Parole Board Decision

In the Matter of Corrections Act 1997

and

In the Matter of an application for Parole by Naomi Jennifer Foon

11 March 2022

Reasons for Decision

The Background:

Naomi Jennifer Foon (‘the applicant’) is currently serving a sentence of imprisonment imposed upon conviction for perverting the course of justice, drive while disqualified, reckless driving, evade police and drug related offences.

The applicant became eligible to be considered for parole on 1 January 2022.

The applicant initially appeared before the Board in respect of her application at the hearing on 10 December 2021, but the application was adjourned to allow for the applicant to improve her behaviour in custody.

The applicant then appeared on 11 March 2022 and on that occasion the applicant was invited to provide any information she had in support of her application and made herself available for questioning by the Board.

A pre-parole report prepared on behalf of the Board had been read to the applicant prior to her appearance at the hearing.

Statutory Criteria:

In determining the application, the Board has had regard to the following statutory criteria:-

The Corrections Act 1997, s72, establishes a statutory criteria for determining suitability for parole.

S72 (4) specifically provides as follows:

“In determining whether or not a prisoner should be released on parole, the Board is to take into consideration –

• The likelihood of the prisoner re-offending; and
• The protection of the public; and
• The rehabilitation of the prisoner; and
• Any remarks made by the court in passing sentence; and
• The likelihood of the prisoner complying with the conditions; and
• The circumstances and gravity of the offence, or offences, for which the prisoner was sentenced to imprisonment; and
• The behaviour of the prisoner while in prison and, if he or she has been in a secure mental health unit, while in that secure mental health unit; and
• The behaviour of the prisoner during any previous release on parole; and
• The behaviour of the prisoner while subject to any order of a court; and
• Any reports tendered to the Board on the social background of the prisoner, the medical, psychological or psychiatric condition of the prisoner or any other matter relating to the prisoner, including in the case of a prisoner who is or has been a forensic patient any report of the Chief Forensic Psychiatrist; and
• The probable circumstances of the prisoner after release from prison; and
• Any statement provided under subsection (2B) by a victim, or, if subsection (2AB) applies, the parent or guardian of the victim, of an offence for which the prisoner has been sentenced to imprisonment; and
• If the prisoner is a sex offender prisoner, any notice or assessment given to the Board pursuant to section 31(6) or (7) concerning the prisoner's participation or non-participation in appropriate treatment; and
• Any other matters that the Board thinks are relevant.”

When considering the application for parole of a sex offender s31(3)(b) of the Act is also relevant:

• “The Director, on giving the sex offender prisoner the opportunity to participate in the appropriate treatment, is to inform the prisoner that…
• Participation, non-participation or unsatisfactory participation will, if the prisoner becomes eligible for parole, be factors taken into consideration by the Board in determining whether the prisoner should be released on parole.”

The purpose of parole:

The High Court, in Power v The Queen (1974) 131 CLR 623 rejected the proposition that the primary purpose of parole is the rehabilitation of the offender, deciding that it is "to provide for mitigation of the punishment of the prisoner in favour of his rehabilitation through conditional freedom, when appropriate, once the prisoner has served the minimum time that a judge determines justice requires that he must serve having regard to all the circumstances of his offence".

The system of parole does recognise, however, the capacity of people to change and reform, the benefits of supervision, treatment and program delivery in the community and ultimately the potential this has for the protection of the community in reducing recidivism.

When considering eligibility for parole this purpose must be weighed against the risk each prisoner may pose to members of the community if released to serve the remainder of their sentence amongst them, the ability to remove or mitigate that risk by the imposition of appropriate conditions and understanding the victim’s “voice” and the desire to punish for the criminal wrongdoing.

Consideration:

This applicant is now 24 years old.  Her abuse of illicit drugs from an early age is clearly a contributing factor in her offending. The applicant has a history of driving related offences including numerous charges of driving without a licence, several driving whilst disqualified and driving with an illicit drug in the blood, in addition to offences of dishonesty.

The applicant’s abuse of illicit drugs commenced in her early teens, initially using cannabis but more recently methylamphetamine from the age of 17.

The applicant initially struggled with compliance when first incarcerated. On entry into custody in the Mary Hutchinson Women’s Prison (MHWP), she was classified minimum security but was regressed to maximum because of a drug related trafficking offence in mid-2021.  Case notes show she has now attained a medium classification, her behaviour is recorded as being consistently polite and respectful towards others and the applicant is currently employed as a cleaner.

The applicant maintains that despite her history of abuse of illicit drugs, she is drug free and has been so for the past 10 months of her sentence.  She is engaged in individual drug and alcohol counselling and is reportedly focused on relapse prevention and strategies to assist her to complete parole if an order were to be granted.

While the applicant does have an outstanding Supreme Court matter, the Board is advised this is still under investigation and unlikely to be resolved prior to the expiration of the applicant’s current sentence in September 2022.

On the applicant’s appearance before the Board in December 2021, the Board adjourned the application for parole, requesting the applicant demonstrate a period of compliance, free of internal offending. Although two recent internal incident reports are recorded, they appear to be of a minor nature and have not affected her classification.

Community Corrections note the most significant concern regarding the applicant’s suitability for parole is her history of offending, drug use and criminal associations during past periods of supervision on community-based sentences, in addition to her initial behaviour in custody.

By her own admission on interview, the applicant reflected she needed to break the cycle of past offending. She stated she felt her time in custody had given her a chance to ‘get clean’, and she expressed motivation to maintain abstinence and “do the right thing” if returned to the community.

Notably, since September 2021, the applicant has been involved as a Peer Supporter with the Red Cross Peer Support Program in MHWP. This program is designed to equip inmates with experience in a custodial setting with skills to support new inmates. In a letter of support provided, the applicant is described by the Program Co-ordinator as polite, eager and motivated to support others and improve her circumstances.

Although it appears the applicant may struggle with maintaining abstinence and is at risk of re-offending given her history, the additional support and structure provided by a parole order would assist in management of the risks.  The applicant presented as motivated to change and spoke about her plans for obtaining employment and engaging in appropriate supports to assist her avoid relapse into drug use.

The applicant’s accommodation has been assessed as suitable and Community Corrections recommend the imposition of electronic monitoring to enable effective monitoring of curfew conditions and provide additional incentive for the applicant to comply with parole.

On balancing all factors, the Board deems the applicant is suitable for a parole order.

The Board’s determination:

Parole Granted

Special conditions applied

• Subject to electronic monitoring

Parole from 21 March 2022 - 21 September 2022