R v Kakole [2024] SBHC 122; HCSI-CRC 100 of 2021 (2 August 2024)

HIGH COURT OF SOLOMON ISLANDS

Case name:	R v Kakole
Citation:
Date of decision:	2 August 2024
Parties:	Rex v Stanley Oge Kakole
Date of hearing:	22 July 2024
Court file number(s):	100 of 2021
Jurisdiction:	Criminal
Place of delivery:
Judge(s):	Bird PJ
On appeal from:
Order:	i) I sentence you to 10 years imprisonment. ii) I also order that the time spent in custody to be deducted from this sentence. iii) Right to Appeal
Representation:	Ms Hellen Naqu for the Crown Mr Lazarus Waroka for the Defendant
Catchwords:
Words and phrases:
Legislation cited:
Cases cited:	Pana v Rex [2013] SBCA 19

IN THE HIGH COURT OF SOLOMON ISLANDS
CRIMINAL JURISDICTION

Criminal Case No. 100 of 2024

REX

V

STANLEY OGE KAKOLE

Date of Hearing: 22 July 2024
Date of Decision: 2 August 2024

Ms Hellen Naqu for the Crown
Mr Lazarus Waroka for the Defendant

SENTENCE

Bird PJ:

1. I have convicted you on 1 July this year for the offence of sexual intercourse- child under 15 years. You have been remanded in custody since that date. I will now sentence you for that wrong doing. Before I can do that, I must note and take into account the seriousness of your case as well as your circumstances.
2. I must tell you that what you did to the child who was barely 4 years old, on 20 October 2019 is seen by this court and the public at large as very serious. In order to show you its seriousness, the law gives me power to send you to prison for life. It is similar to a murder case.
3. The matters that I see to be very serious in your case is the age of the child. She was just more than 3 years old at that time. She could be seen as a baby. You yourself told the court that you carried her to your house on that fateful day. You took her away from the comfort and tranquillity of her home and abused her at your own home. It is a shame for any rightminded person to do what you did to the child.
4. I have also viewed the disparity of your age and that of the child as also very serious. You were about 22 years old in 2019. The child was about 3 years and 4 months old. The age difference between you was about 19 years. You were still in your youthful years then, but an adult. The child was a minor and was of very tender age. How could an adult as yourself do what you did to the child. It is an appalling behaviour from an adult like you.
5. I further view as being very serious the emotional and psychological harm that your action have caused to the child. In various Court of Appeal cases, the courts are urged to take judicial notice of the severe or lasting psychological harm of victims of sexual violence. The psychological cannot be ignored by the courts.
6. I also take as very serious that you were drunk when you molested the child. If you had been soberminded you just might not have done what you did. You must learn from your mistake and make amends to your attitudes about life.
7. Having stated the very serious nature of the case against you, I will also consider and take into account your circumstances. I have noted that you are a first offender. This is the first time that you have committed an offence. You are a youthful offender. I am not convinced that you have demonstrated genuine remorse. You have subjected the child to more stress and trauma to give evidence in court under the circumstances that she had encountered in 2019. I will not take into account your other personal circumstances. This court and the Court of Appeal have stated in many other sexual offence cases that the personal circumstances of an offender play little part in mitigation. I however will take into account the time that you have spent in custody to date. It is a period of 77 days.
8. In determining the appropriate sentence that I will impose upon you, I am guided by the sentencing guidelines by the Court of Appeal in the case of Pana v Regina [2013] SBCA 19 at page 17. In that case, the Court of Appeal stated that the sole fact that the child is below the age of consent should in itself bring the starting point to 8 years imprisonment.
9. From the facts of your case, I consider that the appropriate starting point for you is 8 years imprisonment. For the balance of the aggravating features outlined in paragraphs 4, 5 and 6 above, I will increase your sentence by 3 years. For the mitigating features that I have considered relevant for you, I will decrease the sentence by 1 year.
10. From the calculation in paragraph 9 herein, the total term of imprisonment that I impose on you is one of 10 years. I will direct that the time spent in custody before today shall be taken into account in your sentence.

Orders of the court

1. I sentence you to 10 years imprisonment.
2. I also order that the time spent in custody to be deducted from this sentence.
3. Right of Appeal

THE COURT
Justice Maelyn Bird
Puisne Judge