STATE OF TASMANIA v TRISTAN LEE MUNDAY 2 JULY 2019
COMMENTS ON PASSING SENTENCE BRETT J
Mr Munday, you have pleaded guilty to one count of arson.
You committed the crime on 21 September 2018. On the way home from a night out at a hotel, you and your three companions made the very ill-considered decision to set fire to hay located in the barn of a farming property. It does not seem that you did this for any reason other than the apparent enjoyment to be gained from destroying somebody else’s property. You participated in lighting the fire but, to your credit, before fleeing when you realised that a vehicle was approaching, you did make an unsuccessful attempt to extinguish the fire. The fire brigade subsequently attended but the fire which you had lit ultimately destroyed the barn.
Your conduct was selfish, irresponsible and immature. It also constituted serious criminal conduct. Luckily, no one was hurt, but with structural fire there is always potential for injury or worse to members of the Fire Brigade, owners or other passers-by who might attempt to extinguish the fire. Although the barn was insured, I have no doubt that your conduct resulted in, at the very least, inconvenience, if not actual loss to the farmer concerned.
Your counsel has provided me with a considerable amount of material relating to your background. You are now 21 years of age, and apart from one conviction for a relatively serious traffic offence, you have no criminal history of any significance. The material provided to me suggests that usually you are regarded as a hard-working and reliable young man with excellent potential. The conviction resulting from this act will blemish that reputation, and may possibly have some adverse effect on your future career. You are currently employed as an apprentice carpenter and have ambitions to become a builder. I accept that the conviction itself will have a significant punitive impact upon you.
Your counsel submits that you have insight into the seriousness of this conduct and are remorseful. I accept this submission. It is consistent with your early plea of guilty, your co-operation with the police, which included volunteering a second interview in which you made full admissions of your involvement in this crime, and the fact that you have worked hard to obtain the funds to facilitate the replacement of the lost hay. It is your intention to eventually compensate the loss suffered by, probably the insurance company, in respect of the barn.
In all the circumstances of this case, I think that the appropriate sentence is a community corrections order, primarily intended to facilitate your performance of the period of community service. Accordingly, I convict you of the crime to which you have pleaded guilty and 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 Devonport within three clear days of today. In addition to the core conditions of the order, the order shall also include the following special condition:
You must, within 24 months of today, satisfactorily perform community service, as directed by a probation officer or a supervisor, for 240 hours.
I order that you pay compensation to David Chen in a sum to be determined, and I adjourn determination of that sum sine die.