R v Bendt [2003] NSWCCA 78

New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal

CITATION : R v Bendt [2003] NSWCCA 78 HEARING DATE(S) : 14/03/03 JUDGMENT DATE : 14 March 2003

JUDGMENT OF : Meagher JA at 1, 26; Dowd J at 24; Barr J at 25 DECISION : See Para 20, page 5.

CATCHWORDS : s. 18 Children (Criminal Proceedings) Act 1987 - Whether serious indictable offence or not - Whether defendant a 'child' within the meaning of Act - exercise of trial judge's discretion under s. 18 - Factors to be taken into account. LEGISLATION CITED : Children (Criminal Proceedings) Act 1987 Regina PARTIES : v Bendt FILE NUMBER(S) : CCA 60502 of 2002 COUNSEL : Crown: D M L Woodburne Respondent: T Molomby SC SOLICITORS : Crown: S E O'Connor Respondent: D J Humphreys

LOWER COURT District Court JURISDICTION : LOWER COURT DC 02/21/3296 FILE NUMBER(S) : LOWER COURT Moore J JUDICIAL OFFICER :

IN THE COURT OF CRIMINAL APPEAL CCA 60502 of 2002

MEAGHER JA DOWD J BARR J

Friday, 14 March 2003 REGINA v BENDT Judgment 1 MEAGHER JA: This is an appeal by the Director of Public Prosecutions pursuant to s.5D of the Criminal Appeal Act against the sentence imposed by Judge Moore at the Campbelltown District Court on 12 October 2002. 2 Mr Bendt, the respondent, pleaded guilty to two counts of robbery in company at the Campbelltown Children's Court on 18 June 2002. The indictment presented to the District Court replaced a plea of committal in substantially the same terms and Mr Bendt, in effect, adhered to his plea in front of Judge Moore. He also asked for two further charges of robbery in company arising from the same incident to be taken into account on sentence. 3 His Honour sentenced Mr Bendt as a child under the Children (Criminal Proceedings) Act 1987. His Honour's precise order appears to be: "There will be a control order of 18 months, which I will suspend from your entry into a bond to be of good behaviour for that period. If there is any breach of that bond in that 18 months, then you can expect you will go into a juvenile detention institution in that 18 months at whatever time that breach may occur."