He removed the hammer from the offender who was struggling to hang on to it. 7. The manager took possession of the hammer and then went to the front door and locked it, to close off any escape route. Atkinson held her in a chokehold for a few minutes. She struggled, saying "I can't breathe, I can't breathe" - I interpolate, if she was able to talk, she should have been able to breathe. Atkinson loosened his grip upon her, saying, "You can breathe, relax. Stop struggling, take a deep breath." 8. One of the employees grabbed the balaclava, pulled it from her face. It was at this point, for the first time, that Atkinson and I suspect El-M Ahad realised she, the offender, was a woman. Atkinson did not wish to harm her, so he asked her to get on the floor and lie down. She failed to comply with the request and complained further that she was being choked. The request was repeated a number of times, she continued to struggle. 9. He used his right leg to sweep both of hers from under her, causing her to fall to the ground on her stomach. He then detained her in a wrist and leg lock. She was saying, "I want to go, you're hurting me. I want to go." I note for the moment that she had been given that offer some couple of minutes before and had decided not to accept it. 10. The manager assisted Atkinson in detaining her until the police arrived. Their arrival is said to have been a couple of minutes later. Upon their arrival they arrested her. She was handcuffed, placed into the rear of a caged vehicle, conveyed to Bankstown Police Station and the normal procedures after arrest were pursued. While there had been a short struggle to the point of her arrest, it would appear that thereafter she cooperated with the police. She was interviewed in an ERISP and made full and frank admissions, including the following: + That she produced the hammer with the intention of scaring employees to give her money; + However she had no intent of hitting the employees with the hammer or harming them. + She needed money to buy food and support herself; + She stated she had debts to pay and people who were after her and going to kill her; + She told police she had planned the robbery by herself; + She claimed she was assaulted, rather than restrained by the male witness; + When shown the hammer, the balaclava, the plastic shopping bag, the set of car keys located at the scene, she conceded that all items belonged to her. She agreed that the hammer that she was shown was used to scare employees, the balaclava to cover her face and the shopping bag to avoid leaving fingerprints at the scene.