HKSAR v. Wong Ka Lam

DCCC 250/2015

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

CRIMINAL CASE NO 250 OF 2015

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Reasons for Sentence

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1.Mr Wong, you have been convicted after trial of one offence under section 19 of the Offences against the Person Ordinance, and details of that can be found in the verdict given earlier.

2.It appears certainly evident from my findings that this offence is somewhat out of character for you and that has been confirmed in subsequent reports that obtained on you. 

3.The background report discloses that you have been a gentle and peaceful adult with few vices in any triad association.  In the past you have studied hard and worked industriously.  I am told that you have learned a grave lesson from the trial.  Of importance is that your supervisor and company are supportive of you and will keep you in your employment in the same post. 

4.This is a serious offence of which you have been convicted.  Fortunately, the victim has not suffered any residual permanent injury as far as we can ascertain.

5.An option for sentencing presented to me has been the imposition of a community service order ordered upon you.  In respect of offences under this section of the ordinance, sentencing will largely depend on the facts and personal circumstances of the defendant and community service orders have been imposed on defendants who have been convicted of this offence in the past.

6.And in this case I have called for such a report in respect of community service order and you have been found suitable for the imposition of such an order. 

7.In considering whether to impose such an order I bear in mind that you are a first offender.  You have a stable home background.  You have an excellent work record.  You are in employment.  You have shown remorse certainly in the reports that I have obtained and I assess there is effectively no risk of you re-offending.  You thus comply with all the conditions which one will look for to be complied with before the community service order is imposed. 

8.I consider the imposition of a community service upon you will be productive for community and reformative to you and yours is an appropriate case for such order to be made. 

9.I shall follow the recommendation in the report that I have which finds you to be suitable to perform work under the community service order and recommends a period of between 160 and 200 hours of work.  I shall order that you perform 200 hours of community service work. 

10.This order has certain conditions attached to it.  It is important that you understand the nature of those conditions and also requests that you consent to perform the work.  Now, you will be required to provide a total of 200 hours to the community over the course of the next 12 months.   This work will be at the direction of a supervising officer.

11.You must firstly report to the supervising officer and the terms of your reporting will be on the order you sign today. It is important for you to find out when you have to report and report on that occasion.  Having reported you will be assigned to perform certain work.  You are required to perform that work at the direction of the officer within the time allocated at the time and place that you are allocated to work at. 

12.If you have any difficulty in performing the work or completing the assigned work within the period, then you can report that matter back to the court through your supervising officer, for example, you may experience ill health or family difficulties.  If that is the case, then the terms of the order can be altered or re-arranged.  So it is important for you to be aware of that. 

13.If you breach any of the conditions or you commit any further offence while this order is in force, then you can be brought back to this court and sentence again for the offence of which you have originally been convicted.  Do you understand these conditions, Mr Wong?

DEFENDANT: Understood.

14.Are you prepared to perform the work under the community service order?

DEFENDANT: Yes.

15.Yes.  I think that is completed.  The only order is 200 hours’ community service order.