Read the full judgment text of CAAR 000022/1995 on BabelCite. This Court of Appeal judgment was delivered on 8 May 1996 before Power, V.-P., Bokhary, J.A. and Sears, J..
Criminal law – sentencing – possession of dangerous drugs in prison – adequacy of sentence – deterrent sentence – totality principle – application for review by Attorney General – respondent swallowed packet of heroin before incarceration – found in possession in Lai Chi Kok Reception Centre – 0.06 grammes of heroin hydrochloride – pleaded guilty – magistrate sentenced to one month concurrent with existing 5½-year sentence – held: sentence manifestly inadequate and wrong in principle – smuggling drugs into prison is serious and requires deterrent sentence – magistrate erred by considering totality before assessing proper sentence – proper sentence for offence: 12 months – totality considered: six months concurrent with existing sentence – overall imprisonment: six years – application succeeded – sentence varied.
Legal issues: Adequacy of sentence for smuggling drugs into prison
Outcome: Application for review succeeded; sentence varied.
Cited by 5 cases