HKSAR v. CHAN YING LUNG

1999, No. MA293

IN THE HIGH COURT OF THE

HONG KONG SPECIAL ADMINISTRATIVE REGION

COURT OF FIRST INSTANCE

(APPELLATE JURISDICTION)

MAGISTRACY APPEAL NO. 293 OF 1999

____________

____________

______________

J U D G M E N T

______________

1. This Appellant appeared before T.H. Casewell Esquire in the Magistrate's Court at Tsuen Wan on 22nd January this year. He pleaded guilty to one charge of remaining in Hong Kong without the authority of the Director of Immigration after having landed here unlawfully. He was sentenced to 15 months' imprisonment.

2. He now appeals against sentence out of time, seeking an extension on the following ground:

"I now apply for appeal out of time against sentence and also legal aid. I mistakenly thought that there were 28 days for consideration and so the time limit is exceeded. I hope the application for appeal out of time would be granted."

3. His grounds of appeal is that the sentence is too excessive. In his reasons for sentence, the magistrate said this:

"The Appellant was of clear record. In mitigation it was advanced that he was a twenty-eight years old single man who lived with his parents who were over seventy years of age. No humanitarian grounds for reduction of sentence were advanced. I was asked to take into account his clear record and early plea of guilty.

In sentencing the Appellant I bore in mind that he was properly prosecuted within the guideline for prosecution. I saw no reason to depart from the existing guideline. After taking into account the Appellant's plea of guilty and clear record I imposed a sentence of fifteen months imprisonment."

4. This morning the Appellant has repeated to me what had been advanced before the Magistrate. In all the circumstances, I do not consider that the sentence is too serve at all and I see no basis for upsetting the sentence which the Magistrate has imposed. I refuse the extension asked for. The appeal is dismissed.