HKSAR v. CHAN YAU KAN

IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF THE HKSAR

1997, No. 211

(Criminal)

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J U D G M E N T

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Liu JA:

1. The applicant faced one charge of burglary in the District Court. He was charged that on or about 24 December 1996, he burgled the ground floor premises at 25C Peak Road, Cheung Chau. He stole, so it was alleged, six finger-rings, a pair of ear-rings, one Walkman, some currencies and other articles therein. He came before His Honour Judge Hawkes and pleaded guilty to the charge. His criminal record was placed before the court. Suffice it to say it comprises a series of burglary offences from 1974 to 1995. The Judge explained to the applicant that for a burglary offence such as that in his charge, a sentence of three years' imprisonment would normally be imposed. The Judge took into account his co-operation with the police in addition to his guilty plea. However, the Judge noted the applicant's long criminal record involving repeated burglaries and attempted burglaries. The Judge was nevertheless lenient enough to give him a one-third discount and he was sentenced to two years' imprisonment.

2. The applicant apparently still feels aggrieved. He merely observes in his Notice of Appeal that the sentence is too heavy. This bald statement is unsupported by particulars. Today he pleads before us that his mother suffers from cancer. Being the only one available in the family, he seeks an early release so as to be able to discharge his filial duty. These cannot be good grounds for his application for leave to appeal against sentence. The application is totally unmeritorious. We refuse the application and order a loss of time of two months.