EDITORIAL NOTE: NO SUPPRESSION APPLIED.
IN THE DISTRICT COURT
AT AUCKLAND
CRI-2015-090-004320
[2016] NZDC 21163
THE QUEEN
v
AARON JOSEPH SIMON
Hearing:
25 October 2016
Appearances:
A Watt for the Crown
M-A Lowe for the Defendant
Judgment:
25 October 2016
NOTES OF JUDGE A E KIERNAN ON SENTENCING
[1]
Aaron Simon, you are here for sentence on three offences of supplying
methamphetamine, one of offering to supply and then one charge of supplying
cannabis and one charge of offering to supply. So today is the sentencing date, I
gave you an indication of sentence on 30 September which I have just repeated in
summary in Court and I will go through it again in a moment.
[2]
So all together, there were four convictions entered after you accepted the
sentence indication that I gave you.
So they are offences in relation to the
methamphetamine between 21 June and 4 July, offering to supply. Between 26 June
and 4 July, supply. Then in relation to cannabis, between 18 June and 2 July,
offering to supply and between 24 June and 1 July, supply.
[3]
There was a further charge of possession of cannabis for supply and that was
withdrawn, as you know, at the time you entered your guilty pleas.
R v AARON JOSEPH SIMON [2016] NZDC 21163 [25 October 2016]
[4]
I gave you a sentence indication and stated a number of things in Court. I am
told today that neither counsel have received that so I am going to repeat what I said
then which you heard. I had of course read the submissions of the lawyers and the
indication I gave you was on the summary of facts and essentially, what that says is
over a three week period in the middle of last year, broadly from 17 June to 3 July,
after the analysis of texts on phones, the charges were laid. You offered to supply
9.63 grams of methamphetamine and actually supplied between five and seven
grams.
[5]
Those figures are based for the offer on about a hundred messages and for the
supply, about 30 messages. As far as the cannabis is concerned, offering of 300
grams, 200 or so messages and actual supply of 163 grams recorded in 40 or so
messages. And in the summary of facts, there were examples of some of those
messages.
[6]
As to the money involved, what it said in the summary was that you would
have got about $180 for 0.25 of a gram of methamphetamine. So about four and a
half thousand dollars for what is alleged, which is between five and seven grams and
if I were to take six grams, it would be broadly four and a half thousand dollars.
Obviously, as I said to you, that is not all profit but that would be the amount in
theory of what you would have received.
[7]
For the cannabis, $20 for one gram multiplying that up to 163 grams, about
$3200. So overall, approaching $8000 in sales. Then there are of course the offers.
That is the context of the sentencing today and what I gave you the indication on.
[8]
You have criminal convictions going back some 20 or so years, only three of
them however are drug related and none of them are methamphetamine. Possession
of cannabis back in 2001, sentenced by one month’s periodic detention at that time.
Two possession of items for cannabis in 2011, come up if called upon. At the lower
end therefore of drug offending and not methamphetamine offending. You have
other offending which varies from dishonesty to breaches and so on.
[9]
When I gave you the indication, as you know Mr Simon, it was stood down
on the day so that everyone could have the sentencing notes of Belinda Noyes whom
you were concerned with during this period of offending. For her offending, she
received a term of 12 months’ home detention with post detention conditions and as I
said to you, her offending was different in that the basis of it was 12 to 15 ounces of
cannabis between April and August last year and 12 to 15 grams of
methamphetamine in the same period.
[10]
The sentencing records that she made a profit total for both of the drugs
approaching $8000, so that is profit rather than income as in your case. She received
good discounts from a three year starting point for the methamphetamine and there
was a three month uplift for the cannabis. The discounts she received were because
of her lack of previous convictions, her co-operation with the police, what is referred
to as her extreme remorse, unfortunate background and so on.
[11]
So the Judge did reach a point of two years or less and then imposed home
detention.
