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Police v FPM [2016] WSYC 3 (21 July 2016)

YOUTH COURT OF SAMOA
Police v FPM [2016] WSYC 3

YOUTH COURT OF SAMOA
HELD AT MULINUU

BETWEEN

POLICE
Informant

AND

FPM, male of Fasitoouta.
Young Person

Counsel:
Mr A. Tumua for National Prosecution Office
Young Person Unrepresented

Sentence: 21 July 2016

SENTENCE BY JUDGE ROMA

Charge

1. FPM, you appear this morning for sentence on the following charges:
   • (i) 4 charges of Burglary (s 174(1), Crimes Act 2013) with a maximum penalty of 10 years imprisonment for each charge;
   • (ii) 1 charge of Theft (s 184(a), Crimes Act 2013) with a maximum penalty of 7 years imprisonment.
2. On these 5 charges, you are liable to a total maximum penalty of 47 years imprisonment, a clear indication of the seriousness of the charges against you.
3. The prosecution Summary refers to 1 charge of Intentional Damage. There is no such charge before the Court and you will be sentenced on the charges referred to in paragraph 1 above only.

Offending

4. According to the Summary, you committed 3 charges of burglary and the one of theft on 17 April 2016, a Sunday afternoon when most people were resting following the usual Sunday services and ‘toonai’ (lunch).
5. With an adult co accused, you went onto the first complainant’s fenced property at Faistoouta, climbed the fence and used a knife to cut the screens of one of the dwellings. You then entered and took several items from there.
6. You then moved to the first complainant’s shop on the same property, used a metal to break the door locks, entered the shop and again stole several goods and items.
7. After that you both moved to the first complainant’s garage. You broke the lock to the garage, loaded the vehicle that was inside the garage with items you stole earlier from the dwelling and shop. You then pushed the first complainant’s vehicle outside the garage, cut the barbed wire fence, pushed the vehicle outside the fence and somehow managed to start the vehicle, then you drove off the first complainant’s property.
8. That was a lot to do on a Sunday afternoon.
9. Early the next morning, you and your co accused went onto the Nuuausala College compound and broke into the Principal’s office.
10. In the pre sentence report, you told Probation that you and your co accused were encouraged by another adult to go onto the first complainant’s property and commit the offences therein. You also told Probation that you were the one driving the vehicle, and when it ran out of petrol, you both decided to break into the second complainant’s office to charge your phones.

Victims

11. The first victims are a couple of Fasitoouta and Australia. They were overseas at the time of your offending.
12. The second victim is Nuuausala College, a school that you attended at the time of your offending and from which you have since been expelled.

Accused Young Person

13. You are now 15 years of age. Following your expulsion from Nuuausala College, you have enrolled and currently attend Sagaga College.
14. You are also the eldest of 4 siblings. Your family depends on your parents’ plantation for support.

Aggravating factors relating to your offending

15. The following are aggravating factors relating to your offending:
    • (i) Premeditation – From the pre sentence report, you and your co accused had planned your invasion of the first complainant’s property the evening before. You both knew that the first complainant’s property was left unattended and on a Sunday afternoon when everyone was resting, you carried out a series of offending;
    • (ii) Nature and series of offending – your offending involved invasion of property. It was not an isolated act. You broke into 3 different houses, one after the other, on the first complainant’s property. You did not stop there because the next morning, you also broke into the second complainant’s Principal’s office;
    • (iii) Damage to and loss of property – your offending caused damage to the both complainant’s properties and loss of the first complainant’s items, though the vehicle has since been returned to the first complainant;
    • (iv) Prevalence of the offending –Far too often now, young persons like you have appeared before this Court for the same offences.

Mitigating factors relating to your offending

16. In respect of the first complainants, I take into account that their vehicle has since been returned.

Aggravating factors relating to you as an offender

17. There are no aggravating factors relating to you as an offender.

Mitigating factors relating to you as an offender

18. The following are mitigating factors relating to you as an offender:
    • (i) Your earliest guilty pleas to all charges. I have observed you in all your court appearances. You have expressed and I accept that you are genuinely remorseful;
    • (ii) Apology rendered by you and your parents to the first complainants and confirmed in the pre sentence report;
    • (iii) Fine of $1,000.00 paid by your family to the village council as relayed to the Court by your father when this matter was last called on 7 July 2016;
    • (iv) Your personal circumstances – You are 15 years of age and a first offender. You are attending school and like most youths, have a big future ahead of you.

Sentencing Principles

19. Relevant in considering the appropriate sentence are the principles referred to in paragraph 3 of the prosecution’s sentencing memorandum. Amongst those are to hold you accountable for the loss and harm caused to the victims; promote a sense of responsibility in you for that loss and harm; provide for the interests of the victims and denounce the conduct in your offending.
20. I am also guided by the sentencing provisions of the Young Offenders Act 2007 under sections 15 and 16.

Discussion

21. In accordance with sections 15 and 16 of the Young Offenders Act 2007, I must firstly decide whether the interests of justice warrant your conviction for these charges.
22. I bear in mind the number of the charges and the gravity of your offending, in particular, that it involved not one but four instances over 2 days; that it involved the theft of several items including a vehicle valued at AUD$30,000.00 which has since been returned.
23. I also bear in mind the seriousness of the charges and the prevalence amongst young offenders, and am satisfied that the interests of justice warrant your conviction on all charges.
24. As to the appropriate sentencing option I impose under section 16, I take into account the mitigating factors relating to you as an offender that have been referred to above, and remind myself of the need for young offenders like you to rehabilitate and reintegrate into the community in accordance with the provisions of the Young Offenders Act 2007.
25. I also consider the pre sentence agreement reached between you and the first complainants at your pre sentence meeting, as stated in the pre sentence report.

Decision

26. You are convicted of all charges and ordered to undertake a sentence of supervision for 9 months with the following conditions:
    • (v) That you complete 80 hours community work to be served with the first complainants in accordance with the pre sentence agreement;
    • (vi) That you attend the Youth Development Programme run by the Samoa Victim Support Group;
    • (vii) That you continue to attend school;
    • (viii) That you observe and comply with a curfew from 7pm to 6am.
27. You are to appear again in this Court for Judicial monitoring at 12.30pm on 20 October 2016.
28. Before you leave Court, you might be interested to know that in the case of another young offender that I had just passed sentence on before your matter was called, I imposed an imprisonment term. The reason is because that young person was given an opportunity like the one I am giving you now, but he did not use it because he reoffended and this time for not one but a number of charges, which were more serious than his previous offence.
29. What I am saying is, if you do not learn from this matter and not change and make better use of the opportunity that you now have, you will end up in prison like the previous young offender.

JUDGE FEPULEAI A ROMA