Drive with Illicit Drug Present- Sentence Waverley Local Court

CE was charged with ‘Drive motor vehicle with illicit drug present in oral fluid.’

Chris Cole acted for CE at Waverley Local Court. CE entered a plea of guilty to the offence and he was sentenced by Magistrate Barko.

Chris tendered various subjective materials at sentencing, including an affidavit, character references and proof of completing the Traffic Offenders Rehabilitation Program. The Presiding Magistrate ultimately determined that it was inexpedient to impose any punishment on CE and dismissed the charge pursuant to Section 10 (1)(a) of the Crimes Sentencing Procedure Act. This meant that CE kept his license and no penalty was imposed.

Dubbo District Court- Large Commercial Drug Supply; Firearms withdrawn; Proceeds of Crime

EH was originally charged with multiple serious offences, including 109 counts of ‘Supply prohibited drug,’ ‘Possess prohibited drug,’ ‘Possess an unlicensed firearm,’ ‘Intimidate with the intention of causing fear of physical or mental harm,’ Destroy/ Damage Property,’ ‘Deal with suspected proceeds of crime,’ and ‘Knowingly participate in a criminal group.’

Chris Cole acted for EH in these very serious offences. Chris negotiated with the DPP to plead guilty to 3 counts including ‘Supply large commercial quantity prohibited drug (methylamphetamine),’ ‘Participate Criminal Group,’ and ‘Supply Prohibited Drug (indictable quantity). A number of other offences were taken into account on a Form 1.

EH was ultimately sentenced at Dubbo District Court and received a term of imprisonment of 3 years 4 months years, non-parole period of 1 year 8 months. This was an amazing result with regard to the offence of Large Commercial Supply, carrying a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

Successful s14 Mental Health Application - Burwood Local Court

UC was charged with ‘Stalk/ Intimidate’ contrary to Section 13 Crimes (Domestic & Personal Violence) Act. Chris made an application under Section 14 of the Mental Health and Cognitive Impairment Forensic Provisions Act 2020 so UC could be dealt with under the mental health regime instead of in accordance with law for sentencing

Chris tendered both a psychologist report and a letter from UC’s treating psychiatrist in support of UC’s application. While the Prosecution opposed the dismissal of the matter pursuant to Section 14, Chris made oral submissions which the presiding Magistrate ultimately agreed with. The presiding Magistrate ultimately dismissed the charge on the condition that UC complies with the treatment plan proposed by their psychologist for 12 months.

This was a pleasing result for the client as no finding of guilt was made and she could continue with an unblemished record.

Windsor Local Court - Drugs, Weapons, Proceeds of Crime

JM was charged with multiple offences, including ‘Possess prohibited drug,’ ‘Possess prohibited weapon, ‘Deal with property reasonably suspected to be proceeds of crime’ and ‘Knowingly produce false document.’

When the matter was listed for Sentence, Christopher Cole tendered various materials- including letters from JM’s counsellor and clinic. The Presiding Magistrate ultimately agreed with Chris’ submissions regarding sentencing, imposing fines for possession of the prohibited drugs and Community Corrections Orders for each of the remaining charges. The Presiding Magistrate also revoked the Conditional Release Orders and took no further action with respect to the breaches.

Successful s14 Application Before Sentence - Waverley Local Court

IH was charged with ‘Common Assault’ and ‘Assault Police Officer in Execution of Duty.’

Chris made an application pursuant to Section 14 of the Mental Health and Cognitive Impairment Forensic Provisions Act 2020 so that IH could be dealt with under the mental health regime rather than in accordance with law for sentencing. Nancy Mikhaul of Counsel was briefed.

Chris relied on a psychological report as well as other subjective materials in support of IH’s application to be discharged into the care of their treating team. Ultimately, the Presiding Magistrate decided it was appropriate to dismiss IH’s matters on the condition that IH complies with the treatment plan proposed by their psychologist for 12 months.

This is a very pleasing result, as no criminal conviction was recorded.

Parramatta Children’s Court Matter - No Recorded Conviction

RK’s charge of Robbery in Company was listed before the Children’s Court for Hearing. The charge carries a maximum penalty of 20 years imprisonment.

Chris Cole appeared for RK.

Chris provided the prosecutor with some revised facts for the purpose of negotiating a plea. Those facts were agreed to in full and Chris entered a plea of guilty on that basis. The presiding Magistrate ultimately placed RK on a Good Behaviour Bond for 12 months without conviction.

This was a very pleasing result.

Possession of Drugs and Pistol- Fine and Conviction with No Other Penalty

JE was originally charged with Contravene AVO as well as multiple sequences of Possess Gel Blaster Pistol, Possess MDMA, and Possess Cannabis.

