HKSAR v. LI KA FAI

HCMA 107/2000

IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE

MAGISTRACY APPEAL NO. 107 OF 2000

(ON APPEAL FROM TWCC 3335/1999)

____________

_______________

J U D G M E N T

_______________

1. The Appellant was convicted in the Magistracy on one charge of Indecent Assault for which he was sentenced to 6 months' imprisonment and a second charge of Claiming to be a Member of a Triad Society for which he was sentenced to 2 months' imprisonment. Both sentences were ordered to run concurrently and it is against those sentences that the Appellant now appeals on the ground that they were too severe.

2. The Magistrate looked at the facts which were admitted and considered that this was a serious case involving a prolonged indecent assault. It appears from the facts that it also had elements of false imprisonment. The female victim was aged 17 and during the course of the assault, which lasted at intervals for some 30 minutes, the Appellant made remarks which indicated that he was claiming membership of a triad society.

3. The Magistrate took into account the Appellant's age which was 24 at the time and his plea of guilty. He obtained a Detention Centre report and a Psychologist's report. The reports indicated that Appellant had had a difficult upbringing with limited family life. He was described as impulsive and boastful and the risk of reoffending was seen by the psychologist as being present. The Appellant had 10 previous offences for dishonesty and one for assaulting a police officer. The Magistrate considered quite rightly that this was a serious incident and that only a sentence designed as a general and specific deterrent was appropriate. He adopted starting points of 9 months for the first charge and 3 months for the second. He gave a reduction of 1/3 for the pleas of guilty and sentenced the Appellant to 6 months and 2 months, respectively.

4. I cannot fault the Magistrate's approach nor his final sentence except to comment that it was possibly a little lenient in view of the length of time that the indecent assault lasted. The appeal against these sentences is dismissed.