Lau Man Kwong v. The Queen
Read the full judgment text of CACC 469/1973 on BabelCite. This Court of Appeal judgment.
1. The appellant is 18 years old and at the time of his present conviction for robbery he was already serving two consecutive sentences of two years each in respect of other robberies. That fact, despite his tender years, need occasion no surprise. In Cr. App. No. 408 of 1971, in delivering judgment in the Full Court, in a case in which, on appeal against sentence of detention in a training centre, the court quashed those sentences and sent the appellants to prison instead, I said:
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CACC000469/1973 IN THE SUPREME COURT OF HONG KONG (APPELLATE JURISDICTION) CRIMINAL APPEAL NO. 469 OF 1973 -----------------
----------------- Coram: Pickering, J. Date of Judgment: 27th June, 1973. ----------------- JUDGMENT ----------------- 1. The appellant is 18 years old and at the time of his present conviction for robbery he was already serving two consecutive sentences of two years each in respect of other robberies. That fact, despite his tender years, need occasion no surprise. In Cr. App. No. 408 of 1971, in delivering judgment in the Full Court, in a case in which, on appeal against sentence of detention in a training centre, the court quashed those sentences and sent the appellants to prison instead, I said:
2. That was a case of wounding with intent to do grievous bodily harm but since that time it had been by no means uncommon for youths of 17 years and over convicted of robbery or other crimes of violence, to have been sent to prison rather than to a training centre. 3. In respect of the present offence of robbery, the appellant was sentenced to a further term of two years imprisonment, such term to be consecutive to the total term of four years imprisonment which he is now serving. 4. The facts of the present robbery were serious. At 4 o'clock in the afternoon of the 2nd January 1973 the amah at Flat F, 52 Hillwood Road, 10th floor, Kowloon, answered a ring at the door bell, first taking the precaution of looking through the iron grille, on the other side of which she saw a Chinese man who told her that he had a gift for her mistress. Suspecting nothing, the amah opened the grille, whereupon the man entered, followed by two other Chinese men; the trio pushed her into a chair and tied her up with string. One of the men was armed with a knife. The robbers then set about ransacking the premises and stealing valuables; before their departure they cut the telephone wires; the value of the properties stolen was in excess of $30,000. 5. Considered in isolation, the serious facts of this case undoubtedly merited the sentence of two years imprisonment imposed upon the appellant but, whilst I am far from saying that the learned magistrate was wrong in imposing the sentence which he did, I am concerned at the totality of the sentences with which this very young man now faces. At the tender age of 18 he has been sentenced to terms of imprisonment which amount in total to one-third of his young life so far. Such a fate, whilst I am not unmindful of the seriousness of his present offence and have no knowledge of the details of the other two robberies, cannot but have a traumatic effect upon a youth of his years. That he must be punished for this serious offence goes without saying and that imprisonment is the appropriate form of punishment is equally clear. The very nature of the offence does not leave me much room for manoeuvre but, having regard to the considerations which I have set down, and not without hesitation, I allow the appeal to the extent that the sentence of two years imp isonment to be served consecutively with the total sentences of four years imprisonment which the appellant is now serving, will be reduced to one year's consecutive imprisonment. Representation: Appellant in person Gall, C.C., for respondent. |