The matter was listed for Hearing before the Local Court at Windsor, on which occasion Chris Cole entered negotiations with Police regarding the various charges. The presiding Magistrate ultimately sentenced JE to a fine of $440 for Possession of MDMA, and he was convicted with no other penalty for the remaining six (6) sequences relating to the gel blasters and cannabis. All other charges were withdrawn.

 As JE was already on a Community Corrections Order at the time of the offences (for an offence of Drive Disqualified (Second Offence)), the presiding Magistrate deemed it appropriate to impose a further six-month disqualification. Chris lodged an appeal on this point only and was successful in appealing this decision at the District Court.

Overall, this was a very pleasing outcome given JE’s existing Community Corrections Order.

Sexual Intercourse Without Consent and Assault Charges Defended, Found Not Guilty on All Counts

CK was charged with 19 various counts including four counts of sexual intercourse without consent, choking, stalk/intimidate, assault occasioning actual bodily harm and common assault. CK entered pleas of ‘not guilty’ to each charge.

The matter went to Trial in the District Court in May 2025. Chris Cole instructed Margaret Cunneen SC at Trial. The Trial lasted approximately three weeks. The jury returned verdicts of ‘not guilty’ on every count, after having deliberated for only five hours.

This was an extreme relief for the client and a fantastic result after travelling through the Courts for more than two years.

72 Counts of Damage Property Negotiated to 4 Counts

JV was originally charged with 72 counts of Destroy/ Damage Property in the Local Court. Chris managed to negotiate with the Prosecution to withdraw a large number of counts and JV ultimately only plead guilty to four counts.

It was relevant at sentencing that JV had previous similar type offending on his record and was in breach of a number of other Community-based Orders when he committed these offences. The Presiding Magistrate ultimately sentenced JV to a Community Corrections order for two of the sequences and to Intensive Correction Orders for the remaining two sequences. The Court also made an Order for Compensation in the amount of $14,454.04 (down from the initial $36,000.00 sought by the Prosecution).

This is a very pleasing result given the extent of the property damage involved.

Court of Criminal Appeal: Shoot with Intent to Murder, Imprisonment Sentence Reduced By 8 Years

JH initially plead guilty to and was sentenced to four counts of shoot with intent to murder. In the District Court, he was sentenced to a total term of imprisonment of 15 years and a non-parole period of 10 years 6 months imprisonment.

Chris Cole acted in JH’s appeal with Arjun Chabra as Counsel in the Court of Criminal Appeal. JH’s appeal was successful, having his sentence reduced by a total of 8 years imprisonment and his non-parole period was reduced by 5 ½ years.

Such a significant reduction to his overall sentence is an extraordinary result.

No Prosecution Witness, Assault, Adjournment Opposed

JR was charged with Stalk/ Intimidate and Contravene AVO before the Local Court.

However, when the matter was called for Hearing, the complainant failed to attend. Chris opposed the Prosecution’s application to adjourn the Hearing, and the presiding Magistrate ultimately refused the adjournment. As a result, the Prosecution withdrew each of the two sequences, a very pleasing result.

Drug Supply and Possession of Unauthorised Firearm- Community Corrections Order Imposed

AS was charged with three sequences: Sequence 1: supply of prohibited drug (60g of cocaine), Sequence 2: possess unauthorised firearm and Sequence 3: owner occupy/ knowingly allow use as drug premises.

In exchange for pleading guilty to Sequences 1 and 2, Sequence 3 was withdrawn.

Chris made submissions and tendered various materials at sentencing.

The Presiding Magistrate ultimately determined that the Section 5 threshold was not crossed and sentenced AS to a Community Corrections Order on each of the two sequences for a period of 18 months.

This was a very pleasing result noting the quantity of the cocaine.

District Court Conviction Appeal Upheld

JE was charged with ‘Intimidate police officer in execution of duty w/out ABH’. JE pleaded guilty to the offence and his matter proceeded to Hearing at the Local Court.

At the Local Court Hearing, the Prosecution called evidence from the officer-in-charge and from the complainant. There was no CCTV footage from the police station produced in the matter and the police omitted to obtain a witness statement from another police officer who was present during the alleged incident. JE gave evidence in his Defence. Notwithstanding the lack of independent evidence to support the complainant’s allegation, the Presiding Magistrate found JE guilty of the offence.
JE filed a Conviction Appeal to the District Court. At the Appeal Hearing, James Castillo pointed out the various parts of the evidence which cast doubt concerning the complainant’s evidence, as well as the lack of corroborating evidence which the Police consciously did not obtain.

The Appeal Judge reviewed the entirety of the evidence and ultimately, upheld the Appeal, dismissing the charge and finding the appellant not guilty of the offence.

