Public Prosecutor v Willy Moke Soki

• Jurisdiction: Papua New Guinea
• Citation: [1977] PNGLR 165
• Date: 02 June 1977
• Court: Supreme Court
• Year: 1977

Supreme Court: Frost CJ, Prentice DCJ, Williams J

Judgment Delivered: 2 June 1977

1 Criminal law—dangerous driving causing 6 deaths—good behaviour bond—inadequacy of sentence

2 CRIMINAL LAW—Appeal against sentence—Inadequacy of sentence—Dangerous driving causing death—Number of deaths may be considered as factor in sentencing—Dangerous driving causing six deaths—Recognizance to be of good behaviour—Custodial sentence called for but not imposed in view of 12 months' delay on appeal and expiration of recognizance.

3 APPEAL—Delay in bringing—Delays in provision of transcript and preparation of appeal books working injustice—Procedures suggested to prevent.

On appeal against inadequacy of sentence in circumstances where the respondent was convicted of dangerous driving causing death and sentenced to be discharged upon entering into a recognizance to be of good behaviour for 12 months (after taking into account five months spent in custody) it appeared that the offence which resulted in the deaths of 6 people occurred in December 1975, the sentence was imposed in May 1976, the notice of appeal delivered in June 1976, no transcript of evidence was available until December 1976, and that at the date of the hearing of the appeal the full term of the recognizance had expired.

Held:

(1) For the offence of dangerous driving causing death, whilst appreciating that the causation of death should not be allowed to convert into "dangerous driving" behaviour which would not otherwise rank as such, the seriousness of the outcome (the number of deaths resulting) may be looked at as one of the relevant features in assessing what sentence is required to act as private and public deterrent, and to assure public conscience...