DPP v Tucker-Quinn

On Saturday 2 August 2025, an Instagram account with the handle that was used by you made a post with the caption “we are coming to yours today better tell your mum because I still got my hands on a wap n I am ready to take out your mother and you”. An Instagram account used by Mr Alec Delaney (a pseudonym) was tagged in the caption.

At 5:55 PM on 2 August 2025, a silver utility vehicle and a dark-coloured utility vehicle parked on the opposite side of the road to the victim’s address in Dunlop. Nine males exited the two vehicles and approached the victim’s address. You were one of these males. You were the first person to approach the victim’s address. You were wearing a black puffer jacket with a camo-coloured tactical vest over the top, grey tracksuit pants, pink shoes, a skull printed facemask and you were carrying a hunting style knife with a serrated edge.

You unsuccessfully attempted to open the front door without knocking. You then turned to face away from the door and repeatedly kicked backwards at the door, forcing it to open. You entered the residence as another male climbed over a side fence, accessing the backyard, while the rest of the males stood out the front of the house. Ms Kerry Crowley (a pseudonym) was inside at the time and grabbed her mobile phone with the intention of calling 000. You approached her and stood approximately a metre away from her. You waved the knife you were carrying and began yelling words to the effect of, “Where is Alec, where is your son?”.

Ms Crowley stepped back from you and attempted to unlock her mobile phone. You forcibly slapped her mobile phone out of her hand, causing it to drop to the floor. You then stomped on the phone.

Another male who had arrived at the premises with you entered the residence and the two of you began searching for Alec Delaney in his bedroom. As you walked towards Alec Delaney’s room, Ms Crowley took the opportunity to run out of the front of her house to her neighbour’s house to call for help. Ms Crowley observed several males outside her house and the two utility vehicles parked across the road.

A short time later, you came out of the house holding Ms Crowley’s mobile phone. You threw the phone with force onto the driveway of the residence, causing significant damage to the phone. You and the other males then walked back to the vehicles and departed.

A short time later police attended the victim’s address and observed the front door, which was made of wood, had split because of being forced open and the bottom hinge of the door had broken off. Ms Crowley participated in a record of conversation where she stated that she recognised you as you were a former friend of her son prior to the two of you having a falling out a few years ago.

On Thursday 7 August 2025, you were located by police at Calvary Hospital, Bruce and arrested.

A Victim Impact Statement prepared by Ms Crowley was tendered at the sentence proceedings. She complains of an ongoing campaign of harassment, threats and intimidation by you towards her and her family. You are only to be sentenced regarding the offending that occurred on 2 August 2025 and I am not entitled to take into account the contents of the Victim Impact Statement to the extent that they allege further offending at different times.

Regarding the events of 2 August 2025, Ms Crowley stated that she was in the kitchen preparing food for her son Alec Delaney’s birthday when you and the other males arrived. Her son had only just left the house before you arrived. During your invasion of her home, she believed that you were going to kill her. She continues to believe that, if her son Alec had been home when you arrived, a violent attack would have occurred. She continues to have nightmares about this.

After the incident, Ms Crowley and her son Alec couldn’t bear to stay at the house. They took their pets and went to stay in a hotel for the next few nights. Ms Crowley did not return to work for a week after the offending. She spent the following days packing precious, irreplaceable possessions into boxes and moving them into a friend’s garage. Each day during that process she suffered panic attacks at around the same time as your invasion of her premises on 2 August 2025. She has considered moving out of the house permanently, but she has nowhere else to go. She is unable to afford moving.

The first night that she returned to the house after this event she could not sleep and spent her time watching live security footage on her TV. She continued to sleep with the lights on for weeks after the event. Even after learning that you had been caught and placed in custody, she was worried your mates would come back. She continues to be terrified of being in the house on her own. She is constantly on edge and ever vigilant.

As a single mother trying to protect her family, this event has left her feeling vulnerable and fearing for her safety and that of her son. These events have had a significant impact on her finances. She has installed security cameras and extra locks, repaired damage to her property, been subject to higher insurance premiums, paid for additional accommodation after the event and is now paying for renovations to prepare her house for sale.

Ms Crowley continues to suffer from panic attacks and is concerned that when you are released you may return to her property.

