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District Court 22 April 2020

R v Chris Lentini

[2020] NSWDC 132

Assault & violenceTraffic & drivingPublic order & justice offences
CRIME SENTENCE VEHICLE COLLISION GRIEVOUS BODILY HARM FAILING TO STOP TO GIVE ASSISTANCE NEGLIGENT DRIVING AND OTHER OFFENCES

Citation: R v Chris Lentini [2020] NSWDC 132
Court: District Court of New South Wales
Date: 22 April 2020
Judge: Wilson SC DCJ

Background

On 29 January 2019, the offender pulled away from a kerbside parking spot on Southcreek Road without adequately checking his surroundings. His vehicle struck a motorcycle ridden by a 20-year-old man, who was then thrown into an oncoming vehicle. The victim suffered severe injuries including spinal fractures, a collapsed lung, internal bleeding, a serious knee injury requiring four operations, and multiple other trauma.

The offender drove into a nearby carpark, parked, and briefly returned on foot to observe the scene before walking away and hiding behind a campervan. He made no attempt to assist the victim or contact emergency services. When arrested two days later, he falsely told police that an unknown male had been driving the car.

The offender appeared for sentencing on five charges arising from the same event. He had been in custody since his arrest on 31 January 2019, though part of that period was referable to unrelated parole and a prior disqualified driving sentence. He was also driving under a lengthy disqualification that ran until 2021 and had an extensive prior criminal and traffic history.

  • The appropriate sentence for the primary offence of failing to stop and render assistance after causing grievous bodily harm, contrary to s 52AB of the Crimes Act 1900 NSW (maximum 7 years imprisonment)
  • Whether a finding of special circumstances was warranted, which would allow a longer non-parole period relative to the head sentence
  • How to treat the disputed facts arising when the offender resiled from agreed facts during the sentence hearing
  • The weight to be given to the absence of remorse, the offender's criminal history, and his conduct in fabricating a false account to police
  • How to calculate the commencement date for the sentence, accounting for the periods already served in custody

Decision

Wilson SC DCJ found the primary offence extremely serious. The offender had caused grievous bodily harm through negligent driving while already disqualified, then deliberately abandoned the scene, concealed himself, and fabricated a lie to police. The court found no remorse was shown: the offender did not accept responsibility until his guilty plea in December 2019, nearly a year after the event, and his evidence during the sentence hearing was inconsistent with the agreed facts he had previously authorised his lawyer to accept.

The court resolved the disputed paragraph 13 of the agreed facts against the offender. Having viewed CCTV footage, Wilson SC DCJ was satisfied the offender's conduct after the collision was calculated and deliberate, not panicked or confused as suggested.

The offender's criminal history was lengthy and directly relevant. It included prior convictions for negligent driving, multiple instances of driving while disqualified, and drug supply offences. The court noted the offending occurred while the offender was on parole for a serious drug matter and while already under a disqualification order.

The court did not find special circumstances. The standard ratio between non-parole period and head sentence was applied, reflecting the seriousness of the conduct, the lack of rehabilitation indicators, and the absence of genuine remorse.

Orders Made

• Driving disqualification for 3 years commencing 15 October 2021
• Not eligible to obtain a driver's licence until 16 October 2024
• Charge of failing to stop and assist after impact causing injury (sequence 2) withdrawn and dismissed
• Charge of not give particulars to injured person (sequence 5) withdrawn and dismissed
• Compensation of $7,025.64 to be paid from Chris Lentini's property to Calvin Pullen pursuant to s97(1) of the Victims Rights and Support Act 2013

Key Takeaways

  • Failing to stop and render assistance after causing grievous bodily harm carries a maximum of 7 years imprisonment under s 52AB of the Crimes Act 1900 NSW, reflecting Parliament's and the community's assessment of the gravity of abandoning an injured person at a collision scene.
  • A defendant who resiles from agreed facts during a sentence hearing places the court in the position of determining those facts itself; here, the court resolved the disputed facts against the offender based on objective CCTV evidence.
  • The absence of remorse, fabrication of a false account to police, and a guilty plea entered nearly a year after the offence were all treated as aggravating factors in the sentencing exercise.
  • No finding of special circumstances was made, meaning the standard statutory ratio between non-parole period and total sentence applied; the offender's history and lack of rehabilitation indicators did not support a departure from that ratio.
  • Driving while subject to a lengthy disqualification order, and committing a further offence while on parole, both operated as significant aggravating features in the overall sentencing assessment.

Legislation and Cases Referenced

Legislation:
- Crimes Act 1900 NSW, s 52AB (failing to stop and render assistance causing grievous bodily harm)
- Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 NSW, s 3A (purposes of sentencing)
- Road Transport Act 2013 NSW, ss 54 (negligent driving occasioning grievous bodily harm), 117, and 146 (failing to stop after impact causing injury)
- Road Rules 2014 NSW, s 287 (failure to give particulars after a crash)
- Victims Rights and Support Act 2013 NSW, s 97

Cases:
- R v Pullen [2018] NSWCCA 264
- Hoskins v R [2020] NSWCCA 18