The Court of Appeal has upheld a 12-month prison sentence imposed on Edward O’Sullivan for possessing a stolen mobile phone in County Clare.
O’Sullivan pleaded guilty to possessing a Samsung Galaxy phone at Erinagh, Clonlara, on September 8, 2013, knowing it was stolen or being reckless as to whether it was stolen. The phone had been taken shortly beforehand when a parked car was broken into.
He had originally faced two additional theft charges. Although the DPP was prepared to have the case dealt with summarily in the District Court, O’Sullivan elected for jury trial in the Circuit Criminal Court. The theft charges were later withdrawn by nolle prosequi and he pleaded guilty to the remaining possession count.
On February 19, 2015, he received 12 months’ imprisonment, consecutive to another sentence. On appeal, he argued that he might have received less had the case remained in the District Court, where 12 months was the maximum available for the offence.
The Court of Appeal rejected that argument. It held that once O’Sullivan elected for trial in the Circuit Court, the sentencing judge was entitled to work within that court’s five-year maximum and was not required to estimate what a District Court judge might have imposed.
The court also rejected a claim that the sentencing judge wrongly treated O’Sullivan as having broken into the car and stolen the phone. It found that the judge knew the actual charge was possession and had merely referred to the immediate background of the theft.
O’Sullivan had 125 previous convictions, including 11 theft offences, two burglaries and six handling-stolen-property offences. The appeal court held that their number and relevance could properly aggravate sentence.
The 12-month sentence was therefore upheld. The court additionally directed that O’Sullivan receive credit for six weeks already spent in custody before sentence.