Knowing that he was the target of your attack, Alec Delaney has suffered anxiety that has developed into severe agoraphobia. He is a person who has struggled with complex mental health and neuro-diverse challenges his whole life. He now will not go out in public unless he is with his mother, a close friend or a support worker. His NDIS-carers are now struggling to provide consistent support as he is unable to engage in social activities. He now insists on sleeping with the lights and television on and is overly reactive to any unexpected noise or outside movement.

Since August 2025, Alec’s alcohol consumption has also increased exponentially. This has put a strain on his relationships with his family. His constant fear of being out in public, coupled with his drinking, has also directly impacted his ability to effectively participate in his preferred career choice, becoming a musician.

Ms Crowley also refers to the continuing impact that these events have had on her other son, her friends and extended family.

In determining the objective seriousness of the offence of aggravated burglary, I take into account the following: (a) the offence occurred in residential premises at a time when it could be expected that the occupants would be home. Indeed, you attended in the belief that one of the occupants, Alec Delaney, would be home; (b) you attended in overwhelming numbers at the premises; (c) the weapon which you had in your possession was potentially lethal; (d) you directly confronted an occupant of the premises and threatened her with the knife; (e) damage was occasioned to the front door of the premises to enable you to gain entry; (f) the person that you went to the premises to confront is someone with complex mental health issues; (g) the offence was not of long duration; (h) the offence was premeditated and subject to planning; and (i) the offence has had very significant psychological, emotional and financial consequences for the victims.

I assess the objective seriousness of the offence of aggravated burglary as above the mid-range, but lower than the upper range.

In assessing the objective seriousness of the offence of damaging property, I take into account the following: (a) although I have not been provided with any evidence regarding the cost of repair or replacement of the mobile phone, it is unlikely to have been particularly high; (b) your motive for damaging the phone was to stop Ms Crowley from calling police to provide her with assistance; (c) the offence of damaging property was spontaneous and not the subject of premeditation or planning.

I assess this offence as on the border of the low and mid ranges of such offences.

You did not give evidence in the sentence proceedings, but I have ample information about your background in multiple presentence reports, the most recent of which is dated 16 February 2026. I note that you declined to participate in a number of interviews for the preparation of that report. You are currently 17 years old, and you will turn 18 in mid- March this year. The relationship between your mother and father ended prior to your birth due to your father’s use of violence towards your mother throughout their relationship. As a consequence, your mother has been your primary caregiver since your birth. Your father has had inconsistent contact with you since your birth due to his involvement in antisocial activities and frequent periods of incarceration.

You have resided in multiple properties with your mother and other family members or friends. It would be fair to describe your living arrangements as unsettled. In November 2020 you entered residential care as you could no longer reside with your mother due to your use of violence towards her. No other family members were willing or able to care for you at that time. Since then, you have spent time living between your mother’s home and residential care when you have not been in custody at Bimberi.

I am told that you continue to identify strongly with your mother’s heritage as well as your father’s heritage. It is said that you continue to remain connected to your cultural backgrounds through ongoing contact with your immediate and extended family members.

You first came to the attention of Children, Youth and Families in 2012. Since that time, Children, Youth and Families have received 56 Child Concern Reports in relation to you, raising ongoing concerns about physical abuse, exposure to family violence, poor parental mental health, parental substance misuse, your use of violence towards others including your mother, your mental health including suicidal ideation and self-harm, as well as ongoing risk-taking behaviours such as absconding and drug and alcohol use. Ongoing action was taken by Children, Youth and Families until, in May 2021, a final care and protection order was made whereby parental responsibility for you is shared between your mother and the Director-General until you turn 18 years of age.

Your mother has great difficulty in managing your behaviours. When you were last released from custody, it is said that you did not listen to anything that your mother said to you and you were frequently absent from the home. You do not abide by the rules of her home. Your mother is understandably concerned that you are approaching your 18th birthday and that you may be required to serve any sentence, or part of a sentence, at the AMC and not at Bimberi.

Your last full year of school was 2019 when you completed Year 6. You stopped attending school during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, but you were referred to the Muliyan Flexible Education Program three days a week. You subsequently disengaged from that program. Over the last two years, you have primarily accessed educational programs within a custodial setting. You have historically engaged well in such settings, and the current period in custody has been no different.

