Citation: R v Taber; R v Styman; R v Styman [2003] NSWSC 93
Court: Supreme Court of New South Wales (Common Law Division)
Date: 28 February 2003
Judge(s): Barr J
Background
Three offenders, Peter David Taber, Ian Craig Styman, and Shannon Troy Styman, were sentenced following the killing of Joy Golbie Alchin, a 71-year-old woman who lived alone in a house at Greenwell Point, near Nowra. Mrs Alchin was known within her social circle to keep substantial sums of cash at home. The offenders were aware of this, and the attack was motivated by a desire to steal her money.
Taber, who was cohabiting with a relative of the deceased, had become financially desperate in the months before the offence. He and Ian Styman had even attempted an earlier break-in at Mrs Alchin's home just before Christmas 2000, which failed when she noticed them. The fatal attack followed in March 2001. Shannon Troy Styman, Ian Styman's younger relative, also participated in the break-in.
The offenders were charged with murder, aggravated breaking and entering (robbery while in company, and while depriving the victim of her liberty), and aggravated sexual intercourse without consent. All three were acquitted of the sexual assault charge. Taber and Ian Styman were convicted of murder by the jury. Shannon Styman, who had pleaded guilty to the aggravated robbery at the outset, was found not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter.
Legal Issues
- What sentence was appropriate for murder by reckless indifference, having regard to the gravity of the offence and the personal circumstances of each offender?
- What sentence was appropriate for involuntary manslaughter arising from the same set of facts?
- What sentence was appropriate for the aggravated breaking and entering offence across all three offenders?
- How should the sentences for multiple offences arising from the same criminal episode be structured, including whether partial accumulation was required to reflect overall criminality?
- Whether a non-parole period should be fixed for any of the sentences imposed.
Decision
Barr J imposed life sentences on both Taber and Ian Styman for the murder of Mrs Alchin. The court was satisfied that the circumstances of the offence, including the premeditated targeting of an elderly, vulnerable woman living alone, the earlier failed break-in, and the nature of the attack and restraint, placed the criminality of these two offenders at the highest level. The murder sentences were structured to commence two years after the commencement of the aggravated robbery sentences, reflecting partial accumulation to account for overall criminality without double-punishing conduct that contributed to multiple charges.
Shannon Styman's position differed significantly. The jury had rejected the murder charge and found him guilty only of manslaughter. Barr J sentenced him to 14 years for the unlawful killing, commencing one year after his arrest, with a non-parole period of nine years. The court reduced the non-parole period to account for partial accumulation of sentences and to promote Shannon Styman's prospects of rehabilitation through a longer parole period.
On the aggravated breaking and entering charge, Taber and Ian Styman each received 20 years, and Shannon Styman received 8 years, with all sentences commencing from the date of arrest on 26 March 2001. The court declined to fix non-parole periods for these sentences in light of the sentences imposed for the killing offences.
The court noted that, while it is wrong to punish an offender twice for the same criminal conduct, proper sentences must still be imposed for each offence individually. Partial accumulation of the resulting sentences was the mechanism used to reflect each offender's total criminality.
Orders Made
Peter David Taber:
- Aggravated breaking and entering: 20 years imprisonment, commencing 26 March 2001; no non-parole period fixed
- Murder of Joy Golbie Alchin: life imprisonment, commencing 26 March 2003
Ian Craig Styman:
- Aggravated breaking and entering: 20 years imprisonment, commencing 26 March 2001; no non-parole period fixed
- Murder of Joy Golbie Alchin: life imprisonment, commencing 26 March 2003
Shannon Troy Styman:
- Aggravated breaking and entering: 8 years imprisonment, commencing 26 March 2001; no non-parole period fixed
- Unlawful killing (manslaughter) of Joy Golbie Alchin: 14 years imprisonment, commencing 26 March 2002; non-parole period of 9 years, expiring 25 March 2011
Key Takeaways
- Life imprisonment was imposed for murder by reckless indifference where the offending involved a premeditated, planned attack on a vulnerable elderly victim in her own home, carried out by offenders aware of her isolation and inability to seek help.
- A meaningful distinction existed between the murder convictions of Taber and Ian Styman on the one hand, and Shannon Styman's manslaughter conviction on the other, resulting in substantially different sentences despite the offenders' involvement in the same criminal episode.
- Where multiple offences arise from a single criminal episode, the sentencing court applied partial accumulation of sentences rather than full concurrency, so that the total sentence properly reflected each offender's overall criminality.
- Declining to fix a non-parole period was considered appropriate for the aggravated breaking and entering sentences, given that life sentences were being imposed concurrently for the murder offences.
- The reduction of Shannon Styman's non-parole period was expressly linked to the promotion of rehabilitation through an extended period of parole supervision, demonstrating that individualised sentencing considerations apply even within a jointly-charged matter.
Legislation and Cases Referenced
No specific legislation or cases were cited in the text of the judgment provided. The offences were prosecuted under the general criminal law of New South Wales, encompassing the offences of murder, involuntary manslaughter, and breaking and entering a dwelling house and committing a serious indictable offence in circumstances of aggravation.