Successful Severity Appeal, Non-Conviction for Drive Motor Vehicle with Illict Drug Present In Blood

BD pleaded guilty to the offences of ‘Drive motor vehicle with illicit drug present in blood’ and ‘Possess prohibited drug’ in the Local Court. In the Local Court, she was fined $500.00 and received the minimum license disqualification of 3 months with respect to the first charge. The sentencing Magistrate subsequently dismissed the second charge.

BD instructed Chris Cole to file a Severity Appeal to the District Court with respect to the conviction recorded and fine imposed concerning the first charge. Chris appeared at the Appeal Hearing. He tendered various materials including BD’s Affidavit, character testimonials, and sentencing statistics, etc. Despite the Appeal Judge not being receptive of the submissions initially, ultimately, the Appeal Judge upheld the Appeal and dismissed the offence pursuant to s10(1)(a) Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act.

This was a pleasing outcome for BD.

Found With Ketamine at a Dance Party Venue, Non-Conviction Imposed

SM was charged with ‘Possess prohibited drug’ as a result of being found with ketamine in his possession at a hotel hosting an electronic dance party.

SM retained Chris Cole and a plea of guilty was entered on his behalf. At Sentence, Chris tendered an Affidavit from SM and various character testimonials in support of his good character. The Presiding Magistrate ultimately determined it inexpedient to record a conviction and instead placed SM on a Conditional Release Order without conviction for 2 years. The only term of that Order is to be of good behaviour for its duration.

This is a pleasing result.

Behave in Offensive Manner in Public Place Offence Withdrawn After Successful Representations

FB was charged with ‘Behave in offensive manner in/near/within hearing from a public place/school’, contrary to section 4(1) Summary Offences Act 1988. The allegation against FB relates to the conduct when he recorded a video of two females at a train station. Independent witnesses saw this conduct and alleged that FB’s behaviour was offensive.

FB pleaded ‘not guilty’ to the offence and had the matter set down for Hearing.

Pending the Hearing date, James Castillo prepared Representations to withdraw the charge, noting the context of the incident and that nothing captured could constitute offensive in a legal context.  

Eventually, Police accepted the Representations to withdraw the charge.

Rare Non-Conviction for a Mid-Range PCA Offence

MW was charged with ‘Mid-range PCA’ after being breath tested by Police following making a left turn on a ‘No Left Turn’ road.

James Castillo represented for MW at his Sentence. James assisted MW in preparing his Affidavit and reviewing character references which were relied on at his Sentence. James made oral submissions explaining the circumstances of the offending as contained in MW’s Affidavit and laid out to the Court the potential implications on MW’s employment and pending visa application, should a conviction be recorded.

Ultimately, the Presiding Magistrate was convinced that it was appropriate to exercise the Court’s discretion and impose a Conditional Release Order without conviction, notwithstanding the serious nature of the offence.

This is an outstanding outcome for MW was this allowed him to continue residing in Australia with a clean record and continue with his employment with his driver’s license valid.  

Non-Conviction for Possession of MDMA, And Dismissal for Possession of Cannabis

CD was charged with two counts of ‘Possess prohibited drug’—one for possession of MDMA, and a separate charge for possession of cannabis. The circumstances of the charges related to CD being searched at a music festival after being approached by a drug detection dog.

CD pleaded guilty to each of the offences. Chris Cole represented CD at his Sentence. He relied on CD’s Affidavit and various character testimonials in support of CD’s good character.

CD was sentenced with a Conditional Release Order without conviction for 12 months with respect to possession of MDMA. The Presiding Magistrate exercised his discretion and dismissed the charge of possession of cannabis.

This is a pleasing result for CD noting his young age and that any conviction would have an impact to his future employment opportunities.

Stalk/Intimidate Charge Defended, Found Not Guilty

BO was charged with ‘Stalk/intimidate intending to cause fear of physical etc. harm’, contrary to section 13(1) Crimes (Domestic and Personal Violence) Act 2007 after his neighbour made a complaint of being threatened to be bashed with a hockey stick and allegedly BO swung a hockey stick towards him.

BO pleaded ‘not guilty’ and the matter proceeded to Hearing. James Castillo acted for BO at his Hearing. The Prosecution called evidence from the officer-in-charge, the complainant and BO’s partner. The Defence did not call evidence. Ultimately, the Presiding Magistrate was not satisfied beyond reasonable doubt of the allegation and found BO ‘not guilty’ of the offence.

No Prosecution Witness, Adjournment Opposed

AF was charged with ‘Larceny’, contrary to section 117 Crimes Act 1900. She entered a plea of ‘not guilty’ to the offence and her matter was set down for Hearing.

At the day of Hearing, no prosecution witness turned up including the office-in-charge. The Prosecutor sought an adjournment application. James Castillo opposed the application. The Presiding Magistrate refused the adjournment application and consequently, the charge was withdrawn and dismissed.