DPP v Thornton

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Court: Court of Appeal (Ireland)
• Judge: Mr Justice McCarthy
• Judgment Date: 20 July 2020
• Neutral Citation: [2020] IECA 245
• Docket Number: Record Number 87/2020
• Date: 20 July 2020

BETWEEN/

THE PEOPLE AT THE SUIT OF THE DIRECTOR OF PUBLIC PROSECUTIONS

RESPONDENT

-AND -

DEAN THORNTON

APPELLANT

[2020] IECA 245

The President.

McCarthy J.

Donnelly J.

Record Number 87/2020

THE COURT OF APPEAL

Judgment (ex tempore) of the Court delivered on the 20th day of July 2020 by Mr Justice McCarthy

1 This is an appeal against the severity of the sentence of four years’ imprisonment with the final six months suspended in respect of an offence contrary to s.15 of the Misuse of Drugs Act which was imposed on the appellant at Dundalk Circuit Court on April 28th 2020.

2 On August 24th 2017 the family residence of the appellant where he resided with his mother and younger sibling in Drogheda was searched by Gardaí under warrant and a black sports bag which contained cannabis split into individual deals and a weighing scales was found in the living room. The value of the drugs was €5,654 and 282 grams in weight. The appellant has signed admissions at the scene taking responsibility for the bag and its contents. The DPP directed summary disposal on a plea of guilty but the judge in the District Court refused jurisdiction.

3 The appellant was born in October 1977. At one stage he had been a drug user but it is not suggested that he was an addict who was committing the crime to feed his addiction. He was clearly co-operative with the Gardaí. He is the father of a very young child. He has nine previous convictions - all road traffic offences and relating to three distinct incidents and these post-dated this drugs offence. In effect, he came before the Court as someone of previous good character.

4 In the course of the sentence hearing he was described as a “follower rather than a leader” and accordingly the offence is not aggravated by virtue of the fact of previous convictions for drugs offences. Neither he nor his home had the trappings the wealth and he was described as having a good employment record but with limited education achievement.

5 A Governor's Report was available to the trial judge which indicated that he had not come to adverse attention and apparently wishes to put his time in custody to good use by working in the prison laundry.

6 The trial judge took the view that the case well into the low to medium range of offending. She selected a headline sentence of six years affording a reduction of two years for mitigating factors amongst which was, of course, the relatively early...