Read the full judgment text of CACC 298/2008 on BabelCite. This Court of Appeal judgment was delivered on 14 January 2009 before Cheung JA and Yeung JA.
Criminal law – dangerous drugs – manufacturing of dangerous drugs – cocaine – 4.39 grammes seized with manufacturing paraphernalia in a hotel room – Applicant pleaded guilty – whether starting point of 6 years' imprisonment for drug manufacturing is appropriate – whether sentence of 4 years' imprisonment is manifestly excessive – application for leave to appeal against sentence dismissed. Sentencing – drug manufacturing – gravity of offence – drug manufacturing is the most serious of all drug-related offences because it converts raw materials into drugs ready for consumption and supplies them to drug addicts – quantity of drugs seized is not the sole or dominant consideration in determining starting point – relevant factors include scale of operation, capacity of equipment, output of drugs, and role played by the accused – an appropriate minimum starting point for drug manufacturing is 6 years' imprisonment irrespective of quantity of drugs seized. Sentencing – relationship between drug manufacturing and drug trafficking – starting point for manufacturing should be more severe than that for trafficking in the same quantity of drugs – 1.8 times multiplier affirmed from HKSAR v Wong Ping Kay – distinguished from HKSAR v Chan Fai where no manufactured drug was found. Sentencing – hotel room hired for only 2½ hours – use of hotel room shows planning and effort to evade detection – Applicant played a major role, having admitted conducting the process from beginning to end. Authorities – The Queen v Wong Chun Ping & Others [1984] HKLR 247 – only in exceptional cases (e.g., very small equipment capacity) should a court consider a sentence of less than ten years for manufacturing dangerous drugs – much higher sentences if the manufacturing station had been producing or was likely to produce substantial quantities of dangerous drugs. R v Cheung Wai Kwong & Another [1997] HKLRD 344 followed. Outcome – application for leave to appeal against sentence dismissed; sentence of 4 years' imprisonment upheld (starting point 6 years, one-third discount for guilty plea).
Legal issues: Whether the starting point of 6 years' imprisonment for manufacturing dangerous drugs is appropriate · Whether the 1.8 times multiplier for manufacturing over trafficking is correct · Whether the final sentence of 4 years' imprisonment is manifestly excessive
Outcome: Application for leave to appeal against sentence dismissed; the sentence of 4 years' imprisonment is upheld.
Cites 2 cases