R v Hillsley [2005] NSWSC 652

New South Wales Supreme Court

CITATION : R v Hillsley [2005] NSWSC 652

HEARING DATE(S) : 22/10/2004 and 11/03/2005

JUDGMENT DATE : 4 July 2005

JURISDICTION : Common Law Division

JUDGMENT OF : Hidden J at 1

DECISION : See paragraph 42 in detail. Aggregate sentence of thirty years, non-parole period twenty-five years.

CATCHWORDS : CRIMINAL LAW: - Sentence - murder of adult, abduction and sexual assault of child - offender with history of paedophilia - whether offences against child relevant to criminality of murder - whether life sentence appropriate

LEGISLATION CITED : Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act

R v Previtera 91997) 94 ACrim R 76 R v Aslett [2004] NSWSC 1228 R v Harris (2000) 50 NSWLR 409 CASES CITED : Pearce v The Queen (1998) 194 CLR 610 R v Wickham [2004] NSWCCA 193 Veen v The Queen [No2] (1998) 164 CLR 466 R v Villa [2005] NSWCCA 4

Regina PARTIES : Jeffrey John Hillsley (offender)

FILE NUMBER(S) : SC 2004/35 SCRM

W Dawe QC (Crown) COUNSEL : R Hulme SC (offender)

DPP (Crown) SOLICITORS : Legal Aid Commission (offender)

LOWER COURT JURISDICTION :

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

HIDDEN J

Monday 4 July 2005

2004/35 Regina v Jeffrey John Hillsley

JUDGMENT – REMARKS ON SENTENCE 1 HIS HONOUR: The offender, Jeffrey John Hillsley, pleaded guilty on arraignment in this Court to an indictment containing six counts. The first five counts arise from a course of events between 31 December 2003 and 1 January 2004. The first count is the murder of Michael John Davies. The second and third counts are the aggravated sexual assault of Mr Davies' ten-year-old step-daughter, the circumstances of aggravation being her age and the fact that she was threatened with actual bodily harm by the use of a knife. The fourth count is the kidnapping of the same child, that is, her being taken with the intention of obtaining the advantage of having sexual intercourse with her. The fifth count is a further aggravated sexual assault upon the child, the only circumstance of aggravation being her age. The sixth count is yet another aggravated sexual assault upon the child on an earlier occasion in December 2003, the circumstance of aggravation again being her age. 2 The charge of murder carries a maximum sentence of imprisonment for life. Each of the charges of aggravated sexual assault carries a maximum sentence of twenty years imprisonment. The charge of kidnapping carries a maximum prison term of fourteen years.