STATE OF TASMANIA v BRAYDON CHARLES HEYWARD 24 SEPTEMBER 2019
COMMENTS ON PASSING SENTENCE BRETT J
Mr Heyward, you have pleaded guilty to one count of arson.
The crime was committed by you while you and three friends were returning home after a night out at a hotel. When the vehicle stopped for a toilet break, one of your friends suggested the idea of setting fire to some hay in a nearby barn. You agreed, and you and your companion then used cigarette lighters to set fire to the hay. You both attempted to extinguish the fires when you saw another vehicle approaching. You put out the fire you had lit, but despite his attempt to do so, your companion was unsuccessful in extinguishing his fire. After you had fled, the fire took hold and destroyed the barn.
When you were first spoken to by police, you denied involvement in the arson. However, a short time later, while you were still in police custody, you volunteered to participate in a further interview, during which you made full admissions. You have now entered a plea of guilty at a relatively early time.
You are 19 years of age, and were 18 when you committed this crime. At the time, you did not have any prior convictions. You have since been convicted of a couple of minor offences but they are not significant in the context of the commission of this crime. You have recently obtained employment on the mainland on a fly in, fly out basis.
As I said to your co-offender when I sentenced him, your actions were selfish, irresponsible and immature, and constituted serious criminal conduct. The only possible reason for committing such a crime is to derive pleasure from destroying somebody else’s property. Nobody was hurt but there was significant potential for injury or worse to members of the fire brigade, the owner or other passers-by who might attempt to extinguish the fire. I have no doubt that your conduct resulted in inconvenience and probably significant financial loss to the farmer concerned.
I dealt with your companion on his plea of guilty to one count of arson a couple of months ago. He was convicted and required to perform 240 hours of community service. I do not think that there is any significant difference between your culpability and his. He also attempted to extinguish the fire but it is a matter of fortune that he was unsuccessful in doing so, whereas your fire went out. He also had provided funds to facilitate the replacement of the lost hay, and was a young man without significant criminal history.
I intend to deal with you in a similar way. You will be convicted of the crime, which in itself constitutes significant punishment for someone of your age. You must also perform community service. Accordingly, I make a community corrections order. You must comply with the order for a period of 24 months, and that period shall commence today. The core conditions of the order require you to report to a probation officer and you shall do so at the office of Community Corrections in Launceston within clear three clear days of today. In addition to the core conditions, the order shall also include the following special conditions:
1 You must within 24 months of today satisfactorily perform community service as directed by a probation officer or a supervisor for a period of 240 hours.
2 You shall be permitted to leave the State of Tasmania during the operational period of the order, solely for the purposes of your employment outside Tasmania.
I order that you pay compensation to David Chen in a sum to be determined, and I adjourn determination of that sum sine die.