Jersey Unreported Judgments

Inferior Number Sentencing - drugs - possession with intent to supply - Class B.

[2014]JRC247

Royal Court

(Samedi)

12 December 2014

Before     :

Sir Michael Birt, Kt., Bailiff and Jurats Crill and Milner

The Attorney General

-v-

Jordan Lee Crespel

Sentencing by the Inferior Number of the Royal Court, following guilty pleas to the following charges:

2 counts of:

Possession of a controlled drug with intent to supply, contrary to Article 8(2) of the Misuse of Drugs (Jersey) Law 1978 (Counts 1 and 2).

Age:  21.

Plea: Guilty.

Details of Offence:

Plain clothed police officers approached the defendant and another man at night in the car park of the Iceland store in St Peter.  Two 100g bars of cannabis wrapped in plastic were found under the wheel arch of a nearby van, where the defendant had hidden it (Count 1).  Police then searched the defendant's home.  In a lockup they found ten bars of cannabis with a combined weight of approximately 1kg (Count 2).  The defendant admitted having bought 1.2kg of cannabis.  He claimed in interview that it was all for his personal use, but by his pleas he then admitted intent to supply.  The likely profit from sale would have been between £2,400 and £10,800. 

Details of Mitigation:

Guilty plea; relative youth. 

Previous Convictions:

13 previous convictions, none related to drugs. 

Conclusions:

Starting point 2 years' imprisonment. 

Count 1:	4 months' imprisonment, concurrent to Count 2.
Count 2:	16 months' imprisonment.

Total: 16 months' imprisonment. 

Confiscation order sought in the sum of £140. 

Forfeiture and destruction of drugs sought. 

Sentence and Observations of Court:

Conclusions granted. 

W. A. F. Redgrave, Esq., Crown Advocate.

Advocate S. A. Pearmain for the Defendant.

JUDGMENT

THE BAILIFF:

1.        You are here to be sentenced for two counts of being in possession of just under 1.2 kilos of cannabis with intent to supply.  It is the first time you have been up before the Court for drug offences but you do have a very poor record, as your Advocate accepted, and you have already been placed on probation, community service, which you performed well, as well as youth detention.  But now you are back before us again.  The Crown has suggested a starting point of 2 years and we agree. 

2.        We do take into account your guilty plea and your comparative youth; we particularly have read, with interest, the excellent letter from your parents.  You really are very fortunate to have their support.  You have let them down and we hope that you realise that as you are beginning to see that perhaps there is a different way of trying to take your life forward.  We hope you will take advantage of what is available in the prison and, as I say, we do hope that you can see an alternative way to go forward, because otherwise you are going to just keep going back to prison which is not really a way of life for anyone. 

3.        So we do agree with the Crown; we think the conclusions they have moved for are right.  You have been very realistic in accepting that, and so we do impose the sentences as moved for so that is; 16 months' imprisonment for Count 2 and 4 months' imprisonment, concurrent on Count 1, making a total of 16 months' imprisonment. 

4.        We also order the forfeiture and destruction of the drugs. 

Authorities

Campbell and Others-v-AG [1995] JLR 136.