The Queen v. Wong Kai-chung
Read the full judgment text of CACC 162/1984 on BabelCite. This Court of Appeal judgment.
1. The appellant was caught in the act of picking the pocket of a woman in Sheung Shui. He pleaded guilty to one charge of theft and was sentenced to 9 months imprisonment.
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CACC000162/1984 Deterrent sentence not appropriate in case of first conviction for pickpocketing. IN THE SUPREME COURT OF HONG KONG
BETWEEN
Coram: Bewley, J. in Court Date: 17th April, 1984 __________ JUDGMENT __________ 1. The appellant was caught in the act of picking the pocket of a woman in Sheung Shui. He pleaded guilty to one charge of theft and was sentenced to 9 months imprisonment. 2. He is 28 and it is his first conviction involving dishonesty. 3. He had been in irregular employment and was worried about his financial situation. His wife was 8 months pregnant at the time. 4. The probation officer's report was favourable and 12 months probation was recommended. The magistrate however took the view that, pickpocketing being a prevalent offence and one which is difficult to detect, as well as being an affront to the dignity of the victim, the offence merited condign punishment. 5. Whilst not disagreeing with the magistrate's general attitude towards the offence, I cannot agree that a first offender, particularly where there are mitigating circumstances, as here, should be subject to a deterrent sentence. See Ho Kau v. R. (1) . 6. Should the appellant offend again, he cannot complain if he receives such a term, but on this occasion I think he deserves a chance to put his life in order. In this he may benefit from the help of a probation officer and I therefore allow the appeal and substitute for the prison sentence an order that the appellant be placed on probation for 12 months.
(1) 1978 HKLR 197 Representation: Mr. W.P. Boucaut, Crown Counsel for respondent Mr. Simon Westbrook, Counsel assigned by D.L.A. for the appellant |