R v Hamoui [No 4] [2005] NSWSC 279

New South Wales Supreme Court

CITATION : R v Hamoui [No 4] [2005] NSWSC 279

18/10/04 - 22/10/04 25/10/04 - 29/10/04 1/11/04 - 5/11/04 8/11/04 - 12/11/04 15/11/04 - 19/11/04 HEARING DATE(S) : 22/11/04 - 26/11/94 29/11/04 - 30/11/04 1/12/04 6/12/04 - 10/12/04 13/12/04 - 14/12/04 16/12/04 - 17/12/04

JUDGMENT DATE : 15 April 2005

Common Law Division JURISDICTION : Criminal List

JUDGMENT OF : Kirby J

DECISION : Sentenced to imprisonment for 11 years commencing on 3/11/2001 and expiring on 2/11/2012, with a non parole period of 8 years. Eligible for release to parole on 2 November 2009.

CATCHWORDS : Criminal Practice & Procedure - Jury verdict - not guilty murder - guilty manslaughter - provocation not eliminated - strangulation - victim bound - gratuitous cruelty - sentence towards top range.

LEGISLATION CITED : Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999

Veen v The Queen (No 2) (1988) 164 CLR 465 CASES CITED : The Queen v Previtera (1997) 94 A Crim R 76

Regina PARTIES : Abdul Razzak Hamoui

FILE NUMBER(S) : SC 70776/03

T R Bailey (Crown) COUNSEL : M Ierace SC (Acc)

Ms R Lewis - DPP (Crown) SOLICITORS : Ms C Taylor - Hardin Law (Acc)

LOWER COURT JURISDICTION :

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES COMMON LAW DIVISION CRIMINAL LIST

DAVID KIRBY J

Friday 15 April 2005

70776/03 REGINA v ABDUL RAZZAK HAMOUI

JUDGMENT [No 4] - REMARKS ON SENTENCE 1 KIRBY J: On the afternoon of Monday 25 June 2001 Julie Haklane spoke to her mother by telephone, telling her that she would see her after work. At 4.10 pm she telephoned her boyfriend, Raymond Bayeh. She told him that she had just finished work. She rang again at 5.03 pm. She told Mr Bayeh that she was on the Windsor Road, ten minutes from her home in Merrylands. She invited him to telephone her at home in 15 minutes time, so that they could make arrangements for the evening. 2 That was the last known communication with Julie Haklane. She failed to arrive home at 5.30 pm. She did not thereafter answer her phone. By 5.40 pm her phone messages went through to voicemail. 3 The parents of Ms Haklane were naturally concerned. They were the more concerned because their daughter was a diabetic. She required insulin. She would ordinarily have an insulin injection each afternoon. The parents therefore went to the police. They related to the police their phone conversations with their daughter that afternoon. They also told the police of a tempestuous and long-standing relationship between their daughter and Abdul Razzak Hamoui. 4 That evening the parents and friends of Julie Haklane went to the home of Mr Hamoui in Guildford. However, he was not at home. He arrived home at approximately 11.00 pm that evening or shortly after. Members of the family sought to confront him with their suspicions. Mr Hamoui refused to speak to them. Indeed, he summoned the police. The police came shortly after midnight on Tuesday 26 June 2001. Mr Hamoui told the police that he had not seen Julie Haklane. He knew nothing of her whereabouts. He complained of the harassment of the Haklane family. He said that he feared to go outside his home. 5 On Thursday 28 June 2001, the body of Julie Haklane was found in her car in Eton Street, Fairfield. The car was parked by the side of the road. Julie Haklane was seated in the passenger seat. She had been strangled. There was evidence from residents that the vehicle had been left in Eton Street on the Monday evening. 6 After a lengthy and persistent investigation, Abdul Razzak Hamoui was arrested on 3 November 2001. He was charged with the murder of Julie Haklane. He pleaded not guilty to that charge. On 17 December 2004, after a lengthy trial, the jury returned a verdict of not guilty of murder, but guilty of manslaughter. It remains for me to pass sentence. To do so, I must first determine the facts relevant to the sentencing discretion in a manner consistent with the jury's verdict. Where the facts are adverse, they must be established beyond reasonable doubt. Where they favour Mr Hamoui, it is enough that they should be proved on the balance of probabilities.