Kesino Apo v The State [1988] PNGLR 182

• Jurisdiction: Papua New Guinea
• Citation: [1988] PNGLR 182
• Date: 15 September 1988
• Court: Supreme Court
• Year: 1988

Full Title: Kesino Apo v The State [1988] PNGLR 182

Supreme Court: Kapi DCJ, Woods J, Los J

Judgment Delivered: 15 September 1988

1 Criminal law—sentence—manslaughter—intoxication not a mitigating factor on sentence—deceased a close relative has traditional punitive aspect and is, therefore, a factor to be considered in mitigation

2 CRIMINAL LAW—Sentence—Relevant considerations—Intoxication—Not mitigating factor.

3 CRIMINAL LAW—Sentence—Manslaughter—Relevant considerations—Victim close relative—Traditional punitive aspect of killing relative—Relevant to mitigation.

On appeal against sentence on a conviction for manslaughter:

Held:

(1) The effect of intoxication at the time of the commission of the offence is not a matter relevant to mitigation on sentence.

(2) The traditional self–punitive aspects relating to the killing of a relative are matters which may be taken into account on sentencing.

Acting Public Prosecutor v Nitak Mangilonde Taganis [1982] PNGLR 299, Joseph Maino v The State [1977] PNGLR 404, William Norris v The State [1979] PNGLR 605, Public Prosecutor v Tardrew [1986] PNGLR 91, R v Bradley (1979) 70 Cr App R 200; (1980) 2 Cr App R (S) 12 and R v Spence (1982) 4 Cr App R (S) 175 referred to

Appeal against sentence

This was an appeal against a sentence of six years imprisonment on conviction for manslaughter of a relative.

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Kapi DCJ:

The facts of the case are set out in the judgments of Woods J and Los J. There are two matters of principle I wish to discuss.

Intoxication

The relevance of intoxication goes to the question of culpability. The rationale is that if an offender offends while under the influence of alcohol, his self–control is affected and therefore his culpability may be diminished...