You have demonstrated that you are a talented artist. You have engaged well in woodwork and artistic pursuits while in custody on this occasion. I am told that you have also begun engaging in more conversations with staff that encourage you to think differently and challenge your perspectives. When you were last in the community, you were encouraged to think about an education or employment pathway you would like to pursue. You were referred to a program that offers young people qualifications, training, mentorship and support to overcome barriers and secure employment. However, you did not complete this program before you were remanded in custody on 7 August 2025. You have spoken about the prospect of obtaining employment on the Snowy Hydro Scheme.

You have been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. You were prescribed medication to assist with dealing with this condition, but your mother reported that you do not take your medication as required when you are in the community. In the past, you have been unwilling to engage with Custodial Mental Health Services. Historically, you have presented with a range of mental health concerns including self-harm and suicidal ideation. A previous assessment by Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services determined that you did not meet the threshold to work with that service and that your behaviours of concern were the result of trauma, not a mental health condition.

During your present period in custody, you refused your ADHD medication, although in January this year it was noted that your overly sexualised behaviour had resulted in you having to attend the clinic for your medication. On admission into custody in August 2025 there was no evidence of major mental illness, and you denied thoughts of self-harm. It was noted that you were seen for at-risk reviews when required, predominantly related to impulsive behaviours and heightened angry emotions. It appears that you have also been diagnosed with conduct disorder and substance use disorder and you are prescribed medication to assist with your symptoms.

You have a long history of polysubstance drug use while in the community which has included regular use of substances such as cannabis, methamphetamine and GHB. You told the author of a previous pre-sentence report that you first started using methamphetamine when you were 13 years old. You said that you would smoke it. You also reported heavy use of that substance. While in the community last year you tested positive for illicit drugs on two occasions and failed to attend urinalysis appointments on two further occasions. You told Youth Justice that you were under the influence of ketamine, GHB and methamphetamine at the time of the present offending. You said that you had been using methamphetamine every day in the community before being remanded in custody in August last year.

The pre-sentence report notes that antisocial peer associations appear to be an area of increased criminogenic need in your case. This is partly due to the significant time that you have spent in custody, as well as associating with adults and youth in the community who are known to the justice system.

While in custody you have positively engaged in a variety of programs including swimming, gym, music and general sporting activities. Unfortunately, due to behaviour breaches resulting in loss of privileges, you have not always been able to participate in your preferred activities. You have engaged well in music sessions. When previously in the community you were interested in engaging in music programs and going to the gym. Your participation in these was low which is believed to be due to your drug and alcohol use.

You have been subject to 37 behavioural breach reports during the present period in Bimberi, many of which demonstrate defiance of the directions of staff and the rules of that institution. You have also damaged property and assaulted staff. It cannot be said that your present period in custody shows a determination to change your ways. Concerns have been expressed about your support for neo-Nazism and antisemitism, as well as your interest in far-right extremist groups.

In the pre-sentence report it is stated that you wanted to be transferred to the AMC as soon as possible. I was subsequently informed, however, that you had changed your mind and you want to remain at Bimberi for as long as possible.

When discussing the circumstances of the present offending with the author of the presentence report, you clearly lied when you said that you went to the premises where the offending occurred because you thought there was a party going on. You did not commit yourself to not repeating offences against the person that you went to the premises to find. In total, you showed little remorse for these offences.

I was provided with a report prepared by Dr Anthony Baker, a consultant forensic psychiatrist, for proceedings in the Children’s Court on 8 May 2023. He confirmed the diagnosis of ADHD. He expressed the opinion that this condition was realistically connected to your offending by way of impairing your ability to exercise appropriate judgment, impairing your ability to make calm or rational choices and to think clearly, making you disinhibited, impairing your ability to appreciate the wrongfulness of your conduct, and obscuring your intent to commit the offences. Dr Baker, however, stated that it is likely that amphetamine misuse was also a significant factor in your conduct.

