STATE OF TASMANIA v ANDREW DENNIS DARE 4 OCTOBER 2023
COMMENTS ON PASSING SENTENCE ESTCOURT J
The defendant, Andrew Dennis Dare, aged 40, has pleaded guilty to counts 2, 3, 5 and 6 on indictment 214/2022. The crimes are respectively stealing, unlawfully injuring property, arson and obstructing a police officer. In addition, I have agreed to deal with a plea of guilty to one summary charge pursuant to s 385A of the Criminal Code, namely charge 4 on CN 54149/2021 – a charge of common assault.
On 29 November 2021, at approximately 6.30 am., the complainant, Melisa Ann Robinson who is the defendant’s sister and lived in Flowerdale, received a phone call from the defendant asking her to pick him up from Somerset. The phone call was ended by Ms. Robinson who told the defendant she was not going to pick him up and in response, the defendant started swearing at her. At approximately 8.15 am the same morning, Ms Robinson was at her home when the defendant entered her home without her permission and said to her, “Give me my keys, I need your car.”
Ms Robinson noted that the defendant was highly agitated and that his eyes were huge. He grabbed her by her neck with both hands and squeezed. Ms Robinson later told police that he squeezed so tight that she could not even speak and she was not sure how long he had her by the throat and thought it may have been about 30 seconds. The defendant loosened his grip, enabling Ms Robinson to get her hand bag and take the keys to her car out. She gave them to the defendant, who stormed off without saying anything and left. He headed in the direction of their mother’s house.
The defendant’s mother, Dianne Margaret Dare, owns a property at Preolenna. The defendant had been staying at her house until about a week prior to this day. On that day she took her dog for a walk and when she returned, the defendant was on her property and her daughter Melisa’s motor vehicle was there and had been driven into her water tank, damaging it.
Vanessa Maree Dare was woken by the sound of her mother’s voice and so looked outside and soon realised the defendant was at her home. Ms Dare locked her bedroom door, hid and called police. She heard banging on her bedroom door and the defendant calling her name. She did not respond, preferring to remain silent in the hope that he would assume that she was not there. Ms Dare heard the sound of things smashing in her mother’s bedroom for approximately one minute, after which the defendant broke her bedroom door and walked into the room. The defendant was angry and agitated and demanded cigarettes from Ms Dare. She complied and gave him some. He told her to get out because he was going to burn the house down. She could smell fuel and she ran out.
At about 8.00 am, Jack Graeme Ansell, a police officer, was tasked, along with other officers, to attend the Preolenna Road, address. As he approached the premises, he announced himself as a police officer. At this time, he could hear yelling and smashing coming from inside the premises and smelt a strong smell of petrol. He then saw a male through the glass at the front of the door and recognised that male to be the defendant. Officer Ansell attempted to negotiate with the defendant who was threatening to burn the house down at the time, continuing to yell and break things inside. He spoke with the defendant through the front window and the defendant told the officer that he was “done”. The defendant later returned to the window and the officer could see him holding a jerry can of petrol and began covering the premises with it. The defendant was also seen to be holding a match in his hand.
Throughout this time, the defendant continued yelling and moved around the premises while Officer Ansell continued to attempt to negotiate with him. Additional police officers arrived on scene and a cordon was established.
Detective Senior Constable Wood arrived on the premises and he and Officer Ansell continued negotiations with the defendant. They made their way to the rear of the premises and continued to speak to the defendant, with negotiations continuing for a number of hours. Throughout this process, the defendant continued moving through the house and police became aware that he had armed himself with a knife. Smoke was seen coming from the residence on a number of occasions, resulting in the smoke alarm activating inside.
Once the fire took hold, it burned for approximately four minutes before being controlled by attending fire officers, who were already on the scene. The timely response from the fire officers limited the damage to the residence which was constructed of timber frames, with a corrugated iron roof and walls clad with weatherboards and timber framed windows. The damage has been loosely estimated at around $45,000.
As the substantial fire impacted the structure, the defendant smashed the lounge room window and started to climb out of the premises, however as police attempted to take hold of him and assist him to safety, he attempted to retreat inside and police were forced to deploy O.C. spray. After something of a struggle, they were eventually able to restrain him, pull him from within the house and handcuff him. He was arrested and cautioned. He told the police he had not slept for several days and had been using illicit drugs to excess and had used “ice” the previous day.
The defendant was detained at the Burnie Police Station and given time to rest and the following morning he was asked if he wished to participate in a record of interview. He exercised his right to remain silent.
While police were notified of an incident at around 8.00am, the defendant was eventually taken from the residence at around midday. Fire and Ambulance personnel, as noted, attended the scene as well as part of the four hour long episode.
The defendant has been in custody since his arrest on 29 November, 2021. An indictment was filed on 5 September, 2022.
The defendant was subject to an abusive relationship with his father who was violent and abusive toward the family. The experience of witnessing and suffering family violence has had a lasting and profound consequence on him and may, in some ways, explain his offending history. In terms of his adult life, the defendant has had a long history of contact with the criminal justice system and has many previous offences. There is a record of an admission into the Wilfred Lopes Centre in 2007 with suicidal ideation. Psychologist’s reports suggest that he has a long history of anxiety and depression and an ongoing problem with drug abuse affecting his function or functioning. He has spent a significant amount of the last fifteen years in prison,
The relationship between the defendant and his mother leading up to the day of the offending became acrimonious and he became homeless. He lived on the streets and stayed when he could at the Safe Space in Burnie. He relapsed into illicit substance use. On 24 November 2021 he was taken by police to the department of emergency medicine in the North West General Hospital. He was referred to a local crisis centre and assessment team for mental health assessment.
There was a report of him suffering auditory hallucinations and then the local crisis and assessment team were unable to contact him. He remained homeless, ruminated on the failed relationships with his family, re-living childhood memories and was using methylamphetamine. He then had a bad reaction to some drugs that he had taken. He was sleep deprived and suicidal. The complainant, as to the common assault charge, has forwarded a letter of forgiveness, indicating that they have put the matters behind them. The defendant, in turn, has contacted her and apologised for his actions on the day.
In summary, on the day, the defendant was suicidal and attempted to end his life. He told police that he had had enough. He had contemplated whether he would end his life with a knife, or a motor vehicle, or petrol. The other charges, including the common assault and the damaging of the water tank, are really collateral to the circumstances that led to the fire being lit.
I am told that the defendant immediately regretted what he did and tried to smother the fire but it got out of control. I am told that he has accepted his responsibility by entering this plea of guilty.
A prison report has been prepared suggesting that strategies for him upon release from prison are being looked at and there is the possibility of an NDIS plan.
In all of the circumstances, I am of the view that this is not a suitable case to make the defendant a vehicle for general deterrence, and I am of the view that the defendant has spent more than enough time in custody. The defendant is convicted of each of the offences to which he has pleaded guilty and is sentenced to one year and ten months and one week imprisonment, backdated to 29 November 2021. By my calculation that will see the defendant eligible for release on Friday of this week.