STATE OF TASMANIA v JEDD CURTIS LEGGETT 9 DECEMBER 2022
COMMENTS ON PASSING SENTENCE ESTCOURT J
The defendant Jed Curtis Leggett, aged 33, pleaded guilty on 15 June 2021 to three counts of unlawfully setting fire to property and three related counts of creating a nuisance.
After hearing the facts and a plea in mitigation I made an order deferring sentence until 4.00 pm on Tuesday, 1 February 2022 and I have periodically continued to defer sentence until today. The reason being that it is clear that the defendant was under the influence of drugs at the time of the offending but has since then voluntarily and successfully it seems, embarked upon a rehabilitation program addressing his addiction.
On Saturday 7 December 2019, at around 10.15am, the defendant entered the Woolworths Supermarket in the Claremont Village shopping centre. He collected a shopping basket at the front of the store and spent a number of minutes walking through the store and placing items into the basket. At about 10.40am, he walked down aisle 9 of the store and placed his shopping basket on a shelf among a number of products. Using a firelighter, he set fire to the shopping basket and its contents and left the store.
In total, around 200 people were evacuated from the complex. Several customers were confused and concerned about what was happening. There was a small number of elderly people in the complex who had to be assisted to evacuate.
Damage was caused to the products immediately surrounding the basket, and as a result of the sprinkler system being activated, further water damage was caused to stock throughout the entire store. In total, approximately $5,000.00 worth of stock was damaged. Given the store had to be closed for several hours for clean-up, I am told the store also lost approximately $30,000.00 in profits.
On Monday 9 December 2019, at around 7.40pm, the defendant entered Coles supermarket in Glenorchy and collected a shopping basket from the front of the store.
Minutes later, he placed the basket with a number of grocery items in it on a shelf among a number of cleaning products and set it on fire. He then left the store. Cleaning cloths directly surrounding the basket caught fire.
Customers in the store saw the fire and alerted staff members who put it out using fire extinguishers. All staff and customers were evacuated from the store. The store was closed for the remainder of the day, and I am told that the loss incurred as a result of damaged goods and loss of profit was approximately $30,000.00.
On Friday 13 December 2019 at around 9.50am, the defendant entered the Kmart Newtown. Once inside the store, the defendant took a reel of fishing line from the outdoor area of the store and walked to the store’s toy section. While in the toy section, the defendant placed the reel of line on a shelf and set it on fire using a bottle of isopropyl alcohol which he had brought into the store with him. He then left.
A customer saw the fire and notified a staff member who put it out with a fire extinguisher. A number of staff members saw smoke and were panicked. The store and many other stores within the shopping complex were evacuated. Many customers were concerned and annoyed about the evacuation process.
Pursuant to s 68 (1) of the Sentencing Act 1997, a compensation order is sought in favour of Woolworths Supermarket, in an amount to be assessed. I make that order and adjourn the assessment to a date to be fixed.
Similarly, a Compensation Order is sought in favour of Coles Supermarket, in an amount to be assessed. I make that order and adjourn the assessment to a date to be fixed.
And a third Compensation Order is sought in favour of Kmart, in an amount to be assessed. I make that order and adjourn the assessment to a date to be fixed.
The defendant has prior convictions but not for any similar offending. He spent 34 days in custody in respect of these offences before being released on bail and I take that very much into account for sentencing purposes.
I have had the advantage of a pre-sentence report which informs me that the defendant had a traumatic childhood. His mother passed away when he was 13 years of age as a result of a car accident. Prior to her death, she suffered from significant mental health conditions and consequently spent time at the Royal Derwent Hospital. She left the defendant’s father when he was approximately nine-years old, forming a new relationship. The defendant describes his step-father as physically abusive. Throughout his childhood, the defendant reported exposure to alcohol and cannabis. He became addicted to methyl amphetamine.
The defendant is currently living at the Velocity Transformations House, in West Moonah and has done so since the start of his rehabilitation program in February 2021. He resides there with 11 other people. He has now completed his period of rehabilitation and is pursuing community service having completed a Certificate III in Community Services, as well as gaining other skills and qualifications. He is now also working as a Residential Leader at the Velocity Transformations House.
The defendant reported to the author of the pre-sentence report that he suspected he was experiencing psychosis at the time of the offending, and that he was under the influence of ICE. He said the period of the offending was a time when his ICE addiction was at its worse, reporting that he was using the drug every day. He expressed regret and remorse for his actions. He identified the people who were at the supermarket at the time as victims of his offending, especially the elderly, commenting ‘they would have been scared’.
He has since addressed his ICE addiction, as indicated, and he has reported a strong motivation to continue his sobriety. I have a reasonable degree of confidence that he will do so and I am of the view that I no longer need to delay sentencing. And in view of his success, I approach sentencing in a way similar to someone who has graduated from CMD, although the situation here, of course, is reversed.
As submitted by counsel for the State this offending involved three separate occasions and the public was alarmed. Ordinarily, specific deterrence would loom large as a sentencing consideration. However, in view of the effective cause of the offending and the defendant’s rehabilitation, an immediate custodial sentence is not warranted.
The defendant is convicted and sentenced to 18 months’ imprisonment. which sentence I wholly suspend on condition that he commit no offence punishable by imprisonment for a period of two years.