Dr Baker stated that your condition is likely to persist for the foreseeable future and contribute to your danger to the community through the commission of offences. It was possible that appropriate treatment and support could ameliorate your risk of recidivism. Dr Baker did not believe that a custodial sentence would weigh more heavily upon you that a person in normal health, or that there would be a serious risk that imprisonment would have a significant adverse effect on your mental health. Dr Baker did express the opinion that, at that time, you would be at an elevated risk of suicide compared to the general population in the community.

You have a particularly lengthy criminal history both in this Territory and in New South Wales which disentitles you to any leniency in sentencing for the present offences. You have previously been convicted, or found guilty of, offences of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, being armed with intent to commit an indictable offence, aggravated break and enter, aggravated common assault, aggravated robbery, possession of an offensive weapon with intent, driving a motor vehicle at police, and riding in or driving a motor vehicle without consent. You have previously served terms in juvenile institutions.

You did not enter pleas of guilty at an early opportunity. You pleaded guilty to the aggravated burglary charge following an initial plea of not guilty, the preparation of a brief and negotiation. The minor property damage charge was laid as part of a resolution, replacing a more serious version of the same offence. I nevertheless accept that your pleas of guilty had utilitarian value and saved the community the cost of a defended trial. I am not satisfied that your pleas of guilty demonstrate any real remorse for your conduct. I will reduce by about 15% the otherwise appropriate sentences because of your pleas of guilty.

Although you are only 17 years old, you have fallen into an entrenched pattern of criminal offending, and you appear to have adopted a criminal lifestyle with enthusiasm. Your conduct in custody during the present remand does not suggest that you have made any commitment to change. In my opinion, your prospects of rehabilitation are poor.

I accept that your history of significant instability, neglect, and exposure to domestic violence and drug abuse as a child together with your ADHD justify a reduction in your moral culpability for your offending. This would ordinarily justify less weight being given to deterrence and punishment as sentencing objectives. The other side of the coin, however, is that you present as a continuing danger to the public. In my opinion, you are at high risk of returning to drug abuse and serious criminal offending, including offences of violence, once you are returned to the community. While that risk could be somewhat ameliorated by you accepting appropriate treatment and counselling, you have shown little if any inclination to accept interventions on those issues. I am satisfied that it is highly likely that you simply would not cooperate if released from custody.

Nothing less than immediate terms of imprisonment is appropriate for the offences to which you have pleaded guilty. As you are a juvenile, I cannot impose a non-parole period. I am obliged to fix a date upon which the sentence will be suspended, and you will be entitled to release. In my opinion, this is regrettable. Having to set a fixed date upon which your sentences will be suspended provides you with a certain date upon which you will be released from custody no matter what your conduct in custody. There is little incentive for you to engage in appropriate counselling or treatment in custody or to behave yourself generally. No matter what behaviour you engage in in custody, your release date remains the same.

Other jurisdictions permit a non-parole period to be fixed in sentencing juvenile offenders. In appropriate cases, this is a useful sentencing tool. It obliges an offender to engage in appropriate interventions in custody and to behave themselves, because these will be relevant to any determination by the parole body to order a release to parole. I recommend to the Attorney-General that consideration be given to permitting courts to impose non-parole periods for juvenile offenders.

In sentencing you, I must consider the purpose of promoting your rehabilitation and I may give more weight to that purpose than to any of the other purposes of sentencing set out in s 7(1) of the Crimes (Sentencing) Act 2005 (ACT). I am not obliged to give more weight to rehabilitation than to other sentencing objectives, I am simply obliged to consider the purpose of promoting your rehabilitation and I may give more weight to that purpose than any other. In deciding how much weight to give to rehabilitation as a sentencing objective, I am entitled to consider your poor prospects for rehabilitation at the present time, your prior failure to comply with community-based orders and the high risk of serious criminal offending which you present. While rehabilitation cannot be abandoned, in the present case it should not be the dominant sentencing consideration.

I have two alternatives available to me for dealing with the breaches of your suspended sentence orders. I must cancel the good behaviour order imposed as part of the suspended sentence order and either impose the suspended sentence or re-sentence you for the offence. In neither case did you or the community achieve any benefit through the suspension of the sentences imposed. In my opinion, the appropriate course is to impose the suspended portion of each of the sentences being two months and 14 days for the offence of furious, reckless or dangerous driving and 10 months for the sentence imposed on 29 April 2025.