STATE OF TASMANIA v JESSE ANDREW SMITH 31 OCTOBER 2023
COMMENTS ON PASSING SENTENCE GEASON J
On 23 January 2022, at approximately 2.55am, police spoke to a Madeline Goldsmith, outside Grape Food and Wine Bar.
She informed police that, at approximately 2.30am that morning, an argument had occurred between the two of you, on the lawn near Grape. She informed police that you had possession of her car keys, for a silver Suzuki Swift, parked on Gladstone Street in Hobart. She told them that you had been driving her car that morning as she did not have her licence. The vehicle was unregistered and had been since 21 January, and had no premium insurance cover.
At the time you were the holder of a provisional P2 licence.
At approximately 3.15am, police observed you near the vehicle on Gladstone Street in Hobart. You got into the vehicle and drove up Gladstone Street. Police attempted to follow you in an unmarked car, however, they lost sight of you for a short time, before locating you attempting to cut across Hampden Road.
You turned left onto Kirksway Place and continued towards Hampden Road, travelling at an estimated speed of 60 to 65 kilometres per hour, in a 50 kilometre zone.
You made a right-hand turn onto Sandy Bay Road, driving on the incorrect side of the road for a short period.
At approximately 3.18am police attempted to intercept you on Sandy Bay Road, by activating their emergency lights and siren. You failed to stop and sped away at an estimated speed of 60 to 65 in a 50 kilometre zone. You disobeyed a red traffic signal at the Sandy Bay Road and Gladstone Street intersection. You then drove onto the incorrect side of the road, and turned right from Sandy Bay Road onto Davey Street, in the wrong direction and against the flow of traffic.
As you were turning from Sandy Bay Road onto Davey Street, you narrowly missed colliding with a white sedan, which was attempting to turn from Davey Street onto Sandy Bay Road.
You accelerated to an estimated speed of 60 to 65 kilometres per hour on Davey Street, which is a 50 kilometre zone. You hit a traffic sign. This was captured on CCTV footage.
You next turned left from Davey Street onto Salamanca Place. As you turned the vehicle, you clipped the kerb, damaging the left front wheel assembly and activating the vehicle’s airbags. This rendered the vehicle un-driveable. You stopped the vehicle in the middle of the road on Salamanca Place, just outside the Supreme Court.
You ran from the vehicle towards Salamanca Place. Police sighted you running on foot, and arrested you outside Parliament House. You were cautioned and given a breath test, which returned a positive result.
Due to the airbag deployment, you sustained an injury to your left hand which was swollen and bruised at the time of your arrest. You were conveyed to the Hobart Police Station, under question in relation to the consumption of alcohol.
Under caution, you admitted that you had consumed alcohol earlier in the night before driving the vehicle; had your first alcoholic drink at about dinner time; consumed that drink at either Grape or Cargo; and also consumed Southern Comfort, Canadian Club and other mixed spirits. You said you had your last drink about 2am, and did not know the quantity you had consumed. You submitted to a breath analysis which returned a reading of 0.099 grams of alcohol.
At which point you were issued with a road safety disqualification notice for a period of three months, and detained until sober.
On 23 January 2022 you participated in a record of interview again disclosing your drinking earlier in the day before you offended, and telling police that you won money at the Casino and got absolutely blind.
You said you and your girlfriend were drinking shots; you said that an argument had developed but you did not know what you were fighting about and that as soon as you saw police, you freaked and took off. You were aware that you were not meant to drive with alcohol in your system and you did not remember driving on the wrong side of the road.
When asked about whether you attempted to avoid police from pulling you over, you said, “Oh, yes, definitely.” You said did not remember the car stopping, but remembered getting out of the car in Salamanca Place and your arrest.
Sandy Bay Road, Davey Street and Salamanca Place are public streets. Although your conduct took place in the middle of the night, it is asserted and I accept that all of those streets were the subject of frequent pedestrian and vehicle traffic flow, given their location.
You are now aged 24, and single, residing with your mother You are currently in receipt of a Jobseeker allowance.
You have previously worked, have an interest in motor vehicles and have completed tafe training in mechanics.
You have lost your employment due to loss of your drivers licence.
There is little that can be said in mitigation.
It is put that you made sure your various manoeuvres were safe in the sense that you made sure no other vehicles were around when you performed certain illegal manoeuvres, but in the circumstances of your panicked state and having been drinking it is likely that these were made hastily with an eye to getting away from police first and foremost, and I am satisfied they were inherently dangerous, as you accept by your plea.
It is fortunate that your driving was over a relatively short distance –about 1.5kms on wide flat roads. While you exceeded the speed limits it was not by significant margins.
The fact remains that by your driving you placed yourself and others at risk of serious injury and it is for that you are to be punished.
The Court must also mark the seriousness of the offence, and impose a penalty which will deter others.
This category of offending is prevalent which is why the State emphasises the need for general deterrence to be factored in framing a sentencing response. The parliament has marked the seriousness of this offending by making it an indictable offence.
You are a young man and I accept that rehabilitation is an important consideration too.
Your plea of guilty has saved the need for a trial and the associated costs of a trial, and it is also evidence of your acceptance of the seriousness of your behaviour.
A sentence of imprisonment is the appropriate sentencing response in the circumstances.
In all those circumstances I impose a sentence of 12 months imprisonment.
I have determined that in order to encourage your rehabilitation I can properly suspend the operation of that sentence while satisfying the need for punishment and deterrence noting that a condition of that suspension will be that you commit no offence punishable by a term of imprisonment for a period of two years. If you do you may be required to serve that sentence that I have just imposed as well as any additional penalty imposed for that other offending.
The effect of the order on you, is that you have 12 months imprisonment, wholly suspended for two years. You must commit no offence punishable by a term of imprisonment during that period.