R v Wegener [1999] NSWCCA 405

New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal CITATION : R v Wegener [1999] NSWCCA 405 FILE NUMBER(S) : CCA 60300/99 HEARING DATE(S) : 08/12/99 JUDGMENT DATE : 8 December 1999

PARTIES : Regina v Heinz George Wegener JUDGMENT OF : James J at 1; Sperling J at 29

LOWER COURT JURISDICTION : District Court LOWER COURT FILE NUMBER(S) : 98/11/0483 LOWER COURT JUDICIAL OFFICER : Flannery DCJ

COUNSEL : C K Maxwell (Crown) G Nicholson QC (Applicant) SOLICITORS : SE O'Connor (Crown) Mark Rumore (Aplplicant) CATCHWORDS : Criminal law and procedure: Sentencing - Periodic Detention - Periodic Detention of Prisoners Amendment Act No 43 of 1998 - two stage process required. DECISION : Appeal allowed

IN THE COURT OF

CRIMINAL APPEAL 060300/99 JAMES J SPERLING J WEDNESDAY 8 DECEMBER 1999 REGINA v HEINZ GEORGE WEGENER JUDGMENT

1 JAMES J: Heinz George Wegener has applied for leave to appeal against a sentence imposed on him in the District Court by his Honour Judge Flannery on 10 May 1999, after the applicant had pleaded guilty to one charge of supplying cannabis leaf. His Honour sentenced the applicant to imprisonment for three years to be served by way of periodic detention, commencing from 21 May 1999. 2 The facts of the offence were stated by Judge Flannery in his remarks on sentence as follows: "The short facts are that about 5.50pm on 28 January 1998 at Kingsford Smith Domestic Airport the prisoner Mr Wegener was at that place and the drug detection dogs reacted to a suit carrier as containing illegal narcotics. The carrier had been booked under the flight from Adelaide to Sydney by Mr Wegener. The carrier was placed on to the conveyor belt and went on to the baggage carousel. Mr Wegener removed the carrier from the carousel. He was carrying a black coloured briefcase. Members of the Australian Federal Police approached him and he was conveyed to the baggage office. He conceded that the suit carrier contained cannabis and that the briefcase also contained cannabis. From inspection of both the carrier and the briefcase 17 parcels of what turned out to be cannabis leaf were located, weighing an estimated 7.5 kilograms. The estimated street value being $75,000".