Ms Lowe said to me that she had calculated the total discount for
Ms Noyes to be some 40 percent and she only received 15 percent for her pleas. In
your case, I am able to give a higher discount for pleas.
[12]
So those sentencing notes of Ms Noyes, with whom you were concerned
during this period, were relevant because of course I need to take into account, as far
as is possible, some sort of parity. I refer to what the lawyers had said previously
and I am not going to repeat that except to say that Ms Lowe emphasised your
remorse which she said was extreme, that was the word she used.
[13]
You had written a letter to the Court which I noted. You have family support.
She told me in some detail about the things that have happened in your life and what
she called a predisposition to addiction. She points out that you do have support, not
only of family but of a partner in the South Island and you are in good contact with
your sons in Wairoa. She said to me at that time, you had been doing courses on
remand.
[14]
So I read the letter that you wrote to the Court, Mr Simon, and that was
clearly a heartfelt letter. Addiction is an issue for you and I said to you it would
continue to be obviously when you leave the prison. But I noted that you hoped to
restart your life and that is echoed today in the probation report. I also had the letter
from your grandmother, she sets out that personal family history. I am aware of the
sadness of your mother’s death and all of that background.
[15]
So the indication which I have just repeated was of a starting point of two
years and nine months for the methamphetamine, uplifted by three months for the
cannabis of.
So three years all together.
A small uplift for those previous
convictions, two months, and then a maximum discount of 25 percent for the pleas
and I gave you a further discount for remorse although as I said to you, the Court
often sees letters from people seeking to put bad events behind them and make their
lives better but in your case, I could see that your life has not been a pattern of drug
supply, though of course you may have been dependent on drugs. So the final
sentence was two years and two months and you accepted that indication.
[16]
So today, Mr Simon, I have the additional assistance of a probation report
which is overall a good report. You took responsibility or accountability for your
offending. You said you had feelings for Ms Noyes, your co-offender. You were
trying to help her out. You say that she would pay you in the form of drugs which
helped you to support your habit and you frankly told the probation officer you have
resorted to drugs on and off since your mother passed away.
[17]
You did express remorse to the probation officer. You maintained you are not
addicted to drugs or alcohol. Well, you have done some courses I know, Mr Simon,
on remand, and you probably will have learnt now if you did not know before, that
certainly addiction is not something that one shrugs off easily. You are assessed to
be at moderate risk in terms of both methamphetamine and cannabis and that of
course relies on the information you have given to the probation officer.
[18]
The Drug Treatment Unit or DTU programme, which I am sure you have
heard of in the prison, is recommended. I imagine there may not be time to do that
now on your sentence. There are some recommended conditions if I was able to
impose special conditions on release. Any release conditions will be a matter for the
Parole Board but certainly drug and alcohol rehabilitation I would anticipate may be
part of them.
[19]
Repeated in the report are the facts about your two sons in Wairoa, your
grandmother in Te Awamutu and other relatives in Melbourne. I read here that you
intend to go and live with your grandmother and look after her. You certainly want
to get out of Auckland and I think that is probably a very good idea, Mr Simon, to
give yourself the best start. Negative associates, as you say, here.
[20]
You told the probation officer you have learnt a lot since coming into the
prison and you would like to pursue further alcohol and drug treatment. I know that
you have had issues with depression in the past.
So I have read that report,
Mr Simon, it will be up to you of course on leaving the prison whether you are able
to keep away from alcohol or drugs and I hope that you will co-operate with
whatever assistance is available to you in the community in due course.
[21]
Ms Lowe today urges me to impose the sentence that I have indicated. She
stresses your remorse and the willingness to undergo programmes in the community
if released on parole. Ms Watt, for the Crown, does not seek to make any further
submissions.
[22]
So Mr Simon, if you would stand now please. I am going to impose the
sentence that I indicated on each of the charges which is a term of two years and two
months’ imprisonment.
A E Kiernan
District Court Judge